5 foot 2 and size 20 - help please

[Threelittlemaids]

Please help. I have put on a lot of weight over the last few years, partly lockdown overeating and partly medication. I am 5 foot 2 and a size 20 with big boobs and a big tum. I don't want lots of people telling me to lose weight for the sake of my health etc because it is nearly impossible due to the medication but I would like advice on what to wear to look less like a 'weeble'. Thanks

I have started wearing dresses quite a bit which I have been complimented about (5,3 size 20). I normally focus on getting a v necked dress (or wrap top part) and an open ie not belly skimming skirt. Then just do a big order from next or m&s of the ones that got the criteria and I like, try them on and return the ones that don't really fit.

I get so many compliments on the Finery Olesia dress and not too expensive.

I'm a small 18, sometimes a 16 and 5ft 3, I'm lucky that I've got good kegs , but also big boobs and bum. I'm also 61

My style tends to be a V neck dress/long top preferably in a stretch fabric, good thick heavyweight leggings, knee length boots (or sandals) and a chiffon over shirt or long cardi .

I also like longish dresses again in a good stretch fabric with an over shirt.

Avoid high necks, shapeless tops that just hang off your boobs , fabric with no give, fussy patterns, small handbags or clothes that are simply too tight - I look crap in T shirts too

Thanks for the hints. I think it is easy to lose sight of things. I see other women of a similar size and think they can look good but look at myself and only see the bad.

I wear a lot of Jolie moi dresses. So easy to wear. Silk Fred, next and Jolie Moi sell them direct. You can also pick up in the sale. Check out the first two - wrap and v neck.

https://www.next.co.uk/clearance/search?w=Jolie%20moi%20dress&af=si:20%20#searchpos_1_1

These are the size 20. They are true to size. Stick to wrap dress / scoop neck / v neck.

https://joliemoi.co.uk/collections/midi-dresses?sort_by=price-descending&filter.v.price.gte=&filter.v.price.lte=&filter.v.option.size=20

@Mummyoflittledragon thanks for that- kind of thing that suits me too and I didn't know that brand.

Have a look at Laura Adlington on instagram (she was on bake off a few years ago but now focuses on plus sized fashion).

She’s bigger than you but she always looks lovely and she’ll be good at recommending brands / styles.

I've also gained a lot of weight lately 😫.

I'm also carrying a lot of it on my torso (big tummy, massive boobs and - for shame - back fat). Trying to work on it but finding it incredibly hard to shift!

I've got a v neck, merino jumper dress which I really like for winter. It's just like a just bum / hip length, fine knit sweater. I wear it over leggings with boots.

I also just got some bootcut jeans which I think help balance me out a bit.

At work, I rotate two pairs of trousers and a pencil skirt with various shirts and tshirts and a cardi.

Just below*

You don’t say what your preferred style is, @Threelittlemaids, but there are a good number of really stylish brands you could look at. The limiting factor might be how much you are willing to spend, or how much time and energy you can expend on pre-owned sites.

You could gather an entire, completely un-weebly wardrobe from Palava, if you like their admirably distinct style. (Filtered for size 20.)

Palava

East seems to have improved recently. (Used to be great, then deteriorated, now back to full strength.)

East

And of course Uniqlo is always worth a look for everyday. (So much of their stuff is essentially unisex, loungewear especially, so have a look at the men’s section as well if those proportions suit better.)

Uniqlo

You’re welcome. 😊

I would seriously try to lose even just a bit of weight. Your future health will thank you.

Book a personal shopper session at John Lewis, it’s free and you can fill out a form before you go so they can pick things before you go. I’m going before dns wedding.

@LNY1986 Ops already said she can’t which indicates she’s on medication with weight gain as a side effect or steroids and therefore weight loss is going to be nigh on impossible for her. Her future self is already here.

I have been a size 18/20 before my recent weight loss, all I would say is avoid "tents" at all costs. Or as @Crikeyalmighty said: "avoid high necks, shapeless tops that just hang off your boobs".

Dresses and midi skirts can be quite flattering, I also used to wear long cardigans over them for the colder weather. That depends on your style, though.

Edit: I also used to avoid gathered fronts/ pleated fronts to tops, skirts and dresses, too. They always gave me a pregnant look as I carry abdominal weight a lot but that's also individual.

I would also say buy really good quality thick leggings that are tight and ideally with a good waist panel- they kind of pull you in

My other mantra is tight on the top half (even with big boobs) with something longer and looser over it- I've got a lovely black and a white chiffon shirt (Shein and cheap) that I put over dresses and good long cardis for cooler weather . I'm losing weight now and can just about manage a 16 in some brands- but these still stand.if your bodies a bit of a let down then make sure you have good hair and a bit of slap too- I think it kind of detracts.

I also recommend like a PP Laura Adlington on instagram. She has great style. You might get some inspo from her.

Masai have fabulous clothes but not cheap, I prefer a tunic with skinny trousers to dresses as they tend to swamp me. https://www.masai.co.uk/

@Molly499 you see I really love that nellina dress- but if you have very big boobs like me it would just hang off and make me look huge.

Anyone who is overweight knows full well they are overweight and our health may suffer. This is really unhelpful and frankly just plain mean - our brains are telling us this constantly, we don't need it from elsewhere as well. And we do have to wear something while losing weight anyway, unless you'd like us walking around naked?

OP, I'm also a size 20 with my weight carried on my torso, and I would echo those who say don't wear tents. I do have a few for mooching at home, but I look so much better in fitted clothes. My favourite autumn/winter outfit is skinny or flared jeans or trousers, with a long (thigh-length) jumper. Nothing too tight-fitting or you'll feel like a sausage, but just so it skims.

I also like a fitted top with jeans and then a loose cardi or shirt over the top - it hides the back fat and creates a line down the middle which is slimming. I also find it means I can tuck in a top without feeling so self-conscious about my c-section tummy.

Then also definitely knee-length dresses, with a long cardi or shirt if you want to cover up more. Ankle boots or knee length (I prefer ankle myself as I still have decent legs.)

La Redoute has loads of nice stuff. You have to trawl through it a bit, but it is generally cut very stylishly (being French). this dress is v nice for example.

@SnapdragonToadflax totally agree - and at 61 it's taken me 11 months to lose 2st 2 - with 3 stone to go and even then I won't be skinny!! And I've eaten like a saint! Gluten free, no cakes, no sugar (apart from a small handle of berries 2 or 3 times a week) cauliflower rice, under 80g carb a day. It's not easy- especially post menopause.

I agree totally about clothes too- and one thing I've learnt is you can't get away with 'really cheap' (apart from my Shein chiffon shirts)

I’m 5’2” just dropped from 20/22 to an 18, my weight loss was helped by medication, but I don’t see it falling any further, I’m just working on not gaining again.

my wardrobe varies, I’m of an age where I just embrace who I am and my health means I can’t do much about my weight or daily life so I just go with it.

I have fibromyalgia, on bad days when everything is so painful and zero energy I wear tracksuit bottoms, vnevk T-shirts and a sweatshirt if the need calls for it. I will add I was never ever a casual tracksuit trainers person until I got ill.

Good days usually jeans, I love the high waisted jeans that cover my tummy. I have a range of straight and bell bottoms that I will wear with nice trainers or healed boots. I tend to wear nice blouses, 99% of the time v neck, I’m a HH cup, always had big boobs and V neck has always been my preferred style. Blouses I mainly get from Matalan, they sit nicely on me, flatter my boobs and sit just right to cover my tummy. I’m sure there are plenty more out there but matalan fits my budget. You have to keep looking though, I find sometimes they have nothing and and other times lots in.

Yesterday I wore bell bottom jeans (not massive flares), they were old so quite tight at the top but comfy, a salmon t-shirt with very faint dimantees, it was round neck but I wore it under a pink/cream cropped blazer, similar style to the link below. And heeled ankle boots. It’s one of my feel good outfits.

I always find wearing heals makes me feel a little bit slimmer, I know it’s in my head but it’s how I feel. The heals are more chunky these days and I need ankle support as my ankles can’t hold my weight like they use to.

Dresses I go fit & flare and Aline mainly. Again aim for a vneck, though I’ve been lucky and found a couple of round neck ones I don’t mind. I also aim for calf length, ankle length just makes me feel like I’m wearing a sack.

One of the most important thing for me is the right bra, having a bra that’s comfy and lifts my boobs. Literally my boobs hang down to my belly button without a bra and one is visibly bigger than the other, so having a decent bra is key.

https://www.next.co.uk/style/ls402274/k29946#k29946

Whether you lose any weight or not, you deserve to look good, wear good clothes, and feel like you look good.

Thank you for taking the time for such helpful responses. Reading them, I feel like I have had a tea break with a good friend. I have to admit I did groan a little when I read LNY 1986's response. As others have said - I am quite aware of the health benefits of losing weight but just now due to the medication that is not possible so I am trying to find a way of coming to terms (or even learning to love) the new me. I think that I have been hiding in tents, 'sack-like' ankle length stuff and loose tops as camouflage so the advice to wear more fitting things, V-necks etc goes against the grain but I can see that the shapelessness of the current attire isn't helping with the 'weeble effect.'. I'll work through the links and make a note of the advice before trying anymore internet shopping.

Bias cut is brilliant - does the slim skim perfectly. It’s vair trendy now.

I have the same med weight explosion OP. Spite ‘help’ from rude types doesn’t impress me.