Review: N by Natori Truly Soft Bra

I've been buying up some of the old N by Natori styles that will never come again. While I've found two of the new styles that I like very much,  Satin Fleur and Pure Allure, and they will definitely become staples, I still like much about the 'less bra' aesthetic of the old iteration of Natori.

The truly soft bra is a wire-free cami-bra. A very useful style for tops that would simply be a lowish neckline on a B-cup, but on a GG bust - and high set, at that - are basically indecent. Seriously, I find that annoying. My roots begin only 2" below my collarbone; I can show cleavage in anything but a turtleneck. Not that there's anything wrong with that. But for work, especially in my former job when I was often the only woman present, I prefer to be able to remove cleavage from the equation.

Beauty 

Here is how it looks under a top that would have otherwise been completely unwearable for me. 

That line down the center that I thought was an odd design choice is actually pretty genius. It's there to hide the line of cleavage that would otherwise be totally visible

  

And close up, you can see just how high my cleavage actually begins, right at the top of the bra.

The lace is a rose pattern, but the center line detracts from it quite a bit. But it was quite effective at camouflaging the cleavage shadow. You'd have to be pretty close up - and staring from this height - to see it.

Comfort

Not bad, but not as comfy as I'd hoped, either. 

Fabric.  It is indeed very soft. I experienced no irritation at all on that front.

 The sides come up quite high, but the fabric is non-mesh, so it is smooth against the skin.

The lace is a V-shape so it doesn't cut across the boob and the seam that joins it is flat.

There is no side sling; the sides are molded and the fabric here is thicker. It does a good job of keeping the shape forward and centered.

Compromises

 There are quite a few, I'm afraid.

Side Stays.  I dislike them at the best of times, but these really did not work for me. 
 
They are fairly soft, but very, very tall. 
  
You can see the beginning of what is going to happen a few hours later:  they are going to end up bent into a 'J' shape, with the bottom of the stay flipping up and out, away from my body. Which was far more comfortable, but ridiculous. There is no need for 5" side stays in the first place in a band this tall and stable.

I will be removing the side stays before the next wearing of this bra.  

Straps.  Another style that is not restricted stretch.  While not as wide as they should be, they do have an interesting feature: the underside has a polka dot velvety pattern, making shoulder slip a non-issue. Not really necessary, as these are not wide-set straps at all.

Coverage.  As with virtually all wire-free bras, you are not going to get any separation, and over the course of the day, I do get cleavage-creep. Being full-on-top increases that, so I do need to re-arrange several times a day when I feel the rise of double-bubble.

When Will I Wear It?

With lower cut tops where I would otherwise need to wear a 1/2 cami. Sometimes, you just don't want even a partial additional layer. Though for complete comfort and coverage, I'd opt for the 1/2 cami with a non-padded wired bra instead.  

Size:  40H   This is the old Natori sizing, so the band is plenty snug, and runs a full size smaller than the new styles.