More Than A Handful

I actually wrote my review for More Than A Handful, way back in November 2014, when Dave M checked in there on my behalf, then told me I had to write the review. Realistically there’s not a lot I can say to update it, but I’ll try.
I’ve been back twice since I wrote that first review, most recently last week. I’ve been very happy with the service I’ve received on both occasions. The second visit, I ended up ordering some items that I was told would take 5 or 6 weeks to arrive. I was prepared to wait, so I agreed. The first item arrived quite quickly, only taking 4 or 5 weeks from ordering. The other items took significantly longer to arrive, so much so that an order placed in April was only filled in late July or early August. I guess the manufacturer was out of stock. Unfortunately that’s the chance that you take with items ordered from Europe. Each time, I had the option of paying a nominal postage fee (around $ 11) to send the items to me, or getting Dave to wander over on his way home from work. I opted for that as it means that he walks past Haigh’s, which then has its own benefits…
Anyway, the delay in receiving orders didn’t put me off because I was there again last Friday, this time to buy sports bras.
I made my appointment the day before and was able to go in at about 5.10 pm and be fitted promptly and accurately. 2 sports bras later, I’m happy. I did find a lovely purple set that’s now on my wish list for when I go back next month to spend my birthday voucher.
Seriously, if you have trouble getting bras that fit properly, I’d wholeheartedly recommend them.

OK, it’s Dave’s other half here. He checked in at More Than A Handful on my behalf, and now tells me that I have to write the review. Dave does not, as a rule, hang out in ladies’ underwear shops (and cannot offer first hand experience of it… yet).
This is going to be challenging to write while maintaining good taste. Let me see… More Than A Handful is a bra shop that specialises in those of us who are blessed (or cursed, depending on the point of view) with, as it were, more than a handful in the chest department. I’ve heard it said that anything more than a handful is a waste, but I digress.
As I said, they specialise in fitting the more well endowed lady. Don’t get me wrong, this is not a shop specialising in plus sizes only. The owner recognises that big boobs can go along with a small back (something that the major Australian manufacturers have yet to grok). I’ve been wearing one brand of underwear for 10+ years for this very reason. But there’s a catch with what I currently wear; it’s only available via party plan (think Tupperware, only bras ‘n’ undies), and it’s not cheap. I regularly pay $ 70-​$ 90 for my bras. Fancier/​more specialised bras cost more. As I have an addiction to matching sets, add the knickers in and suddenly I’m looking at $ 150-​$ 200 for my underwear.
So, when Dave told me about this shop he was walking past on his way to work, called More Than A Handful, he thought I should go and see what it was like. I’ve never managed to walk into a bra shop and walk out a happy customer. At least, not until I went into More Than A Handful.
The first thing you need to be aware of is that this is not your standard shopping centre lingerie shop. For a start, it isn’t on the street front or in a centre. It’s actually up on the first floor of it’s building, with a bay window overlooking Druitt St (with lingerie-​clad mannequins in the window, so you know where it is). You take the lift up to the shop and immediately enter an Aladdin’s Cave of gorgeous colours and styles. Being a specialist business, they prefer customers to make an appointment. I was lucky. When I realised this, I phoned and found that they weren’t too busy, so were happy for me to come in. If you were to drop in on a day when they were busy, be aware that those with bookings take priority over those without.
Anyway, go in I did. I told the helpful young lady what I needed and was immediately escorted to a generously proportioned dressing room and measured. Properly. She excused herself and came back a few minutes later with a handful of bras for me to try, to work out what fitted best. Based on that, she then brought other styles and colours for me to try. This went on for a while. By the time we’d finished, I had a selection of four bras and matching knickers to completely replenish my underwear drawer.
Then came the shock. Suddenly I was faced with paying nearly $ 800 for what I was planning on purchasing. Dave is indulgent when it comes to my underwear (after all, he gets to see me in it), but this was excessive, even for me. Some juducious pruning of the shopping list later, I walked out with 2 bras and 3 pairs of knickers for nearly $ 400.
I freely admit that this is not for the faint-​hearted, but when I investigated the brands I bought, I can see why it was expensive ($ 165 for one bra) — it’s hand made in Germany by a small company that’s been owned by the same family for over 70 years. I was lucky that the second bra I bought was discontinued stock and got that on sale at $ 90.
However, I signed up on their customer list, and was given their birthday discount as mine had only been a couple of weeks earlier. Both the bras I bought (and the bras I had to leave behind) were listed on my customer record so that I (or my designated representative) could go in and buy more quickly next time. They offer a service to the men of their customers to help them purchase for gifts (and that’s why Dave will have personal experience in the future — I’ve got my eye on a set for Xmas). I don’t know that they’d get many casual browsers — it doesn’t strike me as the sort of place to window shop. They fit for free if you are buying, but if you don’t, they charge a fitting fee, which seems reasonable to me, given the amount of time and care taken.
So More Than A Handful was a success for me. Great service, fantastic range (I saw bras up to an «L» cup — the mind boggles!), but be prepared to hand over big $$$ for what you buy.