Disclosure: I received these items free of charge to review.
Lounge Underwear (or just Lounge) is a UK-based, direct-to-consumer company that launched in 2015, although I didn’t hear about them until much more recently; I think it was around 2022 or maybe 2023 when they started popping up regularly in my Instagram ads, so when the brand contacted me last year to send me some products, I did find myself curious to see them up close. It’s a very trendy brand with pretty affordable, high street-level pricing (£25-£45 for bras), so I was interested to learn whether there was any emphasis on quality and fit or only aesthetics.
I picked out two sets. First was the Luxe Balcony bra with a matching thong (there is also a brief option) which currently comes in 7 colours. I went with Purple. This looked like a stylish but uncomplicated set I could wear on a regular basis. Then I picked out one of their ‘intimates sets’, which for the most part are bra sets that come with a suspender belt and matching thigh garters, and sold only as complete sets. I chose the Frankie because I loved the vibrant cobalt blue.
Design & construction
The Luxe bra set
The Luxe balcony bra costs £40 / $47 / 42€ and the thong is £15 / $18 / 18€ or 6 for £55 / $60 / 60€. They’re available in UK 30A-40G and XS-3XL. Note that they still use UK cup sizing on their US/EU websites, so be sure to check the size guide if you don’t know how to convert between them.
This set is made from a fairly open stretch lace with a light lilac background and darker purple florals framed by lilac cording. It’s a very pretty lace which continues up to the shoulder and carries around to the back of the bra. The backs of the shoulder straps are embossed with subtle, tone-on-tone Lounge branding and both pieces have bi-colour ‘Lounge’ elastic at the back as well; I am not normally a fan of anything that’s sports-inspired but, I guess because it’s only on the back of the set and also in the same colour palette so it blends seamlessly into the rest of the design, I don’t actually mind the logos here. It doesn’t really read as ‘sporty’.
The lace on both pieces is unlined except for a tiny piece of tulle backing the fabric between the cups and a 1-2″ panel at the side of each cup to strengthen these key areas. The bra has silver metal strap rings/sliders engraved yet again with the Lounge brand name, which is a nice touch – I always appreciate custom hardware as it feels more luxe than a plain and generic alternative.
The Frankie bra set
The Frankie Intimates Set costs £80 / $90 / 90€ and is also available in UK 30A-40G and XS-3XL.
Like Luxe, Frankie is made from a single, unlined layer – this time a light beige tulle that’s embroidered with blue flowers, with polyester satin trims. The strapping details on this set are a mix of folded satin and the same subtly Lounge-embossed elastic as before. Although both bras use elastic at the centre-back, on Frankie the ‘strappiness’ is much more of a design feature and there’s flexible plastic boning on both the bra and suspender to ensure the strapping holds its three-pronged shape and doesn’t collapse on the body.
The hardware on this set is rose gold and most of it features the Lounge logo. I did notice though that two of the sliders – one on one garter, and one on one of the suspender’s front straps – have been applied upside down with the logo side facing towards the body. Not the best quality control there!
Both sets
The sewing quality on all of the pieces I received is fine. It isn’t perfect, but it’s generally neat and in line with what I would expect from a brand in this price range.
While both thongs have standard sewn-in care tags, the bras and the Frankie suspender have the care information printed in silver lettering onto the inside of the hook-and-eye closures. This I really like, since it eliminates the potential for scratchy or visible garment tags. However, the closures on Luxe and Frankie are made from different fabrics, and the information peeled off of the Frankie almost immediately. So, it’s a nice idea, but not one the brand has tested thoroughly for durability across their product range.
Fit & comfort
The Luxe bra set
I have the Luxe set in my usual sizes of 30DD and XS. I love the way this set fits! This is actually my very favourite bra shape/type; plunges with high-apex cups (where the cup continues up to the shoulder rather than there being a separate front strap) just work really well for fuller-on-the-bottom busts because they don’t gape. The Myla Columbia bra is another example (that’s no longer available) but the Luxe cups are stretchy, including a thin strip of elastic along the inside of the neckline, which creates even more of a flush fit. It’s become one of my everyday staples – great-fitting, pretty, and comfy too.
I also find the very open, unlined mesh to be a very practical, breathable option for summer. We’re at 35-40°C in Madrid right now, and almost unbearably humid, and this set is one of the few I keep reaching for. The website describes this style as having “an all over supportive fit”; I’d call it moderately-supportive. I can’t imagine these stretchy, single-layer cups would offer much in the way of lift for busts much heavier than mine however, and I can’t see anything to indicate that larger sizes have an added tulle lining, or any other design differences for that matter.
By the way, in most colours, you can choose to view this set on models with different bra/clothing sizes which is a great website feature!
The Frankie bra set
Frankie was a much less successful fit. I originally received it in the same 30DD and the cups were far too small, so I decided to swap for a 30F – two cup sizes up from my usual – and that fits much better. So I’d absolutely recommend that you do the same if ordering this set, even if you own other Lounge bras that fit in your usual size.
Naturally, the 30F Frankie wires are wider than the 30DD Luxe ones, so they wrap further around the sides of the body. The cups are also made from a single piece of darted fabric, so they’re not particularly deep. Overall it’s just a very wide, shallow shape. Technically it fits, but I don’t love the way it fits.
You can only choose a single size for the rest of this matching set, so my thong and suspender belt are both an XS which works fine for me but might not be suitable if you have a particularly large waist to hip ratio. The garters don’t have size labels but are highly adjustable; I’m guessing these are a ‘one size’ design. Comfort wise, no complaints – although the Frankie fabric is embroidered and unlined, I haven’t found it to be at all scratchy, and nothing digs in.
Final thoughts
My first impressions of Lounge Underwear are that it’s hit and miss. The Luxe balcony bra and thong I’ve been wearing regularly for almost a year now and really like, and I will 100% repurchase this set if it wears out. I might even get it in a second colour now just so that I can wear it more often! On the other hand, the Frankie set, while a cute design, was two cup sizes too small which makes me wary of ordering other styles online due to obvious sizing inconsistencies, and came with manufacturing flaws that also throw into question the brand’s level of quality control.
Additionally, I didn’t mention it before because it’s not really my style and so I never wore the set and can’t properly review it, but I was gifted the Royal Balcony bra in a 30DD as well and that was also too small, though this time probably only by one cup size rather than two. My advice to the brand would definitely be to work on standardising their cup sizing!
In conclusion, I’m happy to recommend the Luxe set to you, but I’d have to try more Lounge products before I could say if I recommend the brand overall. They have some eye-catching sets available at great-value prices and cater to a fairly wide size range – all positives – but unless you happen to live near one of their five UK stores and can try things on before you buy, expect to have to exchange things to find the right size. Luckily, returns and exchanges are free in many countries.
Have you ever bought from Lounge Underwear? If yes, how did you find the sizing?
1 comment
Unfortunately, a lot of those brands have a more “Instagrammy” fit about them, with the cups purposefully too small and shallow to get a “spillover” effect and the thongs with a sometimes insanely long crotch, so you can give yourself a “sexy” wedgie. It’s a shame, because a lot of the sets do look nice, but even their size inclusivity might rather come from a belief of “men like curves, not bones”, rather than genuine body positivity. Also their models really just display small cups on small frames and semi-large cups on larger frames, so they’re not that diverse, either. I’m just glad I don’t see any obviously augmented bodies for once.
And I’m glad that the Luxe set is such a good fit on you, but I think the lace just looks cheap. I’ve seen similar stretch lace so many times when browsing Aliexpress. It’s the kind of material that everyone makes their first bra from. And taking into account that this bra doesn’t seem to change construction in larger cups and has these weirdly V-shaped wires throughout, I think 40£ is quite a hefty price point considering that for example Ann Summers retails for the same, but has an even larger size range, better construction and much more detailed aesthetic.
That said, I really like this turquoise/”cobalt” colourway they’re offering. Such intense shades of blue are always a winner with me.