The 5 Things I Wear Constantly As A 40ish Lady With A Belly Pooch
by Carolyn Firestone
This is NOT an article about body size. Our size should really never be the focus when it comes to clothes.
What does actually matter is shape.
Size only tells us IF clothes will fit us whereas shape tells us HOW clothes will fit us.
I’ve been all over the map in terms of “size,” but in shape, I’ve always been the same. I carry most of my weight north of my hips, and no matter what number might appear on a scale I don’t own, I am never without a belly pooch. Maybe it’s smaller in the morning or more pronounced when I forget about the nutritional goldmine that is fiber, but it’s there.
And the way I dress is affected by it. And I’m ok with that. More than ok.
Dressing for our shape feels accepting instead of self-loathing. It helps us form ideas and build outfits around principles that will always work for us no matter what size we are.
And because belly pooches can be part of any body, be it a size 0 or size 22, finding clothes that flatter and feel good on our middles, while still making us look chic and “styled” is maybe my biggest wardrobe goal.
Which brings me to these 5 items. Every single one of them has been a godsend in that it safely guarantees that I look and feel my absolute best no matter where I might be on my own personal pendulum of female fluctuation. I always want my clothes to fit the way these 5 items do, because they always look good. They’re sublime on apples. Perfect on pooches. And none of them read “mumu era” or “giving up.”
In fact, I am chicer because of them.
But enough talk. Let’s get to the visuals.
1. THE ELONGATING FRENCH LADY TEE
Ok, breathe deep. Because if you’re like me and you hear the word “cropped” and “t-shirt” in the same sentence, your browser would be clicking shut so fast you wouldn’t finish this sentence. But this isn’t like the cropped tops of the 2000s - no navels on display. No pelvic bones protruding.
It’s a classic, French mariniére that both your grandmother and your niece could easily wear and both would look lovely doing it. But more importantly, it is a frickin’ miracle on a belly pooches. Here’s why:
1) The slightly boxy shape has a narrowing effect on your waistline.
2) The shorter length, which by the way safely hits below the top of any high-waist pant, makes your legs look 3 inches longer.
I swear, this shirt is like an optical illusion. Just look at it next to a longer, equally loose tee.
Not to mention stripes are just so effortlessly chic and make our clothes look nicer and more like outfits we spent time on, hence me buying this shirt in every stripe combo it comes in. Helps that it’s J. Crew and almost always on sale. And it sizes up to 3X.
Price: $29.50 - $59.50 (and probably on sale)
2. THE ONLY SWEATSHIRT THAT GIVES ME COMPLETE COVERAGE AND LOOKS CHIC
If you’re asking yourself, are you seriously talking to me about a sweatshirt, the answer is yes, yes I am. And I stand by that decision because this isn’t just a sweatshirt. Yes, it’s soft and warm and cocooning but because it has this clean, swoopy A-line, you don’t look like a lazy slob in some slouchy rag. Just look at it side by side with a sadder sweatshirt I’ve been known to turn to for maximum pooch coverage.
Because it’s not bulky or thick, you can dress it up or down. Maybe you noticed I was wearing it with literal heels in one of the above photos, mind you they’re the most comfortable heels known to man, but the whole thing still reads like I actually tried instead of just throwing on sneaks and sweats. Even though it feels like sneaks and sweats.
Also, there’s just some genius tailoring at work. The sleeves start off very spacious, almost wing-like, so you can freely move your arms, but they’re fitted at the bottom so you don’t have to keep rolling them up every 18 seconds. It has a sort of polished, slimming effect that’s especially nice when you’re wearing something with so much coverage.
Ok, and maybe I’m out on a limb here, but the neckline vaguely reminded me of the only other chic sweatshirt I’ve seen in my lifetime.
I will tell you, it’s not as cheap as your usual throwaway sweatshirts that you buy 6 times a year. So for those of you who are loving the shape but aren’t ready to make such an investment, I highly recommend THIS $50 pullover. Same comfort, same spaciousness, and same clean lines.
But few things in the world of clothes are as uniquely useful as THIS buy-once-wear-forever sweatshirt, especially if you’re an apple shape. So often wearing something with actual space that we feel comfortable in just swallows us up and doesn’t allow us to feel like we look remotely sleek or put together. This sweatshirt is one of those easy, realistic things we turn to everyday that make us look 17x better but still feel amazing. And it lasssssts.
Price: $228
3. THE BEST-SELLING ANTHRO PANTS THAT INEXPLICABLY SMOOTH YOUR MIDSECTION
It’s hard to see black pants in photos, no? But that’s also kind of the magic of these particular pants. They low-key melt all bulges into oblivion. I say low-key, because they’re also so smoothing and stretchy that you don’t feel squished - just supported. Anyone with a thick waist will immediately appreciate that no pants have ever felt better on curves.
And I’m gonna be straight with you here. I personally only bought these pants after reading THIS, which I did not write. My editor did. And this is how she looks in them.
As far as wide-leg black pants go, THESE were a game changer for me. I’ll even show you a real and true before and after of the pants I got rid of after buying the “magic” pants.
Left: Sadness Right: Magic
Price: $120
4. THE EVERYDAY DRESS OF MY LIFELONG DREAMS
At this point, the words “fit and flare” would probably autocomplete into the search bar of any website where I’ve shopped for a dress. The reason, of course, is that lower bellies are where dresses typically let us down. But when something fits on top then flares at the bottom, we get to enjoy that hourglass shape without an inkling of self-consciousness or discomfort.
This particular dress has been a go-to for soooo many women I know, because the top is buttery and stretchy and spacious (also, it has a very flattering, very framing scoopneck). But the bottom is the airiest European cotton (with pockets for extra comfort). This automatically makes for great proportions, but the big trick is to add any favorite waist belt in any favorite color, and nothing will give you such a lovely hourglass while feeling like you’re pretty much in pajamas. It also makes it so it can be dressed up or down for daytime or nighttime just by switching around your belt, shoes, and accessories.
I love the sleeveless style but there are long-sleeve and short-sleeve versions, and it comes in white, which I also bought as it’s such an ideal, easy spring/summer dress. All of these styles size up to XXXL.
Price: $108
5. THE FLATTERING SWEATER THAT INSTANTLY MAKES YOU LOOK STYLED
Maybe it’s apparent to you by now, but I’ll just go ahead and outright admit that the driving force behind how I dress every day does not usually end up being about looking chic. I wish it were. But 9 times out of 10, I’m gonna reach for comfort first and whatever’s flattering second, and chicness runs a distant third. So when I find something that feels exceptionally good on my body but also just all by itself looks luxurious and fashionable, that’s when I’ll splurge. That’s really the ONLY time I’ll splurge.
This sweater is possibly my favorite thing in my closet during the cold months of the year. I bought it a size up for extra space, but the shape is very skimming, so you can choose to go for the oversized look like I did or stick to your usual size for something a little less voluminous that still 100% covers your pooch.
It’s one of those pieces that does all the work for you. Over leggings or wide-leg jeans. With heels or with sneakers. First comfort. Then chicness.
Is that not the ultimate goal of all this dressing ourselves nonsense?
But if now just isn’t the time to invest in a luxury sweater, I also LOVE THIS dupe, which is an equally gorgeous shape on bellies.
Price: $174 - $348
CAROLYN FIRESTONE
Carolyn is the Managing Editor of The Candidly. Her favorite thing to do is to write about her favorite things, especially when they have even the slightest chance of making someone else’s something (mood, relationship, travel plans, or toiletry kit) a little better. You can find more of her articles here.
At The Candidly, we try a lot of stuff so you don’t have to. We only recommend things we truly love, and that we think you’ll love, too. All products are chosen independently by our creative team, and all details reflect the price and availability of products at the time of publication. If you buy something we link to, The Candidly may earn a commission.
We have to eat.
