5 steps to a beautifully dressed derriere
Do you ever worry about the the size of your ‘behind’? Do you scrutinise it before leaving the house or do you avoid checking in the mirror for fear of what you might face?
Kim Kardashian probably has the most famous, rounded bottom of our time and the internet is full of advice on how to “build up your butt”.
Some women are even resorting to surgery to create the perfect “behind”.
According to researchers at Harvard Medical School, the type of fat found in women’s butts, hips, and thighs, might protect against health problems such as heart disease and diabetes. That has to be something to celebrate, right?
If you aren’t ready to celebrate the size of your bottom and would like it to shrink in seconds, help is on hand.
Below are my 5 easy steps for getting one’s posterior to look decidedly smaller to the human eye.
Step 1. Beware of light colours
Think very carefully about the colour you wear on your bottom as this can be the difference between drawing attention cleverly away or screaming look, look here, this is my lovely big bum!
We all know that by painting a room in a light colour, it will appear more spacious. Dark walls in a room make it appear smaller. It’s just the same for your clothes.
If you wear a light coloured skirt, trousers or long top (that covers your bottom) you are doing just that. Making it look more spacious – especially if you are wearing a darker colour on your top half.
Your best combination of colour is a light top that sits on your hip bone (no longer) and a darker colour on your lower half.
Step 2. Avoid pockets on your bum
Any kind of detail or embellishment worn anywhere on your body draws attention. Pockets with flaps also add volume.
For trousers, your best bet is to choose those without pockets at all. When it comes to jeans, opt for a pair with very large, plain pockets. A small pocket will certainly make your bum look bigger!
Step 3. Hemlines can make or break your body confidence!
The eye is drawn to hemlines. I liken it to drawing a line around your body with a highlighter pen. Make sure that the point at which your hemline falls is not at the widest point of your bottom. It is a myth that by wearing long, baggy tops and cardigans you are hiding your bottom. In reality you are adding extra volume.
Step 4. Patterns draw attention
The eye is drawn to print. If you wear a plain dark top and a light coloured patterned skirt, all eyes will be drawn to your lower half. It is much more flattering to reverse this and wear the pattern on your top half to draw the eye away from your bottom.
Step 5. The cut or shape of your clothes is incredibly important
If you have a small waist and a large bottom an A line skirt is a great option for you. This cut will draw attention to your lovely waist and skim over your hips, thighs and bottom.
If you feel big all over choose a longer skirt that skims over the same area without drawing attention to your middle section.
Beware of the current trend for midi length skirts. Choose a hemline that sits slightly lower than the widest part of your calves.
Avoid a pencil skirt.
Boot cut trousers are great for balancing out big bottoms as are wider leg styles.
Wear straight legged trousers with caution and know that skinny jeans or jeggings will hug your bum and show it off in all its glory!
For more clever style hacks, check out my FREE video series – 5 Easy Style Tips To Look Your Most Fabulous Self.
I’d love to hear how you get on with these tips. Please comment below.
Great article Helen! I agree about the darker colours for the lower half. I find when I wear black I don’t have ‘does my bum look big in this moments at all’ but am far more conscious in lighter colour trousers. For example I treated myself to a pair of lovely bright peach coloured ‘jeans’ last year, but so far only worn them on holiday!
Bright peach jeans sound lovely! If you layer close fitting tops (one longer underneath and a shorter one on top) you might be able to wear them more often.It is imperative that the longer one is a darker colour and covers your bottom completely though.
This is very good advice, particularly the advice about long baggy tops adding volume
Hi Carol. It can take a while to get used to not hiding under baggy clothes but it really works!
Hi there,
As one generously endowed with bottom this article was very interesting to me..but has also sent up a red flag… i love a mid length pencil skirt!!! Can you share a little on why this might not be best for my bum… I’m too scared to look in the mirror to see for myself 😉
Hi Juls, thanks for your comment. The reason a pencil skirt isn’t great for a larger bottom is due to the shape of the skirt. A typical pencil skirt has very straight seams. Wearing clothes that are the same shape as you makes for great fitting clothes. If your body is not very straight, the fabric is likely to pull in the wrong places. Often people with curvy bottoms have small waists. Your body goes in an out again, which is why an A line shape will fit you better. Even if it is a slight A Line. I hope that helps? Helen
Hi Helen – great article full of useful tips.
Regarding patterns. I have seen a lot of women wearing patterned trousers recently. Personally, I have steered clear of them but the other day I saw a lady wear navy window check pane trousers – they looked great and she teamed it up with a stone coloured fitted jacket. What’s your view on wearing patterned trousers if its all in the same colour and the colour is dark?
Thanks Carole
Hi Carole, thank you for your comments. I think that sounds lovely. The lighter coloured jacket will draw attention upwards and a dark toned pattern is a much easier one to pull off!