I’m with you, Angie…I simply cannot stand the feel of a tucked in top, especially with pants. It just isn’t going to happen ever, no matter how svelt my waistline may become.

I love the look of a top/shirt tucked into a (high-waisted) skirt or pair of trousers. It’s not the most easy look to pull off though if you have a bit of a tummy. I know I always feel a little self-conscious when sporting the look.

I even think the look on the right can work, but I agree Angie, if something doesn’t stay put, that drives me batty too;-).

Another thing I like: wide-legged (dressy) trousers with a top tucked in, it seems to balance things out.

I think tucking is secretly close to my heart. Pre-YLF I tucked all the time, but since finding this site, I’ve come around and agree with your point of view, Angie. I love tucking most kinds of tops into high waisted pencil skirts and if I tuck into pants, like you, they are also high waisted. But still, I am always wondering about all of the pics in jcrew and Banana republic that feature tucked shirts. I really like the look on the models but can’t get over the new belief that untucked is better. I think what appeals to me about tucking is the menswear-ness of it. Maybe one day I will go back to experimenting with this, but only with your special guidance.

The fact that short waisted-ness vs. long-waisted-ness affects the result is very valuable. I’m also average waisted. But with a pregnant belly, I’m feeling much more visually long-waisted these days and yet tucking does not work that well because you have to tuck so low. Ha!

Thank you Angie for your post.. this is a subject I struggle with each morning.. eh eh
I have a short torso and I feel it looks best untucked, even with a pencil skirt.
As I have a full breast, when I use a pencil skirt and try to tuck, I feel that my waist starts right after my breats…but I love the look of a high waist pencil skirt ou trousers paired with a tucked blouse..

I used to wear my knit fitted tops tucked onto mid rise jeans with a thick jeans belt. I do not think that is fashionable right now although maybe for juniors. Now that I cannot find many mid rise jeans, I never tuck. Wearing a belt adds bulk under untucked tops. I think that my waist is on the short side and as Angie noted-tucking makes it shorter which is why I like lower slung belts over untucked tops. I have not tried the highwaisted, tucked shirt look but imagine it might also make my waist appear shorter.
after5 pulls it off beautifully!

I hardly ever tuck in my tops, and the only exception is with my high waisted pencil skirt. I guess my reason for this is the unflattering look of the blouson effect, as well as the fact that it reminds me of the frumpy looks I was forced to wear in high school. Our shirts always had to be tucked in and we had to wear belts if our skirts had belt loops. And of course there is the issue of shirts not staying put driving my nuts too.

I don’t think I’ve tucked in over 20 years! I’m a little short-waisted, so tucking cuts me off visually. And I don’t find it comfortable. Plus, after kids, I’ve lost some waist definition and I don’t want to emphasize that.

The only thing I will tuck is an undershirt (tank, cami), to give a smooth line under my top.

Inge, if wide-legged pants have a high rise, tucking can look fab. I agree! For me, the length of the rise on either skirts or pants is crucial when it comes to tucking things in. They have to be on the high side. Forum member Danja does this to perfection

Greenglove, the 90’s look you are speaking of (tucking tops into mid rise and low rise jeans with a bulky belt) was in my mind an unflattering mainstream look unless you were whippet thin. Often the tops were too short to stay tucked which was wildly frustrating. When tops became longer in the 00’s, people started wearing them un-tucked but WITH their same old bulky 90’s low rise belts and jeans. It was a recipe for disaster. We are now at the stage where most people are getting the un-tucked look right. Yay!

I usually don’t tuck– even though that drives my husband crazy: he thinks untucking is sloppy– because I have a short waist. However, today I DO have my shirt tucked in, because I am wearing grey low-rise pants with a fitted, long gray tee, and between tucked and untucked I felt untucked looked sleeker.

Oops– make that “tucked” looks sleeker.

on the other hand, i am petite, an hourglass shape and have quite wide hips. usually, if i don’t tuck, fitted jersey tops and t-shirts bulge around my midriff. i look much slimmer in a tucked top, even though i have a bit of a belly fat

also, if i wear my top untucked, the belt loops and other embellishments that my jeans have, will look extremely bulky and nasty! and the nice upper part of jeans won’t show. i wear jeans mostly with a nice belt.

Much like you, I generally tuck only when wearing something high-waisted. The way I’m shaped makes tucking into low-cut bottoms SERIOUSLY unflattering!

Mmmm … I think I am more of a tucker. For sure, most tops I wear with suits are tucked, especially button downs but silk blouses too. I just think it looks more professional. Come to think about it, I tuck a good bit of my casual wear also … if I wear a jacket, I’ll often tuck the top I’m wearing under it. If the jacket is cropped though, I’ll wear the shirt untucked because I think it looks weird for the jacket hem and bottoms waist line to be so close together (does that make any sense at all???) I never tuck sweaters and it bothers me that catalogs (jcrew included) often shows fine knit sweaters tucked into bottoms.

I wear tops tucked into higher waisted pencil skirts, but not into trousers or jeans. I can not get the look to look right no matter how hard I try.

I’m actually a tucker because I’m what you would call a “racy rectangle”. I believe I’m a little bit short-waisted, but I tuck (into mid or high-rises) because it helps me create curves on my relatively stick-like figure.
My other alternative (untucked, I mean) is to wear a very structured top or waist-defining belt, but I generally feel sleeker and less sloppy when I tuck.

I did tuck during the 90s (good thing I was in my early 20s and “whippet thin”). With the boxier shirts creating a blouson effect, and narrow at the waist, I think it did work. In fact, this memory is what helped me accept the banded tops of today … bit different in silhouette, but familiar.

With the 00s came my babies and untucked shirts to cover my belly and low-waisted pants. I’m so glad to find higher waisted pants again to wear with untucked shirts. I have enjoyed a tucked buttondown with a pencil skirt too.

Two questions:
1. Does tucking work on those of us whose torsos are not so petite?

2. Do retail stylists tuck in order to *also* show the pants or skirt waistband, or is it really just the look they are going for?

As much as I love the look, I can’t remember the last time I tucked in a top! No wait, now I can–with my black pencil skirt. That’s the only time I’ll make an exception and tuck

How funny you would post this today – I’m not a tucker as a general rule, but I did today! Two very thin-knit t’s into a pencil skirt. They looked good out as well, but I decided I wanted to wear a statement belt.

I’m long-waisted, but I usually don’t tuck because shirts won’t stay in since they’re rarely long enough. What I *do* do, though, is tuck a cami into my jeans, and let the outer shirt be free.

I agree with your views on this, Angie. To me, tucked tops only work with high-waisted garments. I gave up on tucking when low-rise became the norm. I’m tall, so most tops don’t have enough length on me for tucking into low rise skirts or pants. Besides, it looks bad.

I used to wear only tucked in tops pre babies when I had a flat belly. Now I only wear non tucked in tops. I have a short torso and I have a huge muffin top. And for all the reasons Angie says, I love not tucking in my tops and not having to worry about smoothing it out all the time.

I am believe in tucked in look especially since I mostly wear blouses and button down shirts (on the weekends too). I even tuck in those finely-knit, paper thin sweaters because I really like the look since that way they don’t obscure my waist. The only time I don’t tuck in my tops is if they are knit (which is really a rarity in my wardrobe) or if I wear jeans, specifically for the reasons you discuss in the post Angie.

I never tuck, but I also am extremely short-waisted, big-busted, and don’t wear any woven, button-down shirts. I love the look on other people, but it just doesn’t work for my figure. And I don’t own anything high-waisted because my waist, really, is directly under my bust.

i don’t like the way tucking in feels, but i like the way it looks with skirts especially. even with pants of the right cut. untucked looks contemporary and casual, while tucked makes vintage looks possible.

I love the look of high-waisted pencil skirts and tailored high-waisted pants with shirts tucked in. Add a belt and I’m in heaven.

Unfortunately it is about one of the most unflattering looks imaginable on me. I used to be able to get away with it despite being short-waisted, since I had a smaller waist and bust. But now, if I were to tuck, the skirt would end up just below the bust which just looks really bad. It ends up looking like a weird empire waist, with the skirt coming to just below the bust. So unfortunately I had to give up tucking.

Generally, I prefer feel of untucked. As for looks, I like both. Really depends on how the top and bottom go together as to which looks better.

I like to tuck blouses, b/c most of my blouses look better tucked than untucked. I often tuck with suits, but not always. I have occasionally tucked sweaters, but I only started that last winter and it’s not my prefered way of wearing them.

Oddly enough, I rarely tuck into high waisted pencil skirts. I do sometimes, but the skirts are so slim and fitted that I prefer something slim and fitted over them. I find tucking often causes bulges and lines under such a slim skirt.

I often like the look of tucked in tops and, as a long-waisted tall gal, I think tucking can balance my body a bit. However, as a long-waisted tall gal, most shirts aren’t long enough on me to stay tucked unless the pants/ shirt are super-high waisted. So, for now, untucked will have to be just fine for me.

The only time I tuck (and it’s exceedingly rare) is if i am wearing a skirt and the top I want to wear is way too long to leave untucked. I have an average waist, and I don’t mind creating a waistline that is high – I think it’s akin to an empire style, which works well on me, because it makes my legs look endlessly long. But in general I hate tucked-in looks because it accentuates my tummy.

My granny always told me to tuck so that I will look smart. Unfortunately, I am not the tuck kind of girl. I only do it when wearing a high-waist paperbag skirt.

-meream

I was grappling with this just this morning. I was trying to wear the Express black and white checked pencil skirt with my 3/4 sleeve black button down, tucked. It just didn’t seem to work. I tried again with a sleeveless black button down and it looked a lot better. I have never tucked and have always envied those who can and pull it off. Since this skirt is high waisted, I want to play around a bit to find the right look. Will be posting pictures in the forum soon!

What about the issue of when you don’t tuck, but your top is a little too snug around the bulky part of the waist of the bottom (skirt or pants)? This causes me insane amounts of annoyance, because then you basically need three kinds of tops: tight enough to tuck in, loose and structured enough to leave out but not show a waist, and then the kind that has it’s own cinched waist on the top itself…

when I do tuck something into a high-waisted pencil skirt, one of two problems often occur:

1. If the waist is really high when standing, my belly sticks out under the waist of the bottom, making me feel self-conscious, and then when I sit the waist rides all the way up to underneath my bust.

2. The waist of the bottom hits RIGHT ON where my belly protrudes most, meaning instead of going in where my smallest part (my real waist) is, that is left to the imagination and I look blocky (as you said), longer waisted, and utterly unpolished.

As someone with a short, ill-defined waist, I am never, ever tempted to tuck. It looks all kinds of wrong on me!!!

I think I am in the minority. I like tucking in. The outfit looks more pulled-together to me, I guess when the top is tucked in. I also think that I can get away with it even though my torso is slightly on the shortish side. I was looking through my outfit pictures from the last year or so and I realized that I actually prefer to tuck my tops in when I am wearing rather formal outfits with dress trousers.

I love tucking a top into a highwaisted pencil skirt.

I also really like the look in the picture at the right, though I’d never do this myself; I don’t think it works well for curvy women and certainly not with muffin tops. I love the look on tall slim-hipped women (I guess that’s the rectangular body shape), it has a very appealing boyish sexiness to me.

Barely any more tuckin’ for me. I am short-waisted, F-cup-busted, and petite, plus my work requires me to move around and get in and out of a car a lot. Just not practical. I grew up as a tucker but it never was that comfortable, especially as many tops were so darned long on me and as an hourglass I often felt like there was just too much fabric around my middle.

I just acquired a nice charcoal gray wool high waisted pencil skirt though, so maybe I’ll start tucking a bit…but probably with a shrug or cropped jacket over everything to minimize the fussiness.

So, ironically, short waisted people can keep their shirts tucked in but shouldn’t, and long-waisted people could look good with their shirts tucked in, but they are too short.

I tuck things in because I think it looks neater, but when I pay attention, I see that no one else tucks and they don’t look sloppy. I am short-waisted but also thin. I like the blousy look on me–you can still see my waist, but I don’t look so scrawny on top. And then when I gain so much weight that I can no longer fit my shirts into my pants, then I can leave them untucked. I think it was just drilled into my head by my mother that you are supposed to tuck your shirt in and wear a belt. (My mother was born in 1942–perhaps styles have changed since then.) I don’t tuck in sweaters, though.

What I really hate is untucked shirts that are longer than blazers or other jackets.

I stopped tucking my tops into my pants in high school – which is almost two decades ago. My waist is short and crotch long so its not a good look for me.

I focus on shirts that look great untucked. Just today a client said, “does that have to be tucked in?” And I laughed at the disproportionate thought.

How do you explain this to the older generation– when tucking in was a sign of being put together and on top of things, and being untucked is being sloppy and slouchy and unkempt?

I hate to tuck but I tuck my button-downs when I wear them under my suit (which is the only time I wear my button-downs). I don’t like the feeling but the ones I have don’t look right untucked. I recently tried to tuck with a skirt and wasn’t successful but I can’t figure out why. Even with a pencil skirt it doesn’t look right to me. I do think according to the formula you had posted awhile back that I am short-waisted so that may explain my difficulties.

I only tuck in skirts (and not always then), because since learning about top length on YLF it is the easy way to make them shorter if they are too long. Ever though I am very long waisted I rarely tuck in pants, though I did in the 90’s.

Agreed on both. I do tuck in a thin, stretchy camisole into lowrise jeans and then layer something looser over it, just so I don’t show the world my backside.

I’m not quite sure how to keep tops tucked in even if I wanted them to be. They just bust out the back.

I am short-waisted and pear shaped. Although my waist is considerably smaller than my hips, I strongly dislike tucking my tops in

I actually love both looks you posted. (And wow, that skirt is to die for! Love it!) But I rarely tuck things in because I am extremely short-waisted and they always, always come untucked. Plus I’m tall and shop thrift stores and lower-end department stores (Kohl’s, JC Penney) almost exclusively, so it’s very rare to find shirts made for tall women, thereby making them come untucked even more easily. When I wear a pencil skirt I always tuck though because, like it is with you, the higher waist makes it so it doesn’t come untucked.

99 percent of the time: Tucked. I have a couple of shirts (new this summer) that work untucked, but I don’t like the look, on me, of the shirt peeking out from under the jacket, etc. I am slightly long-waisted. I think tucking is sleeker.

Well if I was as skinny and slouchy as the J Crew models (right) maybe I’d do the half tuck like they are always styled.

But alas, I’m short waisted and big chested. I almost never tuck and if I do it’s only into a pencil skirt or if I’m wearing another layer on top so that the tucked waist area doesn’t show.

I do both.

Being short-waisted and long-legged I discovered that it actually looks good to have a slim-fitting shirt or t-shirt, tuck it into midrise dark jeans whose belt somehow corresponds with the top and has a nice not too big buckle. That actually makes the torso appear longer.

If I feel bloated I’ll add a mid-thigh to kneelength cardigan or sleeveless vest and look put together without feeling stiff. One more accent near the face and I’m ready to go. I’d never have thought that but it works.

I could use some torso-shortening. But I’m *so* long-waisted that a tucked-in top never stays tucked in. And those #$%^!@ low-rise pants don’t help!

I’m shortwaisted & curvy (hourglass shape) and I NEVER tuck! But even if I weren’t short waisted, I’d be way too conscious of my midriff (tiny post-baby tummy pooch) to tuck in blouses/shirts! Do the rest of you ‘tuckers’ do so regardless of midriff issues?