Today I’d like to introduce Katie from Hems for Her. Besides having incredible style, one of the reasons I’m excited for Katie’s guest posts is because she is a beautiful woman who embraces her curves. I have a lot of friends who are on the more curvy end of the spectrum who feel stuck with how to dress themselves, so I’ve asked Katie to provide some tips for how to dress in a way that flatters your curves!
Today, Audrey asked me to talk about dressing to flatter your curves, and I was too happy to oblige. This is not a blog post about losing weight or disguising your extra pounds. I am not going to tell you how to lose ten pounds in ten minutes or how to reduce the size of your waist in minutes a day. This is a post about loving your body the way it is now, embracing the shape that you have, and working it to your advantage.
Over at my blog
Hems for Her I show everyday women how I dress. I have run the weight gamut from thin to thick and everything in between. When I got pregnant, I was in the best shape of my life. I had just lost 55 pounds; I was working out 4-5 times a week; I looked great and felt great. After baby, my body was different. My boobs and belly were bigger; I had no time to work out. I started a stressful job, and the pounds piled on. However, I have grown to love and appreciate my new fuller figure.
Confidence
The most important part of looking good and feeling good is CONFIDENCE! That’s the first thing you should put on every day! If you don’t believe you look good, then how do you expect anyone else to? Rock it and flaunt it! By identifying your body shape and learning what kind of clothing is most flattering, you will have the confidence to feel beautiful and stylish at any size!
Tailored, Not Baggy
One thing I’ve learned in dressing my curves, and documenting it daily over the past year is that the more tailored my clothing the better I look and feel. Plus-sized women often feel like we need to hide our body under layers and baggy clothing, but that just adds bulk. It’s much more flattering to wear items that are tailored to your body. Structured pieces like pencil skirts and sheath dresses show off your natural curves while loose and flowing actually create the illusion of extra weight. Don’t believe me? Guess I’ll have to show you the pictures.
Told ya!
Belts
This is another reason why belts can be so essential to a plus-sized wardrobe. Round all over and carrying your weight in your midsection like me? Then throw a belt on and you instantly create that desired “hourglass shape.” Fashion calls for belts to fall at the smallest part of your waist, so they draw the eyes upward. By defining your waist, you actually create an optical illusion of a perfectly balanced upper and lower body. Again a picture is worth a thousand words, so take a look at this series of photos showing how much a belt can change the structure of a dress. And check out my post tomorrow for more helpful hints about belts and the curvy gal.
Work What You Love
Finally, no matter what size you are, you gotta work what you love! Great legs? Then wear skirts to show them off and heels if you can suffer them. Love your arms? Yay for summer! Show them off in sleeveless dresses and tanks. Cleavage galore? If you got it, flaunt it- appropriately of course. I’m not wild about my pudgy arms and elbows, so you’ll often see me in three-quarter length cardigans and tops. However, I love showing off my legs, so I keep that in mind when dressing in the morning.
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Stay tuned tomorrow for a second guest post by Katie specifically on how to belt your outfits when you are scared of drawing attention to your mid-section!
