Curvy Girl Shapewear 101: A Guide for Choosing the Best Shapewear for Plus-Sized Babes
In case you haven’t heard, the days of hiding your curves behind baggy or poor fitting clothes are over. It’s time to fall in love with your curves, maximize your assets, show the world that you are proud of your body and you aren’t afraid to show it off.
Thanks to the body positivity movement and the inclusion of big-bodied models in mainstream fashion, curvy girls worldwide are finally learning to give themselves permission to feel beautiful.
Since there’s a wider variety of plus-sized clothing options, you can learn to dress in a way that expresses who you are -while flaunting whatchya got- instead of “dressing to hide”. And with the right shapewear underneath to accentuate your silhouette, you can rock any look with confidence.
Your curves aren’t cookie-cutter, why should your shapewear be?
See one curvy woman, see them all, right? WRONG!
Just as there are as many ways to be beautiful, curvy bodies come in a multitude of forms. Some big-bodied women are busty and have narrow hips. Some plus-size ladies have bangin’ booties and thighs with tiny waists. We represent all shapes, all colors, all backgrounds.
So with such diversity of shapes and sizes, why do we expect shapewear to fit the same, no matter your body type?
Shapewear is a foundation, not a disguise
If you have fair skin, you wouldn’t use concealer created for dark skin, right? It would defeat the purpose of blending away dark circles or blemishes. The same goes for shapewear: as a plus-sized woman, you can’t (and shouldn’t) use shapewear meant for skinny girls.
Because — guess what? You don’t have to look skinny to look beautiful!
If you’ve worn shapewear before, you know that it is designed to enhance your shape, as well as smooth out any bits that might make you feel insecure. And while high-compression shapewear can add extra contours to your silhouette, it’s not intended to make your body look like something it isn’t.
So… when you wear ill-fitting shapewear, not only does it not do the job of creating a smooth canvas for your clothing, it can actually cause more lumps by pinching your body in the wrong places or rolling down!
You want to choose the best shapewear to flatter your unique, beautiful body — without squeezing the stuffing out of you!
So how do you find the right style for bringing out your best bits — without squeezing the stuffing out of you? How do you know when you’ve got the right kind of shapewear for your curvy body? Is it even possible to find plus-size shapewear that will stay where it’s supposed to without rolling down or riding up?
We made this guide just for curvy women so you can discover shapewear styles designed for plus-sized bodies.
1) Know your measurements
The first thing you need to know: buy shapewear in your size or, if you are not completely sure, one size larger.
Some women think that if they get shapewear a size down, it will provide more compression and make them look thinner. Nope! In fact, shapewear that’s a size too small will only create bulges and rolls where you don’t want them, plus it will be extremely uncomfortable.
Also: shapewear sizes don’t always correlate to underwear sizes. Don’t assume, just because you normally buy a certain size of plus size undies, that you are the same size in shapewear.
If you’re unsure about your size, you can check out our sizing charts and our help center to learn more on how to choose the right size of shapewear according to your measurements.
