The 24inch Waist...

It gets to a point during the day when I can't do anymore work...so instead I pretend to do work whilst looking at vintage dresses on the internet (I am now a master at this deception).Now I am a big fan of 1950's prom dresses (much to the boys despair). I love the nipped in waists and full skirts...so when I find one of these in my price range my heart tends to start beating faster and I get slightly sweaty palms...that is until I scroll down and read the dreaded words - 24 inch waist.For some reason there seems to be a stockpile in gorgeous dresses with 24 inch waists.I realise this is because the average waist is slightly bigger than it was back then (damn you chocolate and red wine) but it seems unfair to let these beauties go to waste...so....here is my guide to fitting into a smaller sized vintage dress that you simply had to have and bought even though it was too small.....phew!!First of all make sure you measure yourself properly. I am a standard size 10 which would equate (according to clothing sizes) to a 28 inch waist...however...when I measured myself I actually have a 26 inch waist....this meant that a whole world of new vintage opened up to me and my savings got depleted.Secondly find a good dressmaker....I have a wonderful lady who is used to vintage queries. If you find the dress of your dreams that is too small then a good dressmaker can add a panel to make the dress bigger and actually make the panel a fabulous new feature of the dress. For you bigger breasted ladies (I am very jealous) it is easy to raise the bust line to give the dress more coverage.And lastly....the right undies can work wonders and knock those final few inches of the waist. I recommend spanx or a waist cincher to get a smooth, tiny waisted look. Yes is may end up being slightly uncomfortable after a few hours but surely looking fabulous makes up for it...?So there we have...a few tips to allow you to go forth and conquer the world of vintage clothing.

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