I’ve had such a good experience with the Lively T-shirt bra (reviewed here) that I decided to give a few of their other bras a try. I ordered the Mesh Trim No-Wire bra and the All-Day bralette.
Shipping went smoothly. Lively’s packaging has changed since the last time I shopped with them. They ship in just one box now (instead of a shipping box containing a box with a magnetic lid inside). That’s fine by me since I don’t need the magnetic lid box. Less packaging is always better in my book (unless we’re talking about something fragile.)
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The Mesh Trim No-Wire
The Mesh Trim No-Wire seems like it would serve as a good good every day bra. Like the T-shirt bra, it’s tagless, has front adjusting straps, and a J-hook on the back to convert it to a racerback.
It has gold tone hardware and lightly molded cups.
I ordered my normal size. However, Like its cousin the All-Day Deep V No-Wire bra, this just wasn’t made for me. The middle front of the bra gaped and didn’t stay flat against my body. I had this same problem with the Deep V. Alas, I found the band uncomfortable and had to send it back. But your mileage may vary, so it could work well for someone else.
The All-Day Bralette
All-Day Bralette – $35
Lively offers several styles of bralettes and it was hard to narrow down which one to try. I ultimately went with the All-Day Bralette because of the name, which implied you could wear it all day. Visually, I also liked the contrast colors where the cups were one color and the band and strap were another.
Based on the size chart, I ordered a small, which fit fine. Unlike other Lively bras, the adjustment on these straps are on the back, which I don’t prefer. I think it’s much handier to adjust from the front. However, I do appreciate the the bralettes all have clasps on the back. I hate pulling bras over my head.
The cup is made out of a rayon spandex blend. It’s pretty soft and comfy, but shapeless.
Unlike other Lively bras, this one does have a tag, so if I were to keep this bra, I would most likely cut it off.
However, I didn’t end up keeping it. Here’s why: While the bralette fit comfortably all around, including around the band, it has a seam running right down the middle of the cups, which seemed like awkward placement over the nipples.
Also, after trying it on, I realized that I just didn’t understand what the bralette was for. It’s lightweight and not that supportive. It’s thin so your nipples can show through it. I can’t imagine a scenario in which I’d wear this. The copy on Lively’s website says the bralette is for “running errands, working, lounging… almost anything tbh!”
Um, no thanks. I’m definitely not wearing this to work or out to run errands with the possibility that my headlights will show. Some people don’t care about that, but I’m self conscious about it. And if I’m going to lounge around at home, I’m just not going to wear a bra. But then again, I’m not that busty. If you’re busty and need support throughout the day, then a bralette could be a more comfortable alternative to wearing your regular bra at home. Lively makes a bralette specifically for those who are size DD and DDD called the Busty Bralette.
A Note About Pricing and the Rewards Program
I returned both bras. A note about pricing, by the way. Each bra is reasonably priced at $35, but if you buy multiples, the price goes down per item. So 2 bras is $55, 3 are $75. I used a combination of points from their rewards programs and a credit card to pay for my bras and learned that if you return something, the points don’t go back to your account. They’re like a coupon, so you lose them.
For example, for one of my orders I bought two bras, which cost $55. I used $40 in points, so that brought my total to $15. Because the order was less than $40, I had to pay for shipping, which was $7.95. I kept one bra from that order (a T-shirt bra), and sent the other bra back. Lively refunded me 50% of the cash I paid — $7.50. So the total cost for the one bra I kept was $15.45 — a great price! But I lost my points.
Had I used my $40 in points on two bras that I kept, then each bra would have only cost me $11.25! So, to get the most out of your points, I recommend using them on things you know you’re going to keep. I think for me, I’m sticking to the T-shirt bras. I noticed that Lively has a new T-shirt bra: the All-Day T-shirt Bra, which doesn’t have lace on the straps like their first T-shirt bra. This is a practical move I appreciate since the lace peeks out sometimes with sleeveless shirts.
Since I last wrote about Lively, it appears the online brand has expanded into partnerships with other brands as well. You can now buy Lively from Nordstrom and Madewell, for instance.
UPDATE 2/24/19: Looks like the prices have gone up a bit (2 bras for $60, 3 for $80). Also, Lively and Nordstrom expanded their partnership as the department store is carrying more more Lively items and a few locations also have a Lively shop inside.
If you found my review helpful and want to try Lively, consider using my referral code, which will give you $10 off your first order. You can also read all my other bra reviews here.
