Gossard is one of the longest standing full-bust brands in the UK, with gorgeous bras available in 30-44 bands and A-G cups. Rachael has reviewed various Gossard sets before, but unfortunately, with my 30K size, I don’t fit into their size range. However, as a lover of all kinds of lingerie, that doesn’t stop me from enjoying their separates! I am a huge fan of beautiful knickers and suspender belts, and when I saw the Iris set, I fell in love.

Luckily for me, Gossard kindly offered to send me the set! I received the Iris Waspie Suspender and Iris Thong in a size Large. The Iris collection includes a Half-Padded Plunge Bra available in 30-38 bands and A-E cups, which I did not get for obvious reasons. I usually choose to match my Iris pieces with my Masquerade Rhea, though I think they could easily match a wide variety of bras if needed.

As part of Gossard’s VIP collection, the Iris is an absolutely stunning style. The fabrics are sturdy but very comfortable, with no itchiness or rough edges to be found. It features a print of pink and yellow irises, with pink ribbon adornments, black lace detailing, and (my favourite) rose gold hardware. The iris print satin is complemented by panels of black mesh, with light boning at the front and back. At 8.5 inches long at the centre, this is a wonderfully deep suspender belt, which makes it a great choice if you need something that will stay in place.

The suspender belt has four (non-detachable) suspender straps, two at both the front and back. Many people prefer at least 6 (usually wider) straps for practical wear, but due to the firm fabrics and metal hardware, I find this suspender belt is still sturdy enough for me personally, and I haven’t had any issues with the clips coming undone or slipping throughout the day.

The suspender straps are attached to the waspie with two strips of satin forming a triangle, similar in style to the standard gate-back Gossard use on many of their bras. Due to how they’re attached, the suspender straps are only half-adjustable with a length of 5-6 inches, which means they may be too long for those who are more petite.

The back fastens with 9 hooks and eyes, and there are three columns of eyes to give a range of fit. With my 42.5 inch (108cm) hips, Gossard’s size chart suggests I’m on the small side of a size XL, which they say is equivalent to a 16-18. However, I usually wear a size 14, and as I own Gossard briefs in both sizes medium and large, I opted to go for the in-between option of a size large (approximately 14-16).

Unfortunately, this style seems to run much bigger than my other Gossard items, and I found both the suspender and thong were too big for me. The suspender stays in place on the tightest hooks well enough, but it sits a little way below my natural waist, and I find it doesn’t really do any shaping on me because of this (though I imagine it would in a smaller size). I also find the thong to be baggy at the front, which is something little harder to get away with, and I am so gutted about! I think I would likely need a medium in these pieces, and given that this size is too large even on the tightest hooks, it’s possible even a small could work.

For aesthetics, it is common to wear your suspender belt over your briefs, but for actual wear it tends to be much more practical to wear the briefs on top. The above picture is to show how this looks on me – I personally think it still looks pretty good, and when it comes to both everyday wear and bedroom wear, it’s obviously a much better choice for *ahem* accessibility, but how you choose to wear your suspender belts is entirely up to you.

The thong is constructed with the same iris print satin at the front and black mesh at the back, with another sheer panel of black mesh trimmed with lace underneath the front waistband. Two strips of iris print satin comprise each side, continuing the gate-esque details from the suspenders onto the thong. This is an absolutely gorgeous style, so I’m really disappointed that it’s not the right size for me!

Overall this is an absolutely stunning set – I’m just a little disappointed to find it runs so much bigger than my other Gossard pieces! If you do get these pieces, I would suggest sizing down 1-2 sizes from your usual size in Gossard briefs. For another opinion on this set, check out this review of the Iris by Science & Silicone.

What do you think of the Iris? Are you a fan of stockings and suspenders? Let me know any thoughts in the comments below!

Bra: Masquerade ‘Rhea’ Bra in Black, size 34H. Available in 30-40 D-H, RRP £34. Reviewed here.
Briefs: Gossard ‘Iris VIP’ Thong, size Large. Available in XS-XL, RRP £18.
Suspender: Gossard ‘Iris VIP’ Waspie Suspender, size Large. Available in XS-XL, RRP £49.
Stockings: Silky Scarlet Seamer Stockings in Beige/Black, size Medium. One size, RRP £4.99.
Robe: George at Asda (discontinued).

Gossard ‘Iris VIP’ Waspie Suspender and Thong provided for review by Gossard. Though these items were received free of charge, this is not a sponsored post, and all opinions are my own.

The following two tabs change content below.

• Bio
• Latest Posts

Anna

Founder and main author of Bras and Body Image. Anna is a lingerie lover, feminist and maths student based in the UK, who hopes to someday cuddle every cat in the world.

Latest posts by Anna (see all)

• Nude Bras for Women of Colour in AW16 - August 26, 2016
• The Ultimate Strappy Bra: Review of the Ewa Michalak S Przeplatanki (70K) - August 2, 2016
• Bank Holiday Sales Round-Up (May 2016) - May 29, 2016