Look, I won’t lie. My everyday uniform is pretty much jeans and a t-shirt. It’s what I feel most comfortable in and it’s an outfit that’s easy to dress up or dress down.
It’s also perfect for that pesky school run that needs to be done twice a day, everyday for 40 weeks of the year.
But lately I’ve been embracing the button down shirt. Or blouse as my 65 year old mother likes to call them.
“That’s a lovely blouse you’re wearing Kirst. Where is that one from?”
“Um, Mum, nobody calls them blouses anymore, but thanks for the compliment. I think.”
Actually, I shouldn’t knock my Mum too much as she’s quite stylish for an old bird. One of these days I’ll have to feature her on the blog! But back to the shirt and jeans situation.
When you’ve got curves, finding a good quality shirt that fits and flatters can be hard to find. But with a little bit of perseverance and my top 3 shirt buying tips, it can be done!
Kirsten‘s Top 3 Shirt Tips
1. Stretchy fabric is your BFF!
When you’ve been blessed/cursed (whichever way you think of it. I switch between the two, depending on what shop I’m in!) with curves, you need a bit of stretch in your shirt. You know, so buttons don’t pull and leave your shirt gapping in inappropriate places.
2. Fitted VS Baggy
You also need the shirt to fit. None of this baggy shirt business, thanks very much! Baggy might be comfortable, but it sure isn’t flattering. Stick to a shirt that fits and wait for the compliments roll in!
3. Colour is Key
I know all the experts tell us we should all have at least one crisp white shirt in our wardrobe, but let’s face it, white doesn’t hide muffin tops very well and it certainly doesn’t hide any accidental food spillage that may occur while you’re wearing it! So if the thought of wearing a fitted shirt scares you more than hearing the words, “I’m sorry, your card has been declined” while you’re on a shopping bender, then go for a dark colour. It’ll hide all those annoying lumps and bumps and slim your shape down nicely.
So now that we’re armed with my shirt shopping tips (try saying that 5 times quickly!) are you ready to go shopping with me and actually find the perfect shirt? Great! Let’s go.
My latest shirt purchased from Autograph meets all 3 of my strict shirt shopping requirements. It’s stretchy fabric gives a flattering silhouette, it’s fitted but not skin tight and the navy colour hides my lumps and bumps quite well!
I’m wearing a size 14 and I’ve teamed it with a pair of boyfriend jeans (also from Autograph and also size 14) which you may remember seeing in this post and a pair of metallic sandals for a casual look.
Now I know what you’re thinking; “what’s with the waterskis she’s wearing on her feet?” Yes, those sandals do look a bit big/long for me in that photo, especially on that right foot (well technically it’s my left foot, but when you’re looking at the photo it’s on your right. Confused yet?)
I’m anywhere from a 7 to an 8 in shoes, depending on the make, with that left foot is bigger that my right. You should always shop for your bigger foot when it comes to shoes (according to the very helpful staff member in the shoe department at Myer, everybody has one foot bigger than the other, so I can probably stop googling things like ‘why are my feet so weird’) In real life they’re actually a perfect fit and I was standing with my feet pushed back too far in that photo. I should also mention that it took me approximately 4,872 shots to get that one semi-flattering outfit angle, so when I saw the shoe situation I was all “Bugger it. That’ll do!”
And now for the outfit details:
Shirt: Roll Sleeve Stretch Shirt from Autograph* $69.99 (currently on sale – 40% off, sale ends today!)
Jeans: Boyfriend Jean from Autograph * $79.99 (currently on sale – 40% off, sale ends today!)
Shoes: Alexi Sandal by Diana Ferrari, $99.95 from Myer (currently on sale – 25% off!)
* affiliate link
And there we have it. Another Shopping with Kirsten done and dusted!
Have you been shopping lately? Did you buy a shirt? Or something else?
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