What to wear with wide shoulders and large breasts?

[JoTheExplorer]

What to wear when I have large breasts and wide shoulders? My work enviroment is quite relaxed, so business casual "light" is the maximum effort I have to make. My weight is normal and so is my waist - not super slim but not large either.

Loose, oversized shirts which seem to be the only ones found anywhere these days, make me look like I suddenly gained weight, since my waist isn't visible. On the other hand, fitted clothes that are good for my shoulders might be tight or tight-ish on breasts. Pants are easier to find but they dont look good with said shirts. I have some dresses but same problems persist. Loose ones look like pregnancy clothes, others aren't often even available.

I'd like to look nice and not like a huge block, which is how I ended up when trying out clothes in store the other day. What do others with same body proportions use in professional, quite relaxed environment?

(I Speak English as a second language, sorry for possibly bad English.)

Can’t really help but have the same problem, so following for suggestions. It’s not an easy shape to dress, plus I don’t have your nice waistline. Basically, anything that fits my shoulders / back will be too tight across my (40G) boobs. And anything that’s big enough for my boobs will hang like a sack everywhere else. I haven’t worn a dress for years - I even got married in a two-piece with a long silk jacket on top. I wear a lot of separates.

it’s not quite correct for me these days as my waist is less defined but you could look at what Trinny & Suzanne recommend for Vase body shape? That used to work quite well for me.

I have similar issues. I can easily wear size 12 but instead had to buy 14 and sometimes 16 because of wide shoulders and breast size. I changed my bra type and switched to minimiser bra and it has made a lot of difference. Also bought M&S light as air bra. I can wear a size 12 with these bra. I would recommend to try these in the store along with a smaller size shirts/blouses to see if it works with you.

I try to keep necklines open (v-necks, wraps, drapey shirts and blouses with the top buttons undone), size up tops to get the right fit across the shoulders, and look for a bit of waist definition. I bought this top the other day:

https://www.jigsaw-online.com/collections/tops/products/red-12

It’s been a rubbish 5 years for clothes because everything’s been unstructured, but waists are finally coming back so I’ve been tucking shirts into trousers and wearing belts.

Just to add I inherited this shape from my mum. She gave up on buying anything and made a project out of learning to create her own patterns and use them to make tops to fit. She now has made to measure tops that fit across her back / shoulders / boobs and are nipped in at the waist, in a whole variety of fabrics.

Same I have to define my waist or ribcage or even ankles and wrists as these parts are much smaller than my shoulders and chest suggest.

I actually find smarter easier. It's the current fashion for large t-shirts and very long lower rise bottoms which can never work.

Loose blouses which are tucked into high waisted trousers work ok. Blouses - with a slight sheerness or flowy material - better than crisp cotton shirts which make me look like a policewoman. Fit and flare or skater style dresses. You just have to buy them in a big enough size. I quite like the contrast of a straight mannish coat or jacket hanging off wide shoulders but something fitted underneath.

Good ideas, thank you! I do have sports bra, will try have them underneath a top next week!

Another thing that has bothered me forever: if I'm using not boxy but fitting clothes, at times I have heard comments of "showing off" my breast. I have quite "conservative" clothes, but can't hide that I have large breasts. What irks me that "showing off" basically means that my clothes don't show skin, but it is obvious that I do, indeed, have large breasts. Some people seem to think I should actively hide that fact and if not, it's interpreted as parading around letting everybody see my boobs.

After suffering too much attention in too young age for my body shape it feel ridiculous to still have to face this attitude. Dunno if this happens to people with large hips or butts, too, hope not - it feels like the fact I have a body part is a sign itself that I want to rub it in other people's faces and even be overly sexual from some people's point of view.

Agree 💯. The whole unstructured, boxy, oversized thing is a disaster for me 🙄.

I’m not a naturally dressy / smart person and I didn’t really have to dress very smart for work but I know I look better in more formal styles So what does work is:

softer / more casual fabrics (linen, cotton, denim, cord) in ‘smart’ shapes / styles. so straight leg jeans, dark, right length, quite formal looking, with a soft linen top that’s fitted over shoulders, more flowing over boobs

make sure the colours are right. I know not everyone agrees with the systems but when I wear my ‘star’ colours, I get more compliments that day than any other - almost irrespective of the actual garment I’m wearing.

v-necks, always. I can just about get away with a boat neck if it’s patterned to break up the pillowy upper chest look. and layer with a deep v cardigan on top.

@OuterSpaceCadet you’ve just given me permission to dump some crisp cotton shirts: they do make me look like a busty Juliet Bravo 🤦‍♀️ however much I love them on other people.

I have been contemplating buying stuff that looks good on my friends, maybe I just skip buying and wishful thinking. 😅

I always think that if you are statuesque, the really great clothes role models are stroppy journalists from the 40s and 50s in high quality tv dramas! Have a look at photos of Rachel Stirling in The Bletchley Circle and Anna Chancellor in The Hour and see whether you think this could be your look. I love this aesthetic and think it looks both professional and glamorous, plus you can basic at buy all those clothes in Jigsaw on any given day of the week.

Oh god yes. I used to have such a bad posture because I got accused of "sticking my tits out" when standing up straight.

But it definitely happens to women with larger bums too.

It's a different way of looking at clothes, but if might be worth having a look at the Kibbe system. The idea is about finding your natural lines and dressing in a way which is harmonious with your body rather than disguising it. If you're tall you might be a Soft Dramatic or Flamboyant Natural. It's a bit complicated but I find it quite useful.

This. Learning how to take in at the waist (a dart and side seams) means I can fit to my bust and shoulders when I buy and then adjust to.my waist.

Belts! You need belts! I add a belt to almost everything.

My mum has really large -out of proportion to the rest of her body- breasts... She never wears anything loose on top and instead finds stretchy black tops. The black minimises her top half - the stretchiness shows off her waist. Then she wears loose linen type wide leg trousers. The whole look balances her larger top half and makes it look more proportional.

Could something like this work?

Boat neck type necklines?

Boat or v-neck form fitted T-shirt, matalan have quite a few vneck long sleeved in a range of colours at the moment.

Ive lost a lot of weight over the last 18 months and had no idea what shapes and types of clothes to wear so I took a photo of myself full length in leggings and a vest and uploaded it to chat-gpt asking it to tell me my body shape, what styles and colours would be most flattering and then I went to John Lewis and just tried a load of stuff on. I took photos of everything so I could look at them later away from the shop and see for myself what I liked. It was really useful and I now find it much easier to I see something online and know whether it’s worth ordering.

I can highly recommend getting clothes altered/tailored.

So get things in the right size to accommodate your shoulders and boobs, then get them tailored to the rest of your body..

I get most of my clothes altered, usually costs about £10 per item..even less for shortening the hem on jeans etc … but for me it’s 100% worth it to have clothes that fit my body well.

I've actually found the oversized/vanity sizing trend quite useful for large breasts. Shirts finally close. Tops have a bit more room. I size down so I'm not swamped but recognise I'm lucky to have that option. If I'm sizing down to a 6 or an 8 then what are people smaller than me doing.

Do you wear shirts open with a vest or top underneath? I think that look can take you a lot of places. You get the break up across the chest but it still looks relatively smart. This is my go to for a large bust and wide shoulders, a top with something layered on top so there are two vertical lines minimising the bust. Works with anything from a round neck cashmere cardigan to a very light over shirt. I also find with this look I can wear high neck tops which are more fashionable than v neck and hide my scraggy neck better.

My best trousers then have some kind of width at the hips for balance. Wearing darker colours on top and lighter on bottom is another trick.

I don't wear dresses, I don't like them but I think that may be because they accentuate my imbalanced figure (also have v short legs).

Jersey wrap dresses preferably with a v neck are my only solution. I mainly get them from Vinted as this style doesn’t seem to exist any more!

I’ve found that raglan sleeved tops & jackets work best, or a dropped shoulder fit. I’ve got broad shoulders and boobs and can’t wear a lot of jackets! Draping fabric helps - or sift fabrics. Longer line tops and jackets too! Belted styles are good with the softer shoulder.

It's a tricky one. Stay away from blazers unless they are tailored for you. Collared shirts in cotton/poplin are also not great as you'll need to go up a size. Men's tops may fit your shoulders better, try high quality t-shirts and fine knit merino. Crew neck can actually be flattering if your shoulders fit properly and the waist is neat. Also second sports bras and minimising bras generally.

Wear tops that skim the body.
I'd dress the top for an hourglass, and the bottom half for your shape on the hips and legs.

Avoid men's short sleeve t-shirts. Don't wear men's clothes, men don't have boobs

How about those ballerina wrap style cardigans?
They had some lovely ones in Primark this year but Im sure you can find them in posh shops too!😉

Have a proper bra fitting (e.g. old-fashioned lingerie shop not department store).
Minimiser bras and sports bras tend to squash the boobs into the armpits.

I could quote many of the replys, this hit hard since I just learned this the hard way. Accidentally and in a rush (sounds just as silly as it was) I ended up buying a blazer that had padded shoulders - didn't realize this until it was too late. 😫

The clothes that I already have are mostly chinos and fitted, dark-ish shirts, had some great ideas from the thread! As I said, it's been dreadful to try and find new clothes when the old ones are slowly getting too old.

Sadly my mid section is like...well, a flat brick, so belts aren't helping unless I got rid of some bones. Not going to. 😅Ballerina wrap style cardigans are definitely something I will look to, if and when I find them without belts or anything decorative on the waist.

Professionally fitted bras are absolutely necessary, luckily my sports bra has also been fitted professionally so they're quite nice. I Haven't really previously thought I could use them other than in sports.

Thank you all! This thread has helped me so much to find new ideas!🙌