Amendment to the Dress Edit (Ode to Liz)

Somebody rather stylish pointed out to me that not many of these dresses (which I picked out to be worn to weddings) from my recent post (The Dress Edit) would suit well endowed ladies. And she was absolutely right. The fact that I have the DNA of a plank clearly makes me predisposed to picking styles which do not require substantial boobs – apologies. Now I’m afraid those of you who this will interest might just have to spend a little more as cheaper cuts are not quite as forgiving on womanly figures. A few tips for those lucky enough to have large bosoms:
  • try not to have your sleeves stop in line with your boobs as that will give the illusion of more width. Sleeveless or capped sleeves  if you can get away with them, or longer 3/4 sleeves will work better for you
  • slimmer / fitted sleeves will work well (they will keep the upper half neater)
  • avoid any extra material on your top half, you don’t want to look ‘blousey’. Generally, body skimming, good cuts and quality, fabrics with slightly more weight to them (ie not flimsy) and a bit of give will look best
  • wear a great bra
  • if you have a waist, accentuate it
  • be careful with pattern and print, you don’t want to achieve the Pat Butcher effect. Probably safest to avoid animal prints unless you can really rock it, in which case, do!
  • show off your decolletage if it’s in good nick, if not, keep the neckline slightly higher up
  • check for gaping
  • don’t show cleavage if your boobs are droopy, or bolster them so they’re not
  • try daring cuts for special occasions (think Marilyn Monroe) but be careful not to cross the line into tarty
  • generally, some sort of v or shirt collar neck will suit you best, unless you want to go for a retro busty milkmaid vibe (probably not recommendable) or a Dangerous Liaisons look (quite hard to pull off unless you’re going to a ball or a fancy dress party)
  • try well cut cowl necks for an expensive and sophisticated look (think Nigella)
  • avoid looking slutty or matronly and instead aim for fabulous, stylish and sexy
Here are some dresses I found that technically should work. You could try strapless dresses (Ted Baker have some in ‘nice’ summery prints) but I haven’t included any here as my personal opinion is that they look too bridesmaid-y. After having a scout around online, it seems there are some ‘specialist’ options, but none of them have great reviews. Can anyone recommend any good brands which work for larger chested ladies so I can share your intel with the rest of the vast Nomad Thief readership?
This is a classic shape which should work well
J1BN9_model
An interesting and pretty print for a wedding, and I’d hazard a guess that the fabric’s quite nice too
Planet, £129
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(Apologies for the small picture!) A great quirky dress (it’s not so easy to find a print / colour scheme which is not twee) which was brought to my attention by my v stylish friend M. She’s a plank too, and the dress looks good for giving the illusion of curves – but I think it would be pretty great on any body shape
Whistles, £165
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Okay so the shiny fabric isn’t so great, and she’s not doing herself any favours in those awful flip-flops, but you get the idea. Subtle, foxy cleavage, and hip skimming-ness.
 J1LI9_model
Interesting print and nice if you want to go colourful
Planet, £99
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Okay so it’s a little bit K-Mid, but the no fussiness of the block colour and the fitted sleeves are going to work
Ralph Lauren, now £82.50 (XS, M & L currently still available)
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Remember, we’re looking for dresses to wear to a wedding. This could look nicely va va voom with great accessories
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Safe, and a nice, but not too twee print
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Not a big fan of red and black together (old school uniform colours) but for those of you that are
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For those of you who want a 50s look, try to find something with a little more structure around the boobs and waist, like this:
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This could look great on someone with enough height to carry it off, boobs or no boobs. I know I advised no ruffles or unnecessary detail but I think this doesn’t go overboard and could look great. Of course it’s desperately unhelpful trying to see what these dresses would look like on a not-size-10 model, but use your imagination
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Last but not least, a nice top half silhouette with a foxy pencil skirt bottom
Alexon, £150
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xx Nomad Thief

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