You know what I’m not good at? Taking pictures of my eyes. But I finished the RapidLash trial I told you about and want to show you how it turned out.

Actually, these are terrible pictures and the light is different, which is distracting. So I made them black and white, and I think that helps show the differences anyway.

The first thing I notice is that I look awfully tired in the first picture. Maybe eyes that look less tired is a nice side effect of RapidLash. But overall my eyelashes definitely seem fuller on the top, especially at the outside of my eyes, and stronger (darker? something) at the ends. I’m not sure if you can see all that in the pictures, but that’s my observation.

I’m pleased with those results, because as I said before one of my biggest annoyances about my eyelashes is that when I’m not wearing mascara you can hardly tell they’re there. RapidLash does seem to have helped with that, and my eyebrows feel better too. (And guess what? I finally got them threaded again after almost three years. Which has nothing to do with this post, but that helped too.)

I was skeptical about whether RapidLash would do anything, but it apparently it does work. It’s really easy to use, non-irritating, and you can’t even tell it’s there once you’ve applied it. I could sort of feel it on my eyelashes when it was dry, but by the time I woke up in the morning I didn’t notice it at all.

If you have eyelashes that don’t live up to their potential, I’d recommend giving RapidLash a try.

Disclosure: I am part of the RapidLash campaign with Influence Central and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions (and eyelashes) on this blog are my own.

A few weeks ago I vacuumed under the dresser in my closet for the first time in… Well, it was probably the first time since we moved into this house. At least that’s a reasonable assumption, for two reasons: one: holy dust bunnies, Batman, and two: I found two bras under there that I had completely forgotten about and probably haven’t worn since I got pregnant with Ethan (which was approximately 6 weeks after we moved into this house). Once the bras were clean I pulled on the lacy one figuring I’d feel a little less mom-ish again.

Nope.

Now I remember why I didn’t miss that particular bra: it’s wickedly uncomfortable. I don’t know if it’s the lace or that it doesn’t fit right or a combination (or, quite possibly, the fact that generally, sigh, I’m the sort of girl who likes non-complicated bras). I wore it for one day and then promptly tossed it back under the dresser. (Kidding. It’s taking up space in my drawer and depriving dust bunnies of a home.)

I have a love/hate relationship with bras. I love that they can make me look bustier than I am; I hate that most of them that have any sort of anything on them are uncomfortable.

The two bras I saved from their fate under my dresser aren’t the only ones I’m still wearing from my before-Ethan era. In fact, I think all the ones I currently wear pre-date at least him. They might even pre-date his brother, but let’s not think about how terribly sad that is and just pretend it’s possible I have acquired some new bras in the last 7 years.

It was definitely time to do something about this sad situation (regardless of whether it’s been going on for 3 years or much longer) so I went in for a bra fitting. Have you ever done this? I’ve often thought I should, and quite recently decided it was high time I at least figured out if I was wearing the right size bra. So into The Bay I went to meet with Angeline.

Angeline was the sort of woman whose lacy bras, I suspect, are not gathering dust under her dresser, but she was very nice. She quickly measured me and announced her suggestion for size, which happens to be the size I usually buy, so I at least have that going for me. That was pretty much the last thing I was right about, though.

Giving the band of my bra a tug, Angeline noted that it was too loose, which I conceded was because I hate having tight bras that feel like they’re digging into me. And not that I don’t credit her with giving me an accurate size, but this is where Angeline scored her first big point with me.

She explained that having a band that fits properly and is done up snugly enough helps to prevent your bra from riding up. Well, I’ll be damned. I’m constantly pulling the band of my bra down while doing it up on the loosest clasp hoping that will make it more comfortable. Lesson number one learned: the band has to be snug for it not to ride up.

Leaving me with that tidbit to ponder, Angeline went to get some bras for me to try on. She’s a Wacoal consultant, and I had never actually looked at this brand before, but having browsed the selection after my fitting I’ll admit I’ve overlooked some great options.

The first one I tried was the one below – the awareness seamless underwire bra. I tried a couple of sizes, and it didn’t feel right.

It felt, or maybe looked, decidedly awkward, in fact, and that’s when Angeline came out with it: “I don’t feel like this bra really suits you.” Whew. I’m with you, sister. It looks great on the model, but did not look great on me.

If you’re going to find a bra that fits properly and suits you, it helps to know the qualities you’re working with. I am, as Angeline pointed out, tall and not very busty, but I do have a big ribcage. (I do, it’s true. I hate it.) The tall combined with big-ribcage factors are what result in me continually messing around with the straps on pretty much any bra I wear, but in trying on something else Angeline reiterated that finding a bra that fits right in the band – meaning it fits nicely on the middle clasp, giving you some room to go up and some room to go down – is the secret. Get it right in the band, adjust the straps to suit, and you’ve got a bra that fits.

The second major point Angeline scored was in bringing me a bra with no underwire to try. Aside from nursing bras and sports bras, I have always shied away from bras with no underwire because I always felt they played right into my lack of busty-ness and left me looking droopy. (Especially post-nursing. Oy.)

This one – the Wacoal how perfect non-wire bra – is seriously comfortable. It’s not fancy (but I think we can all agree that’s probably a good thing for me) and it fits well. Plus, it looks good under a shirt, which is another of my major criteria. And I needed another nude bra because I recently tried my old one under a white shirt and it definitely didn’t have a nude effect. Time to retire that one, I think, and go with this one instead. (I tried it under that same white shirt – totally invisible.)

So that’s my bra story.

If you’re still wearing the same bras (or not wearing the same uncomfortable bras, as the case may be) I’d highly recommend getting a bra fitting. Angeline tells me women come into The Bay all the time to do this, which helped me feel less like it was a weird thing to do. And it wasn’t awkward. Really quite helpful, actually.

Wacoal bras (which are available in Canada and the US) are really good quality but reasonably priced, and as you can see from the photos come in a variety of styles both sexy and straightforward. The whole point of this brand is to help women look and feel their best, and that’s a big part of what a fitting with a Wacoal consultant can do for you. The bras are designed for women of all shapes and sizes (even tall, non-busty ones with large ribcages) and have options for underwear and lingerie, too.

Who wants to go shopping with me? I’m eyeing one of the pink bras from the top photo, and I know someone who can help get you kitted up right too.