- After giving birth to twins, I built a wardrobe aimed at trying to hide my waist.
- However, after working with a personal stylist, I realized this approach was sabotaging my look.
- Instead, the stylist encouraged me to accentuate my waistline with tailored tops and belts.
Ten years ago, I carried my twins to full term, and they came out big and healthy.
However, my pregnant belly was enormous, and my overstretched ab muscles couldn’t come back together after pregnancy, leaving me with a significant case of diastasis recti (abdominal-muscle separation) and a rounded-out belly.
This took a major toll on my body image, which, in turn, affected the way I dressed myself. Instead of expressing my personal style through my clothes — something I’d always loved to do — I built a wardrobe around simply trying to hide my waist area.
Feeling like it was time for a change, I started working with Chellie Carlson, a stylist based in my Los Angeles neighborhood.
Over the course of two meetings, Carlson helped me shop my closet and found one major mistake I was making that sabotaged my entire look.
Carlson looked through my clothes and identified the mistake I was making
During our meetings, Carlson sorted through my clothes and explained that my approach to hiding my midsection was actually making me look bigger in the area I wanted to deemphasize.
My clothes were exaggerating my proportions rather than streamlining them — which wasn’t doing me any favors.
She explained that the more flattering approach would be to accentuate my waistline with tailored tops and belts.
So, under Carlson’s guidance, I took all my peplum tops out of the closet and tossed them into the donation pile.
She also encouraged me to take a billowing shirt — like my favorite silky button-down — and tuck it into my pants for a more flattering and polished look.
For my other loose-fitting tops — like graphic T-shirts — she showed me how to use a clear hair elastic to invisibly cinch them in the back, creating a more fitted and flattering silhouette.
The closet overhaul boosted my confidence and inspired me to express my personal style again
After working with the stylist, I felt inspired to buy some new pieces in the spirit of dressing with confidence. However, this time, I was driven by a neutral attitude toward my form instead of a self-loathing one.
Based on Carlson’s suggestions, I’m now layering my slimmer-fitting tops with oversize blazers or outer layers, which help elongate my torso and balance the look. I’m also pairing everything with high-waisted and wider-leg pants that help me strike a more proportional — and current — style.
Overall, I couldn’t be happier with the results of our meetings. The closet overhaul boosted my confidence and inspired me to express my personal style again.
I still won’t be wearing crop tops or clingy dresses — this isn’t a story about suddenly finding absolute peace with a changed body — but I’ve learned to express myself in a way that better complements my body.
