UP CLOSE WITH EM & ASH - BOSS BABES AT LILLY & LIME

Meet Em and Ash – the (very) real women at the helm of Lilly & Lime, bringing fabulous swimwear from D cup and up to the world!

Sticky children. Separate timezones. Dodgy broadband. These are just some of the things that Em and Ash boldly – bravely, you might say – manage on a daily basis to run Lilly & Lime. Seriously though, when you’ve had nothing but bland, floppy swimwear to hold up your larger than average boosies, these women are actual flippin’ lifesavers.

So let’s get to know them a bit better, shall we?

There’s an urban legend that Lilly & Lime was born after a wild hen’s night. Is this just a spicy invention or is there any truth in it?

Em & Ash: Oh yes, more like a wild weekend ;) It’s absolutely the best place to harness your creative spirit. Just picture it: 14 women in one house with more than their body weight in alcohol = skinny dipping, table dancing, and lots of recovering around a pool. It was against this inspiring backdrop that we came up with the idea for Lilly & Lime.

We noticed that all our friends had great bikinis and ours were terrible. So we thought there must be other women out there like us, and it turns out there are, which is a relief. Everyone deserves to feel great in their swimsuit!

Have you two bonded over living with big boobs? What’s it like shopping for clothes when you’re a 30G and 30DD?

Em: There have definitely been moments when we have been shopping for a top or a dress and picked it up and realised there is no way we can wear a bra with it. We have to either laugh or cry with each other. It is so frustrating!

And don’t get me started on bra shopping… it’s a whole different ball game when you have a bigger bust. You have to go to (*gulp*) speciality stores. Ash also had “fun” times here...

Ash: Well there are many moments I can think of as a teen that were awful… let me cast my mind back to these repressed memories! Being dragged to fittings with my Mum at (*blegh*) specialist shops that were full of typical over the shoulder boulder holders - not one thin strapped, pretty or even t-shirt bra in SIGHT! Let’s hear how my Mum remembers these precious moments…

Ash’s Mum: I can’t remember buying Ash her first bra, and the earliest memory of a bra fitting I have is when Ash was at boarding school in South Africa. I managed to get her into a department store where we both bought rather dull but supportive Triumph bras as we both had “small backs and full busts!!!” I’ll admit that they were good fitting and comfortable bras. As we walked out, I told Ash that I thought we had done well. “Do you like yours Ash?” I asked. Her reply was, “Don’t you think they look too perky!!??” :D

How do you run the business when you don’t live in the same country?

Em: Technology and juggling! WhatsApp, Trello, Skype, FaceTime, Evernote – we chat a lot! I speak to Ash more than I speak to anyone even though we are on the other side of the world from each other.

Divide and conquer is another thing, we play to our strengths and trust each other to get on with the rest. It also means there is always someone awake and working on the business.

Hard question: do you have a favourite swimwear style in the Lilly & Lime collections?

Em: Such a hard one as I wear them all for different things but I’m loving the one pieces at the moment. My faves are the Balconette One Piece and the Cap Sleeve One Piece. Bikini-wise my boobs have changed over the last few years (pregnancy, breast feeding and loosing weight – a five-star recipe for saggy boobs) so I have gone from always wearing the Balconette to now loving the Full Cup with the Hipster Ties.

Ash: The Ash Underwire Halter, Balconette and now Balconette One Piece. I was originally sceptical because I’ve never been able to buy one piece swimwear in my size with underwire support – but I LOVE IT.

Have you had any of your customers tell you what it’s like to have a swimsuit that properly fits their big bust?

Em & Ash: Yes, it really is the best feeling. We are so proud of what we’re achieving, but working in it day to day we don’t have much time to reflect on how far we have come. The realisation hits when we have customers email us to say how happy they are to have found us, women who haven’t been in a bikini for 20 years or teenage girls who finally have the confidence to go to the beach with their friends. That is really the best feeling and makes it all worthwhile.

Ash, what’s something funny or interesting about Em that not many people know?

Interesting…hmm…her brothers are triplets – that’s rare right? Oh, and watch out for her on the road – she’s a maniac ;)

Em, revenge time!

Oooh this is hard. She’s 1cm away from being a midget… bring on old age. Ha ha!

What do see in the future for Lilly & Lime?

Em & Ash: Taking over the world, supporting one pair of boobs at a time ;)

If you’re still curious to find out more about Lilly & Lime’s co-captains, read more of their story here. We get it, we love them too.