Weigh in Wednesday: Getting Dressed

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What is one of the biggest issues you face when you’ve gained weight?  Clothes don’t fit.  It’s especially bad after you’ve just had a baby because you haven’t even tried to wear your normal jeans in months.  And after wearing maternity pants for a little too many weeks postpartum, you try to squish yourself into your too-tight jeans, sucking in as much as you can.

But its hopeless.  Your voluptuous hips won’t budge and the only thing likely to move is the threads of the pants as they rip.  Defeated, you know there is only one obvious solution:  get in your sweat pants and eat some consolatory ice cream.  

And of course after you do that and remember that at some point you need to leave the house looking presentable, you decide to brave The Dressing Room.

Some of you might remember my other short-lived blog “The Mom Uniform.”  I started that blog in an attempt to discover fashion again, especially about how to dress for my new more…we’ll say “Womanly” body type.  I braved The Dressing Room several times in the last month.  I’ve tried on dozens of articles of clothing, bearing in my mind the new Rules for My Body Type.  Only more so, since My Body Type includes a lovely extra 15 or so pounds.  Which makes things more tricky because even fewer things look good on me. Here are my new Rules:

1. Wear tops that have details around the chest and arm area, which will draw attention away from the middle.  
2. Look for empire waists, as long as they drape close to the body (so you don’t look pregnant.)  
3. Tie belts above the ‘shelf’ to draw the eye away from the tummy.  
4. Wear jackets that are tailored to fit snugly around the narrowest part of your waist to create the hourglass appearance.  
5. Wear skirts that are A-line or straight, nothing that will add bulk to the hips.  
6. Show off your legs by experimenting with different skirt lengths.  
7. Wear pants that fit well on the top, are boot cut, straight leg, or even wide leg.  
8. Don’t be afraid of your new size.  Even if they’re larger, clothes that fit look much better than smaller sizes that are too tight.

Well I was true to my rules and so far I’ve purchased eight things and taken three of those back.  One new shirt, two new pants, one dress, one pair of shoes (because they always fit.)  And actually, re-reading these rules…I wasn’t really all that true to them.

Next time I go shopping, I hope that I will be skinnier.  Because even with these rules and getting the right size, shopping for clothes is tricky.