This Is Our Favorite Affordable Brand To Shop For The Summer As Ladies With A Belly Pooch
Free the navel!
by The Candidly Team
This isn’t an article about weight. This is an article about shape.
Because no matter what your size or your weight, if you’re above age 35, we’re guessing you’ve probably noticed changes to your waistline. We took a little poll here at The Candidly, and while some us of us spoke of a lower belly pooch that’s gotten poochier over the years no matter what number we see on the scale, others said they’ve merely noticed getting wider round the torso, so their hip-to-waist ratio is closer than it used to be.
Hormonal shifts around perimeno are the culprit behind so many physical edits to our body, we often wake up feeling like a rough draft version of ourselves. But our belly pooch is not something we want to spend another minute being shitty to ourselves about in the mirror. Especially in the hot months of the year when we can’t rely on layers, and we still want to feel light and glowy and slinky and summery and free. We’re not sucking in. Shapewear in this heat is a joke. We’ve therefore been looking for summer clothes that make us feel both chic and comfortable.
And we found them … in ONE unexpected place.
Our criteria was this:
We didn’t want to spend a fortune. We needed a solid base of chic pieces, and $100 per article of clothing wouldn’t do.
We didn’t want clothes that felt cheap or styled for 17-year-olds.
We wanted a glorious size range, because like we said, a belly pooch affects all women of all sizes.
So where did we find clothes that met this criteria? J.Crew Factory, my friends.
We’re not going to convince you with words, so let’s see the clothes.
1. The Short, A-Line Shift Dresses
WHAT: Linen-Blend Sleeveless Mini Dress*
If you’ve always been an apple shape, you already know the little slice of bliss that is the shift dress. It skims your whole upper body with clean lines so it never reads mumu. Because it’s A-line, you still look like you have an actual, hourglass shape. And because it’s short, your legs look like they go on and on, so you can wear flat sandals and devour the bread basket and still feel like a lithe, 90s supermodel as you saunter round town. We love this one from J.Crew Factory in black for evening and pale blue or red for the day. The price allows for a multiple-color purchase.
Here’s our managing editor’s sister-in-law, modeling the red, along with our favorite summer bag and the most comfortable summer sandal in existence*. It’s a flat with actual arch support and we can’t stop wearing it.
Price: $40
WHAT: Linen-Blend Squareneck Shift Dress*
Another version of the same dress with a lowered neckline and a tiny bit of smocking at the upper back to give it even more shape. We love that the gingham matches every bag and shoe we own. We love to belt it with THIS* for more waist definition and a bit of high-low styling that makes a whole outfit look more expensive. (We spend on accessories for this reason.) But it’s also great left loose.
Price: $59
2. The Summer Tops That Aren't Skimpy or Tight
WHAT: Double-Gauze Button-Up Shirt*
Ok, a bit of insider info here: we’ve sold A LOT of this top for JCF by writing about it so frequently. But we only write about it so much because it’s been such a great summer staple for us for years now. A white, button-down is always chic on a Carolyn Bessette Kennedy level, but this one is gauzy and soft, and you can roll up the sleeves, tuck it, tie it, or leave it open over a tank or swimsuit and always get great tum coverage.
WHAT: Striped Short-Sleeve Button-Up Shirt*
You can’t see in the picture but this shirt is just as polished and pretty untucked, and it isn’t too long, which is what makes looser tops and tees look frumpy. It’s more elevated than a t-shirt and the puff sleeve covers the thickest part of our arms.
Price: $39.50
WHAT: Linen-Blend Button-Front Shell*
Yet another example of why A-line is such a gorgeous shape if you have a thicker waist. And listen a tight, ribbed tank* can be gorgeous on curves, but if we’re going for loose, we love this shape with all our shorts and cropped jeans and long, linen pants.
Price: $30
3. The Elastic-Back Poplin Skirt
WHAT: Poplin Pull-On Midi Skirt*
Every brand should take notes. If you’re going to make a poplin skirt:
1) Don’t make it all puffy with so much material that your lower belly and hips look bigger.
2) Make the waistband seamless and smooth in front and elastic in the back so it always feels breathable and fits just right.
Wear this skirt with every summer top you already own, and we found the best breathable, comfy, smoothing, anti-chafe undershorts in the game HERE*.
Price: $46.50
4. The Drawstring Linen Bottoms
WHAT: Linen-Blend Slim Wide-Leg Drawstring Pant*
We are always, always looking for the perfect, tailored-looking, everyday linen pants that don’t poof at the waist or make us look wider. Drawstring, elasticated waist was also essential. It actually wasn’t a surprise to us we found them at J.Crew Factory. Pro tip: Black is obviously critical but get the stripe to make everything you wear with these pants into an instant "quiet luxury look.
Price: $49
WHAT: Linen-Blend Drawstring Short*
Ditto everything we said above but about shorts instead of pants.
Price: $17
5. The Stretchy, Cropped Jeans That Don't Dig Into Your Tum
WHAT: Wide-Leg Cropped Jean in All-Day Stretch*
We try on a lot of far more expensive jeans that feel fantastic everywhere except the stomach. They pinch, they bulge, they squeeze, we suffer. These jeans have such gorgeous stretch, but never lose their cute, flattering, cropped shape. Also, the back pocket size and placement is perfect, so our butts also look their best.
Price: $64
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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