Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Shapewear: The Senior Lady's Best Kept Secret


As a woman ages, things sag, wrinkle, crease, discolor and collapse. Most women do not have the financial means to fix these things by surgery, nor the time and effort it would take to keep up with them, so women over age 50 do the next best thing: wear shapewear beneath their outer clothing!

This is a trick Hollywood has used for years. Not all actresses have the perfectly toned and tight bodies we seem to see on the screen. They have used corsets, spandex and other shaping undergarments from arms to ankles to achieve the right look at times. The everyday woman does not need that; she just wants to look and feel her best as she advances into her senior or "golden" years.

One-piece bra and panty shapewear is the best article of clothing a woman over age 50 can own. It has the uplift, support and laciness of a bra on top, and can have a comfortable high cut leg line with and without lace on the bottom. But the part that makes a woman feel pulled in, smoother and sleeker is the midriff part that connects the top and bottom. Similar to a bathing suit, but in lingerie fabric, it will keep that spare tire bulge in the middle under control. Sweaters, t-shirts and dresses will all look better.

One-pieces are also similar to the sexy teddy seen in many lingerie pictures and on the big screen in movies, especially from the 1930s and 1940s era. But as pretty as the teddy was, it was usually made of flimsy silk and did nothing for support. Today's shapewear has both spandex and nylon and nylon lace and comes in many different colors. Two elegant pretty brands are: Curvation's one-piece black with red lace trim, both sexy and comfortable, and Crown-ette's off-white apparel with lacy under-wired bra cups and side inserts.

Shapewear also includes strapless slips and longer garments with thigh control. Both can be used when wearing special dresses for special occasions like weddings, formal affairs or black tie dinners. When a woman feels firm and tight, she will stand taller, walk prouder and smile more. In other words, wearing something as simple as the right undergarment can make a person happier.

Young, firm bodies will look great in anything; they can wear bikinis, thongs and the flimsiest of bras and slip on revealing and short dresses and look amazing. This article is not for them, although shapewear comes in sizes 32A as well as 42DDD and they are welcome to wear these pretty garments too. Women over 50 have no monopoly on one-piece garments, but if you are of that age and have not tried one, please do. No matter how well a bra by itself fits or how pleasing to the eye, there is still the open space right below and all the way to the tummy that needs attention on most women as they age.

Just because a woman is past her prime in the body department, does not change her sense of style, her love of color nor her sexiness within. Wearing soft, smooth shapewear just makes the years less apparent.