Looking your best involves playing up your assets and downplaying your flaws considerations.  I don’t like to use the word flaws, as I don’t believe that anyone is flawed.  However, we all have those parts of us that drive us crazy and we wish we could just zap with a laser beam and be done with.  But, alas, we’re stuck with them.  Might as well make the best of them, right?

What if I told you that there is really nothing wrong with your body.  Would you believe me?  What if it was your clothes that were making you look heavier?  Let’s explore this idea further and see how it just may be true.

I find that many of my clients aspire to great heights when it comes to their image.  You’re served up ideals of rail-thin models who look great in everything they wear.  You embrace those ideals as your own, regardless of how unrealistic they may be.  You diet, you exercise, yet, the cold, hard truth is that you’re just not built that way.  You have curves.  You have a few extra pounds.  You’re what I like to call a ‘real woman’ and you’re never going to be a size 2, ever, and that’s ok because you’re perfect just the way you are.

What I’ve found, though, is it really isn’t about your size at all but about how you wear your clothing and how you present yourself.  You can be a size 22 and still look great if you are wearing clothing that’s right for you.  Feeling big is a mindset and often what happens when women feel big (I know, I’ve been there) is that they just let themselves go and wear what is comfortable rather than what they truly want or what is right for their body.     

When you perceive your body as imperfect and your inclination is to ‘hide’ it in big baggy clothes, items that are ill-fitting and things that simply make you look bigger than you truly are.  It’s just second nature to want to cover up what you perceive as a flaw, but what really is happening is that you’re visually adding pounds.  Your clothing becomes high-fat and makes you look bigger than you really are.  Sounds crazy, huh?  Yet it’s true.

Here are five signs your clothing is high-fat and visually adding pounds to your bottom line:

1/ Lack of Definition

Your clothing is bigger than you are and, quite simply, shapeless.  Your body gets lost in the excess fabric, making you feel smaller but the truth is what people see is the shapeless, amorphous clothing.  Which looks big. Which in turn makes you look big.  It seems counter-intuitive, yet it’s a fact; wearing clothing that TRULY fits your shape will visually take off pounds and inches.  Try it and see how great you can look, no matter what your size.  

2/ You Feel Frumpy

Frumpy is usually synonymous with sloppy, and if you feel that way it’s a pretty good bet that you look that way.  Start with small steps and do what it takes to boost your image and take care of yourself.  Get a haircut.  Have your nails done.  Move your body.  And wear clothing that makes you feel fabulous!

3/ You Wear What’s Comfortable

While dressing for comfort doesn’t always mean that you look frumpy, the key is that you don’t sacrifice style for comfort.  Sure, comfort is key but so is looking great.  When you sacrifice style for comfort you begin to lose your sense of style and venture into that treacherous territory where frumpy slowly overtakes your look.  One day you’ll wake up and ask yourself who it is you see staring back at you in the mirror.  Then you know you’re in trouble.

4/ Wearing Bright, Shiny Objects

I want to encourage you to wear color, but no, I don’t want you to get carried away and be the first thing that the vultures see while they’re circling from above.  Color is a tool that can work for you or against you.  Sheen is an element that can amplify color and turn a mild-mannered top, dress or skirt into a high-fat nightmare.  If you’re not at your ideal weight you may want to steer clear of anything shiny – aka satin, silk, patent leather and the like.  

When clothing has a sheen to it, it simply makes you look bigger than you are.  Add in a bright color and you’re looking heavier than you’ve been in years.  Shiny fabrics, like clingy knits, show every lump, bump and bulge and do nothing for your bottom line.  You can thank me later.

5/ You Don’t Have a Good Foundation

Few things are more important than a good foundation, and by foundation I mean lingerie.  Wearing a bra that you’re spilling out of, panties that leave unsightly bulges or lingerie that is too bulky for the clothing you’re wearing will only add pounds to your look.  Have a bra fitting and ensure you get a great bra that won’t leave lumps and bumps.  Invest in different styles of seamless undies – boy shorts, thongs, panties, shapewear – that will leave you with a smooth bottom line, which can make you look pounds thinner.  You want to create a sleek look under your clothes which can guarantee that you’ll look slimmer and trimmer, no matter what your size.

Wearing the right clothing can visually take off 5 or even 10 pounds!  Pay close attention to how your clothing is working for you – or against you – and make tweaks accordingly so you can show up looking like the gorgeous and confident woman you were born to be!