Fellow pear-shaped women who aren't thin - please help!

[AngelikiEvangelia]

Looking for advice, tips, anything really.

I am really struggling to find any tidy/nice clothes that actually look good on my pear-shaped body since I've gained weight.

When I was younger and thinner, clothes were still a struggle but I could make myself look presentable with some wide-leg jeans/trousers and a fitted top (or a midi tea dress if I wanted to be fancy).

However, around about 7 years ago, I started gaining weight, with a load of it settling around my middle (which isn't something I'd ever experienced before). Since then, I don't feel comfortable wearing anything fitted on my top half so I've pretty much retreated into baggy, loose tops and jumpers... which I'm finding increasingly depressing 😕

If you're a similar shape to me and have particular garments, brands, etc that work for you, please share, as I've honestly lost all my confidence in choosing clothes at this point.

Anyone?

I would wear blazers and lightweight unlined coats over a tummy skimming cami or shell top. The coats/blazers you can buy to fit your top, it doesn’t matter if they don’t do up, it has a slimming effect.

This is me - I’ve gone from a 10/12 to a solid (or wobbly) size 12 with perimenopause, and now have a lower tummy as well as a big bum/hips. I never wear slim fitting things now, but I do tuck as I still have a small waist. I wear a lot of cardigans at this time of year, over (mainly) white crew neck t-shirts, then wider legged bottoms. In warmer weather I wear a lot of midi dresses and skirts (again skirt plus tee). I’m also happy to wear oversized knits with eg barrel leg jeans, and just lean into the baggy. I’m pretty “polished” overall in terms of hair/makeup/nails etc so it balances out.

“My” shops are Cos, Arket, &OS, bits from H&M, Damson Madder, and the odd thing from New Look. I find Abercrombie “curve love” range good for jeans as they cut for big arses - I wear a size 29 in those and have several pairs. I recently got some really nice jeans from Albaray after seeing someone with them on TikTok and really love them. (I’d never shopped there before and they just cut big as I had to return/size ydown to a 10.)

I’m 52, so a middle aged wifie that no-one notices, and I try to remember that!

That was me before I lost 5 stone. I used to do layering a lot rather than wearing big baggy clothes. Its more flattering. There are tutorials on YouTube.

Same problem here, always had a larger btm but I can’t get used to having a tummy! I like jersey dresses as they’re comfortable and wash well, usually from white stuff or Seasalt. If you figure out the styles and shapes you like they tend to repeat in different patterns and colours a lot. Wrap styles, fit and flare or empire cuts work well for me, so they are quite fitted in the top half and then flare out over the bottom half - pleats to the front waist help to skim over and disguise the tummy. I also wear long length open cardigans with them and tell myself it creates an optical illusion that makes me look slimmer as it’s like a giant vertical stripe. I have quite chunky arms and legs, so anything that’s not a wide leg tends to look like a skinny fit on my legs. M&S do good wide leg jeans and cords, but I avoid the newer styles that have pleats to the front as they seem to emphasise the belly. I do still follow the wide leg, fitted top rule, I really like the larissa shirts from sea salt for this because you twist creases into them when you dry them so they fit really nicely.
It’s worth just going and trying stuff on to figure out what shapes you feel comfortable in and making a list of shapes and style names - then it is easier to shop online with confidence, and you can search eBay and vinted for different colours and patterns of the styles that suit you.

These are really helpful tips - thanks everyone ❤️

As a pear/apple (thanks kids!) I highly recommend the jersery dress - it creates a slimmer silhouette and can skim your bumps. Wear with tights or leggings or even jeans (apparently that's back in!).

Aside from that, tops with interesting neckline or boat neck draw the eye up away from the bottom half.

Boot cut/flare balance out a pear shape more than wide leg.

Long line coats help a lot as well as pps said