Now if you had to dress up a cornflake box to make it look youthful, curvy and sophisticated, how would you do that, then?

[FillyjonkthePumpkinEater]

?

Could it be done, do you think?

I know the box should avoid high necks and perhaps go for wrap tops to create the illusion of a waist but, beyond that...?

Filly you are scaring me

and wrap tops do not give the illusion of a waist, I can tell you that from bitter experience

A fitted jacket is quite flattering to those with no waists, I think

does this cornflake packet have long bushy hair and a generous nose, by any chance?

the cornflake box is an analogy

and I am asking for a friend

(oh I'll just do the for you, shall I?)

seriosly, if you have no sodding figure whatsohever, having squeezed 2 kids out through your fanjo, what the feck are you supposed to do? Shop at Millets?

hmmm

I have a lovely velevet smoking jacket

I used to call it my "pulling jacket"

very fine it was too

that was before my ribcase was squeezed into mike tyson shape.

Get her an appt with one of those style advisors at John Lewis or House of Fraser. Even Topshop if shes brave!

Filly I have no waist at all

avoid wrap tops like the plague IME - unless of course you can see they actually do do something for you?

I wear crinkly shirts, they are good, fitted tops with a full or A line skirt, something fitted that goes in at the waist and then out, like a jacket (some nice cord jackets around) etc

Don't try anything with those little belts around the middle, or anything clingy and unstructured. What proportions are you otherwise? I mean, Describe the cornflakes packet's legs and chest etc

what about the cornflake box's legs?
and its norks?
(this analogy is scaring me a bit tbh)

snap HC

oh also wanted to say Filly you are youthful so you don't need to try and look it

but I don't think sophistication is really part of your unique charm

agree with Franny on the crinkly shirts and swishy skirts.
Also if you can countenance them, fitted blouses with short gathered sleeves make shoulders look wider hence ribcage/waist smaller.
V necks with white vest under also handy to draw eyes to cleavage and away from waist.

Have you eloped with a packet of coco pops or something?

ok maybe not a celebrity with your body shape but someone in the public eye who you can Google. Cherie Blair? Ann Widdecombe?

I think the cornflake packet has left the building

Filly are you too embarrassed to come back to this thread? We are kind and nice, really

ok

hc, the cornflake packet analogy included my...friend's...legs and norks

yes, ann widdicome, thats a go-er. but my friens doesn't have blonde hair.

franny we all know you are of gillian mckeith proportions only with muscles.

hmm am on verge of making my own clothes. And I dont mean knitted flowers either.

um...making them for my friend I mean.

fillyjonk, i too - ahem - have a friend who lacks a waist, and she finds that - as franny says - structure = good, but wraps, belts at waist, clingy tops = bad.

belts that sit below the waist can be good if you don't have big hips.

jeans that sit fairly low are good, esp with a belt, as they draw the eye to the hips not the waist. you can even get away with reasonably close-fitting tops if the jeans are a good find ime - i mean in the experience of my friend.

in fact all trousers and skirts should sit low rather than on the waist. if i try to wear things that have a high waistband i have to go up one or even two dress sizes.

let me give you a couple of examples of things recently purchased...

this, which looks great over a close-fitting long sleeve t-shirt (unfortunately now out of stock) - think it works because the eye follows the curve of the neckline

this cowl neck jumper but - crucially - with belt bit removed. works i think because of the big neck - widens the top

if jeans are a good fit i mean

Filly I am rather extremely touchy about being compared to G Mc Keith, funnily enough

and my muscles are definitely of the nascent variety, however I have been thinking about you and wondering if this could be the answer - I am having moderate success in making the rest of me more well developed to balance the lack of waist. Have you ever had a waist? You see this is nothing new to me, but it is worse since ds is born because my rib cage is larger. So I am working on my legs and bum, and hopefully my waist will improve slightly as well.

ah tutter...yes...(am assuming the jumper not the eeeew check blouse...)

yes I understand the basic idea I think.

ok

my friends idea of fashion and sophistication is basically to wear as many colours as possible. I mean...well, shes young, I suppose .

(ooooh, franny, sorry...I have never actually seen this gilian mckeith except in a photo some years back...she looked ok, I thought? No?

I had a marvellous waist before my kids were born.

Um....and so did my friend.

Filly I have remembered another thing I do

those little bolero things make your waist look smaller if you wear a fitted top underneath (well I think they do anyway). You can get some lovely 40s / 50s styles at the moment, little swing cardies, or wraps or whatever

The truth is that if you used to have a waist it is still there, it is just hiding. So a matter of time and the gym etc as well.

oh I love the idea that it is "just hiding"

actually I do have a real difficulty here, as i have that stomach separation thing quite badly, and it got worse with pg no 2, so am a bit buggered as far as sit ups etc are concerned and now I think its too late to sort (dd 16 months).

Ah well

I am a ex waisted person too . Almost at pre first pregnancy weight but it is in the wrong place!!! The lovely fullness of my norks as you call them has somehow sunk and settled in my middle area
So flat chested, with no waist, not much hips ... eeewwwww ....

Anyway ... I agree ... anything tight and figure hugging is awful ... anything shaped is good.

I wear good bras that give my shape, tops that cling to the boob area, are fitted but not clingy in the waist area and slightly flare over the hips are good ....
Agree with tutter about good fitting jeans/trousers but the problem with low waisted ones is that if you have a 'muffin top' even a small one it just sits over the top - um a friend of mine has that ... poor thing .... So not tooooo low waisted IYSWIM?
Also, if you have good legs, make the most of them ... where the right type of trousers to show them off ... I find for me skinny legs make my arse look mahoooosive ... so skinny down to below the knee and a boot cut or flare is great ...
But I know I will have to end up wearing skinny jeans eventually and I will hate them ... sigh