Top 4 Tips To Hiding Your Tummy

Many women complain about their tummy. They get bloated, lose and gain weight around the middle and even if they are slim they are aware of their tummy sticking out.

There are many different shaped bellys for different reasons. Post baby tum, over weight tum, bloated menopausal tum and so on. For that reason there are different shaped tummies to discuise. That mix with the many different body shapes we support means that what works for one tummy may not work as well for another.

So I guess what i’m saying, is trial these tips and see what works for you, or book into a Style Consultation where we can discover what shape and scale you are and how best to dress you.

This Daily Mail article talks about different reasons for stomachs. I mostley love the pictures which show the many different shaped tummies you may struggle with.

DRESS SHAPES

The Wrap dress will enhance your figure. If you have a waist it will draw your attention to the narrow part of your body. I will show off your chest and can come in lengths to suit your height and scale.

Choose a stiffer fabric if you are an athletic inverted triangle. Oval and rectangles should tie at the back or side.

Empire line dress: This will skim over your tummy and create a flatter space. It’s a difficult shape for some as it can make you feel like you look pregnant. The best body shape for this style is a rectangle, neat hourglass, apple or strawberry.

The shift dress is another great one. It gently drops from the shoulder with darts on the chest. They are typically cut above the knee and are simple, smart and elegant on my shapes. Belted they look good on an hourglass, without a belt they are great on people with a tummy or fullness round the middle as they help to hide the area.

Here’s a dress recommendation for each body shape:

Hourglass: Most shapes

Full Hourglass: Bodycon, Wrap

Pear: separate pieces from Never Fully Dressed in a wrap style or empire line

Strawberry: Empire or Skater

Rectangle: Shift Dress

Apple: A-line

Athletic: Halterneck or separate pieces.

PATTERN & STRIPE

Wearing stripes can help trick the eye and flatter your figure but need to be done right. Horizontal stripes draw your eye left to right so can make you look wider. Stripes that are wide and far apart can also make you look bigger.

Wear thin stripes close together that go from shoulder to knee or floor, like this blue and white stripe dress from Hush. This will create the illusion of length and distract from a tummy.

Stripes that sit at an angle can also highlight the waist bringing attention to our narrowest point and disguising a belly. I love this example from Boden.

Abstract prints and busy patterns can take away from lumps and bumps like this dress from Yours.

FABRIC CHOICE

Consider the fabric choice. a soft, floaty or silky thin fabric will show up unwanted curves, lumps and bumps. A stiffer fabric will skim the area and disguise those unwanted shapes.

However if we are talking about all over body shape it’s important to remember soft flowy fabrics will flatter a curvy figger whereas the stiff fabric will make her look bigger. A straight  body shape will look best in stiff structured fabric that can create the illusion of shape. Remember this article is all about tummies.

Avoid big heavy fabric such as chunky knits, stiff denim or thick corduroy This will make you look bigger than you are.

Blue and white stripes shirt from LK Bennet, White ruffle shirt from River Island.

COLOUR YOURSELF SLIMMER

Colour can play a huge part in looking slimmer. A great book to learn more about this is the ‘Colour Me Slimmer’ book by Colour Me Beautiful.

Notice here how the colour can create different illusions on the figure.

To look longer and slimmer dress in the same colour from head to toe. Avoid black as it wont look as flattering as one of your perfect neutrals. Colours to try are chocolate, navy, charcoal or teal.

If you are bottom heavy use the dark colour on you bottom half and if you are bread shouldered or top heavy go darker on the top and lighter on the bottom. The light colour will draw your eye away from the darker colour.

If you want to understand your bodyshape and how to enhance all your best bits, if you want to create a wardrobe that works with you and not against you, drop me an email and lets discuss your option on a free Discovery Call.