The right waist shaper can give a sleeker silhouette, whether you are in jeans or a little black dress. Shapewear, in general, is designed to smooth out lumps and bumps, defining your best qualities while subduing any problem areas. If you haven’t given these undergarments a try before, you may be surprised by how well they work.
Today’s Improved Shapewear
It used to be that waist shapers simply provided compression, squeezing fat and skin without any focus. The results weren’t flattering, new bulges appeared above and below the waistline, and the fit of the shapewear was often very uncomfortable. Fortunately, today’s undergarments are much more comfortable and a lot more attractive. With multiple levels of toning and shaping available, you can either target specific areas or choose a shaper that covers a lot of trouble spots.
Choosing the Right Pieces
Start by determining the areas that you want to target. Let’s take a look at some of the options:
• Leg-shaping tights: Tights represent a very popular and common form of waist shaper. Extending below the waist, there are options for the entire leg, just the thighs, or the bottom, hips, and waist. In the past, the waist band would sometimes roll over uncomfortably, but today’s tights have really improved.
• Panties: In a variety of different styles, slimming panties provide a lot of support for the stomach, the hips, thighs, and bottom. Choose the style of panty based on those areas that need the most definition.
• Camisole: Naturally, one of the most common areas that women like to target is their stomach. A great camisole can smooth out those unwanted rolls and bulges at the waist while still looking like an attractive piece of clothing.
• Full body shapers: The body suit offers to transform all of those problems areas at once while slimming your waist.
Get the Right Fit
Many women have a hard time finding high quality waist shapers at their local department stores and turn to online retailers for their purchases. Before you make your purchase, take time to get the right measurements. It’s usually pretty simple to get your hip and waist measurements; take thigh and bust measurements if you want to target more than your waist. When ordering online, it can also be helpful to have accurate measurements of height and weight. Be aware that some brands run small or large. Check the comments left by previous customers to see if this is the case with any shapers you want to buy.
Can You Go a Size Smaller?
Don’t give in to the temptation of ordering a size too small. Sometimes women are tempted to order one size down, trying to fit into a smaller dress size. However, this often backfires, creating bulges and increasing discomfort. There are also considerable health risks associated with wearing waist shapers that are too tight. Organs, nerves, and even bones can become compressed, leading to tingling, numbness, and eventually, long-term consequences.
Ultimately, your waist-slimming success can be determined by choosing the right piece and the right size of shaper. After all, if the item isn’t comfortable enough to wear, you won’t get any benefit from it. Take time to decide which areas need the most attention and stick to wearing the right size shaper for your body.
I haven’t worn any type of waist shaper in years. When I was very young I sometimes wore a girdle and then later control top pantyhose. I almost bought something to slim me down for my son’s wedding and now that I have read your review I know what I should not do and have a better idea what to purchase.
I’ve thought about getting some Spanx and I’m sure glad I read this before I did. I want something like a cami shaper while I diet. I never thought about the repercussions of purchasing something that was too small. I need to get a tape measure and make sure I do order the right one. Thanks for the heads up!