hourglasses please inspire me! How do you do casual?

[omydarlin]

as above really. I love dress and legging combo but as work is very smart casual i find work and home often cross over which is not ideal. I am 33 next month and a size 16, do a lot of walking and like to cover my bum as it sticks out a bit. I spent last weekend in my mumsnet scarf a black jumper dress with metallic heart embellishments and dark bootcut jeans which have frankly seen better days and make me look a bit like i'm wearing bell bottoms! Apart from the jeans I liked the outfit. please please inspire me oh stylish ones I guess it doesnt help I am overweight but I am working on that!

[MrsVoltar]

I usually wear slim/skinny (but not too skinny) jeans, good boots (like flat ankle boots or knee length riding style boots), some kind of tunic/top with jacket/coat thats got a nipped in waist (I'm size 14/16)

plus nice scarf (like you already do wear)

[omydarlin]

Thank you MrsVoltar Maybe I will try slim/skinny jeans. I do have a pair that were cheap from new look but felt they were a bit tight on the thigh area , i like tunic tops and boots and blazers so all good there maybe it's the jeans that are my problem? Where do you get your jeans from ? It can be soul destroying one of my lasting teenage memories is crying in the top shop changing room as the red and pink size 12 candy stripe jeans looked effing awful on me!

[josephinebonaparte]

Have you got good legs?

[omydarlin]

from the knee down! In fact my ankles and waist look small in comparison to the rest of me.

[madammecholet]

try these, I have them in blue and black, great tucked into riding boots, a belt and blazer... or poncho....or gilet...

They have good stretch and for £14.99 you can test out skinnies :)

[omydarlin]

can't see madamme c as I am on mobile will have a peep before I leave work and dash into hennes before school pick up. I do like their stuff but never have tried on trousers from there . Need some new stuff to go with my new look boots!

[josephinebonaparte]

I'd wear fine knit dresses with a belt and leggings or tights then...

[omydarlin]

thanks josephinebonaparte off to have a search for jumper dresses too I don't think i'd wear those to work!

[josephinebonaparte]

Trouserse so difficult for hourglasses and would disguise your best features. Mini skirts and fine knit tops are another possibility.

[omydarlin]

sprooOOoogger not sure about waistcoats as I am quite busty will give it a shot though sound great for formal work wear though. I have this weird problem - nothing with a shirt type collar suits me so I have to be careful though!! Could be a good summer buy -denim waistcoat with nipped in at waist sun dress??? Of course by summer I will be able to have a bit more choice as Im determined to be a size 11!!

[RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie]

I'm a busty hourglass and wear waistcoats to work a lot. I especialy like them with a pencil skirt or wide-legged trousers but I also wear them with fuller skirts.

H&M can be good for cheapo cotton waistcoats or little short sleeved jackets - v useful for covering the bust a bit!

I also have a v v fine knit sleeveless cardigan from Jill Sander for Uniqlo, that I wear over a plain top and skinny jeans.

[TantePiste]

I too like wide leg trousers and jeans, paired with tops that have empire cut or otherwise have some shape. I like pencils and skirts that hit just above knee. I like to pair a cardi, especially v-neck shape with a top in a complementary colour, sort of modified twin set idea. I button the cardi in the middle to shape it.

Cant really wear gilets, or most blazers because it looks boxy. Likewise bulkier knits and many jumpers.

Also 3/4 sleeves are flattering and i seek them out. I use the same basic silhouette dressed up or down. Dont like belts as they always seem to look wrong somehow.

Even when i was a tiny us size 2, the boxy top, skinny leg look was horrible on. Have to pass it by.

[MrsVoltar]

Have slim jeans from New Look (but not their cheapest ones) also slim trousers/jeans from Dorothy P, find them a nice fit (but I do have slim-ish legs, my tummy is problem, even though my overall shape is hourglass-ish).

Yes to layers, so tunic style top with fine knit cardi is good, can't do bulky jumpers either, find in general my most flattering clothes are slim sort of figure skimming to elongate.

Have recently bought some grandad style tunic/tops in plain colours to wear with patterned scarf.

like TandePiste I like wide leg jeans/trousers but for more formal wear, skinnies/slim are fab for casual wear, tucked into long boots or resting at top of ankle boots = no muddy/wet bits at bottom of trousers

[omydarlin]

Thanks all I have been on a recce around the shops as promised!

madammecholet oh wise one those trousers - couldnt get them up past my thighs in a size 16 :( they did seem to be of that material which attract a ALOT of fluff though there is no way i'm going in a size 18 so i just left them sorry that combined with teh fluf thing was a no go for me .

MrsVoltar I have tried on skinny jeans from Dorthy Perkins they fit easily in a size 16 :) and didnt look half bad with a longish top/tunic only problem (age old) was the gaping at the back business - fitting at thigh vs fitting at waist! But I can live with that.

josephinebonaparte totally agree with you on the leggings/tights being so much better than trousers for me I tried on some lovely fine knit jumper dresses this was very very nice feels like a knit

I will need to make sure my underwear is up to scratch though as a bad bra could easily ruin the line as I found out in the changing room! Definitely looking into the Jumper dress thing. Short skirts rather than minis are ok too I have found especially with my new bargainous New look boots!

sproooOOoogger/ RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie tried on a waistcoat but more for work was lovely - am thinking now maybe I should smarten up my work wardrobe (even though everyone else is sitting around me in hoodies etc) and just accept some items may still cross over ie my mumsnet scraf and my tweed blazer.

TantePiste tried on wide leg jeans with an empire top felt i looked mahoosive - sorry , however I do seek out 3/4 length sleeves and wear my cardigans like you do already!!

So thank you all for your help when I get my birthday vouchers I shall be out spending some money

what does everyone think/ does anyone want to start up an Hourglasses thread so we can permanently swap clothes ideas etc ?????

[MrsVoltar]

omydarlin I always have to wear belts with my jeans/trousers or I'd be hoiking them up even more all day

[ahhyesiseeyouvepooedonyourfoot]

Yes please to starting an how-to dress an hourglass figure thread omydarlin - I'm in need, it's fine for the office, I know I look fabulous in a pencil skirt or nippy in joan-from-madmen dress but the rest of life is challenging!

[minipie]

Huh? I can't believe all these posts recommending tunics and skinny jeans for an hourglass. If I wear skinny jeans my arse and thighs look huge. Carrot legs basically. If I wear tunics it disguises my slimmest part .

I have a few skirts which are pleated or swing shape (i.e. full) and which come to the knee or almost to the knee. They are fitted round the waist. Like this but more pleated. They are brilliant and I live in them at the weekends. Jeans-wise I am still clinging to bootcut (with a tucked in or nipped in top, and a belt, rather than with a tunic).

[minipie]

Oh yes and also dresses which have a belt or fitted waist and a fullish skirt are good too. Like these

[Ephiny]

I agree with minipie, the tunic and leggings/skinny jeans look is all wrong for an hourglass (or indeed pear) shape. You could not pay me enough to dress like that. It hides your best features i.e. your 'hourglass' curves, under baggy fabric and is NOT flattering for those of us with more 'womanly' bum and thighs!

I like bootcut jeans or wide-leg trousers, not too high-waisted, just so they sit on the hips. Or knee-length A-line skirts. Nice fitted top, not too long, v-neck and 3/4 length sleeves are good. I agree about waistcoats, jackets can be OK too as long as they're short with a nipped-in waist. Fine-knit cardi over a camisole top can be nice. Dresses with a proper waist, not these tunic/sack-shaped ones that seem to be fashionable at the moment. No empire-line stuff!

[omydarlin]

empire line tunics are definitely wrong for hourglasses but fitted and flare tunics / short dresses are fine imo. Its all about the waist and we must never forget that! I love love that mango skirt btw!

[omydarlin]

dresses are so ridiculously short nowdays at 5 ft 7 i tend to think of them as tunics.

[prolificwillybreeder]

MrsVolter- where have you got your grandad style tops please? I can't seem to find any. Thank you :)

I'm hourglass and wear skinnies. I look bigger in bootcut I think.

[mumtoted]

Any recommendations for hourglass dresses please?

[omydarlin]

yes must admit I get a bell bottom effect maybe i need to get boot cut looser on thigh...