5 Life-Changing Styling Hacks For Us Ladies With Thicker Waists
All easy and doable … even for the laziest among us.
You’re not imagining it.
After we turn about 40, our hormones do a thing that shifts more fat to our abdomen. You can read all about this lovely migration HERE, but the focus of this article is not to recount the many woes of our waning estrogen. It’s to talk about what having a thicker waistline means to getting dressed.
Now, some of us have been apple shapes all our lives, gaining most of our weight in our arms, boobs, and bellies. And some of us are new to game and are just now noticing that our hourglass is looking a bit more brick-like these days.
In either case, there are certain, very simple, straightforward hacks we use constantly to look and feel our best.
And just a reminder, this has nothing to do with size. It’s about shape. You can have a belly pooch and wear a size 2 or a 22, and all of these ideas will still apply.
And so, here are 5 ways to flatter a rounder waistline and feel chic and sleek and comfy while doing it.
1. Choose Shorter, Wider Tops With Clean Lines
The temptation to shroud ourselves in long, loose things when our bellies protrude is a forceful one. But it’s not the most flattering. When you wear spacious tops, two things will mean the difference between looking sleek and looking frumpy.
Choose a piece with clean lines.
Choose a more cropped cut.
A good crop will hit our pants right at the hemline, so it doesn’t show our tum, and we don’t have to wrestle with a tuck to look polished. These tops make waists look smaller and legs look longer because they start higher on your frame.
WHAT: J.Crew Étienne Cropped Button-Up Shirt In Cotton Poplin*
Why we love it: When we put on a crisp, white, poplin button-down, roll up the sleeves, unbutton a few buttons, it’s like a supersuit for chicness. This one gives you loads of coverage but the crop makes it wildly flattering and easy to style.
Sizes up to 3X.
Price: $74.50
The Tee
WHAT: Old Navy Vintage Crew-Neck Oversized Crop T-Shirt*
Why we love it: The sleeve and drop shoulder on this staple, white tee have a very strong “cool girl” effect, but we love it because our arms get so much coverage, and even though it’s baggy, it comes off very intentional and styled with all our jeans and trousers.
Sizes to 4X.
Price: $12
The Jacket
WHAT: Aritzia Little Cropped Jacket - Crepette™*
Why we love it: Layer this little jacket over absolutely everything (pants/ skirts/ dresses) or wear it buttoned-up as a top. It’s a petite and very French-looking godsend, giving you a touch of waist coverage while making you look more nipped.
Price: $198
2. Choose PantS With Front Pockets Or Pleating And Wear Them With A Belt
Buying pants that button at the small of the waist then have perfect pleating or big front pockets to smooth over our lower bellies is the stuff of magic for us apples. Add a fave belt for more waist definition and poof, we’re off to the races. The hard part, of course, is finding the pants. It’s taken us decades But we have.
The Pleated Pants
WHAT: The Avery Wide-Leg Pleated Trousers by Maeve*
Why we love it: There’s a time of year every year where these pants from Anthropologie disappear from their site. We like to think it’s because they have to restock every time we spend 257 consecutive days writing about how flattering they are. The pleating in front doesn’t add bulk. In fact, the whole drapey leg makes even the shortest-legged gals among us look long and lithe and model-like. They’re the best “smart” trousers in the world, and the elastic back makes them feel like a dream on our fluctuating bellies.
Size in plus, tall, and. petite, too!
Price: $148
The Pocket-Front Pants
WHAT: The Colette Magic Fabric Full-Length Pants by Maeve*
Why we love it: These are the perfect, front pocket pants - sort of a French sailor style with an A-line leg to make your waist look more cinched. The best part is they’re made of a “magic fabric” that’s stunning on curves, holding us in in all the right places while still being breathable. They come in a million colors and also in a very cute cropped length.
Size in plus, tall, and petite.
Price: $130
The Belt
WHAT: Favorite Daughter The Statement Belt*
Why we love it: We’re showing you our own favorite belt, which we get compliments on more than any other, but any belt you like will do. There’s THIS* iconic Gucci that’s reversible, for example. And THIS* little leopard print version to zhuzh up your whole look. Just pick any favorite of yours. It’s the right choice.
But for THIS* one, you can use the code THECANDIDLY15 to get 15% off.
Price: $118
3. Wear Fitted Tanks With A Light Outer Layer
A good, ribbed tank is like shape-wear, holding you in, smoothing you out, and giving you plenty of stretch. When you add a not-too-thick layer over it, it gives more definition to the waist, because you’re not just wearing something baggy. Rather, your shape juuuussssst peeks through from a more fitted base layer to make you look your best.
The Tank
WHAT: Aerie No BS Tank Top*
Why we love it: We could show you a $75 tank from a high-end brand, and admittedly, as tank people, there are some of those we love. But this one costs as much as a fancy matcha drink, has the most flattering scoop neck line, and we reach for it almost daily.
Price: $12
The Blazer
WHAT: Aritzia Babaton Standout Blazer - (Re)ssential*
Why we love it: The way this blazer is cut, you can wear it open or shut and you’ll look like you have a waist. Since we discovered it, we pretty much stopped writing about any other blazers, because why would we? We hit the holy grail.
Price: $248
The Cardi
WHAT: Universal Standard Better-Than-Wool Cardigan*
Why we love it: The shape of this sweater is chef’s kiss - not too long, not too short, not at all thick or bulk. The V-neckline draws the eye up, and the yarn is extremely soft (never itchy!). It comes in so many great colors we want a well as the best size range we’ve ever seen.
Price: $138
4. Add An Open, Layering Piece
We don’t enjoy feeling self-conscious about our lumps and bumps when we wear fitted clothes or light colors. We try not to, but it’s also nice to own a light, layering piece we can just throw on to give us the boost we need to wear clothes we love but that we’d like more coverage in. These two layering pieces give us that coverage without overshadowing the whole look.
The Long Vest
WHAT: Eileen Fisher Lightweight Boiled Wool Shawl Collar Vest in Regenerative Wool*
Why we love it: This just solves so many sartorial problems. Toss it on over pretty much anything any time of year, and all it does is make us look more styled and put together. Lots of color options, too.
Sizes in
Price: $180
The Long Button-Down
WHAT: Quince 100% European Linen Shirt Dress*
Why we love it: No one ever thinks of this magical use of a shirt dress. We wear it open as an outer layer. It’s very Diane Keaton-chic.
Price: $50
5. Choose fit and flare dresses that create an hourglass
Dresses are so very challenging. We want to feel loose and free and not like we have to suck our stomachs in to feel comfortable. We also want to look our most gorgeous without going too tight or too mumu. The solution is simply the fit and flare - by going in and flaring out it gives us curves in the places we want them. Here are two of our favorites:
The Casj Dress
WHAT: Marcella Clara Dress*
Why we love it: We tried on this dress and loved it so much, we asked Marcella to partner with us, so we could write a dedicated article all about it with lots of photos. The top is all stretchy tank and the bottom is all spacious poplin. We wear it with boots in winter and sandals in summer - both belted and unbelted, and it’s foolproof every single time.
Sizes to XXXL.
Price: $118
The Formal Dress
WHAT: Hutch Amara Corset Pleated Tulle Fit & Flare Midi Dress*
Why we love it: The bodice on this dress is actually so flattering on your upper torso. The cups actually fit bigger boobs, and the waist falls out into a sea of pleating that hides your lower belly and has beautiful movement. It’s the best of both worlds, feeling fitted and princessy at the same time. And it comes in a sea of pretty colors.
Price: $348
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.
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