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Do you own Spanx?

Aziraphale

Veteran

Or any other brand of shapewear?

I was just reading this article: http://www.etsy.com/blog/en/20.....shapewear/

...and the writer claims that it's difficult to find a woman who doesn't have a pair of Spanx hidden at the bottom of her underwear drawer. Well, perhaps I haven't joined the 21st century yet, because I don't. I tried some on once -- struggled and sweated, more accurately, muttering about #%@! corsets through gritted teeth -- and left the store grumpy and empty-handed. Not only were they tight and uncomfortable, they looked like those fugly bike shorts I used to wear when I was seventeen for, you know, riding a bike. I just can't bring myself to wear hideous undergarments, no matter how flat they make my tummy. Is it possible to find better, less restrictive, more attractive ones?

Dressing

46 replies

Latest reply was from Aziraphale

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I have one pair of L'eggs bodyshaper shorts (basically pantyhose without the hose attached lol) that I wore twice about 7 years ago and a Yummy Tummy white cami top. I got the bodyshaper shorts after a fellow bridesmaid in 2001 cut off her panty hose just for the control of the top under our shiny satin dresses. I'd never seen such a thing before. Can't say I'm in the shapewear wearing majority, either.

Edit: and they always do the bisected worm thing I believe Una coined. Never do they smoothly end at my waist. Always pulling and tugging. Ugh. http://www.leggs.com/mid-thigh-shapers/

Aida

Veteran

Elisabeth, I don't own any shapewear either. I figure I'm a rarity, but it's one of my goals to not wear them. Also, my husband hates how TIGHTS look, I can't imagine what he'd think about shapewear!

EDIT: I suppose I do have a few "control top" hosiery (not purchased for the control part), but it doesn't seem to do anything different than my normal tights.

MsMary

Veteran

Nope. I hate clothes that hurt.

Anonymous

I don't own any, and I buy non-control top panty-hose when I can find them. Spanx are hot and bum-flattening on me. I tried a tummy control cami once too and broke a sweat just trying to get the thing over my head. They're not for me either!

christieanne

Veteran

I do but I have not worn for a long time. Worked well for me under skirts. You can't size down in those things - in fact i think it works best if you size up and just go for smoothing and not compression (which does not fool anyone thus Uma's worm analogy).
Actually cutting feet off control top pantyhose works just as well and they are less restrictive - learned that from Oprah lol.

Aziraphale

Veteran

Claire, I avoid control top pantyhose too! I'm sure control top works great on women who desire some support for the butt/thighs, but for those (er, me) whose squishy bit is in the middle, they cause the segmented worm problem. (I first saw the term "segmented worm syndrome" on Sally's blog, but perhaps she and Una came up with it independently. It's marvelously apt).

Aida: you've got to admit, pantyhose are funny looking. And they leave a little squiggle indentation all the way up your lower belly, and if they're fishnets, a diffuse grid, too. My husband isn't a fan either, although he does like the thigh-high ones (gee, I wonder why that would be? ha). Tights are less funny looking, but still not exactly fabulous on their own.

Christieanne, that was the other thing about the bike shorts I tried on. They were a size medium and I could barely pull them on. I'm five foot one and weight a little over 100 lbs. Who the $#@! is wearing a size small?!

Apologies. Apparently the issue of shapewear makes me want to curse like a fishwife.

So, five votes for no Spanx. Perhaps there are more shapewear-avoiders out there than the article suggests?

Kate

Veteran

No. I've never worn any shapewear, nor do I ever plan to. I find panty hose uncomfortable, and the one time I bought control top panty hose by mistake, I was appalled. They were so uncomfortable, I threw them in the trash. If I need to smooth out lumps and bumps, I'm going to do it the hard-but-better way, with exercise and by pulling back from the table.

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

(website)

Veteran

I have Spanx-brand tights, which are great quality and very comfortable. I don't have any of the 'traditional' Spanx but I do have some other brands of shapewear. They definitely are special-occasion wear and not something that I want to have to wear on an ordinary day. I know some other women don't seem to mind them and wear them all the time, though.

gradfashionista

(website)

Veteran

No Spanx and only unpadded bras for my small bust...with me, what you see is what you get!

Fruitful

Veteran

Yes, I have had a non-Spanx bike short style shaper for about 7 years and use it often. It opened up a world of garments I formerly barred myself from (dimply, wobbly fat on butt and thighs). To feel not only confident but also lovely in a formfitting dress was a revelation.

I have recently put on some abdominal fat and it is a bit segmented worm. So I can sympathise with avoidance on that reason.

Sometimes it does hurt my tummy (depending on diet, time of the month) and I don't think it's healthy to wear it all the time. But I have to say I'm vain - comfort based on how I'm perceived competes with physical comfort.

jenanded

Veteran

I am glad I am like many of you - yep have 2 pairs that I have had for how many years but most of the time it is too hot to wear them here in Australia. More interestingly, I only wear them when I am slimmer.... Go figure... Its just the overall impression and I am not squishing into any slim satiny frocks so.... I recently let go of a shape cami - uncomfortable and squishes me flat.... Perhaps shapewear will just be a symbol of the 00's!!

ManidipaM

Veteran

Let's see, I have rooted around my underwear and sportswear drawer to come up with:
(1) One swimsuit with control panel --- it's actually supportive like a bra rather than squeezy, so nice because I hate the baggy wet suit syndrome as much as 'bisected worm'. I *did* have to size UP to wear it however. From Triumph
(2) One pair of biker-shorts-ish shapers, formerly known as girdle, which I intensely dislike because of that binding feeling and which were handed down from my mum's post-maternity days (for much of our life we've been the same size and very similar in shape, so we've both got hand-me-downs from each other). However, I confess I do wear them sometimes, because they're the only garter belt equivalent I own (not found a pair that lasts for more than a few outings).
(3) Boy shorts-style 'panty girdle', same age and provenance as the biker shorts version. Cannot bear to wear. No idea why I keep it --- inertia or something!

Jjsloane

Veteran

I'm in the minority, but yes I have spanx. I have tops, bottoms, full slips, tights and socks (these are more support and have good stretch not for ankle or foot fat control) I find most spanx quite comfortable. Needed them badly post partum and now every once in awhile for some smoothing. The key is not to buy them too small as then they are uncomfortable. I very much like the regular power panties which are basically a light control top bike short. The thing I do not like is the high cost of them, but they do last for a long time versus the cheaper brands (like their Target line even)

cheryle (Dianthus)

(website)

Veteran

I have the lighter version of spanx that are styled like biker shorts and one dress-like slip. Neither is overly constricting. I rarely, if ever, wear the spanx except under formal gowns. They are great for smoothing and to improve the drape of a silk gown.

jayne

Veteran

No spanx here

Tanya

Veteran

I also own some. Mostly a bunch of tights, which are very tick and comfy, but also two pairs of bike-short type shapers, that I sized up in. The black one, made of opaque, satin-y material ( called "Girl shorts"), gets worn pretty often, as a protection when I go dancing - full flowy skirts tend to go up when one is spinning.

Anonymous

No Spanx or other shapeware for me, either. I tried them, but they aggravated my sciatica pain. If I size up to the point they don't hurt, I'm no longer "shaped," which negates the whole point of wearing them.

Also, FWIW, when I had my gallbaldder surgery last week, the nurse made me wear some special socks that she said would prevent blood clots. They were really tight and uncomfortable, but she said they were the right size. After a while, my sciatica pain flared up big time, so I rolled those suckers down (they were knee high) to get some relief. I told the anesthesiologist that he could roll them back up right before surgery, and that's what he did. I was supposed to continue wearing them when I got home, but I couldn't bear to do so. I chose to keep myself walking around and moving, and that worked better.

So in a nutshell, no constricting garments for me... ever!

Meredith1953

Veteran

I have several pairs of spanx but find that I cannot be comfortable in them. I grew up in an age where no one wore any form of shapewear. They are too constricting so I don't wear them. Should just give them away. If I start to jiggle I'll just need to step my exercise.

Anonymous

I do own a pair of bike shorts, not made by Spanx. They give a very light compression. I used them as protection when I wear wrap dresses. I had to after the 2009 fiasco, where I flashed the entire city, while wearing a wrap dress + a backpack. The bag made the lining on the dress ride up, revealing my back portion. By means of reenactment, I believe I walked in this condition for at least half an hour. Thank God I was wearing boy shorts. You tube is clear, no one taped me so I'm golden:)
I also have a couple panties that help with MT issues. I don't wear those often.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I don't. I used to have two pairs of...not sure what to call them...maybe tummy control underpants? They were nowhere near on the level of Spanx for compression. Just really light "smoothing" I guess you would say. I used them under jerseys that felt unforgiving. But I don't use them now.

Claudia

Veteran

No.

Parsley

Veteran

Well, I wear some sort of shapewear almost every day, and I can say that it doesn't have to be super constricting or uncomfortable. I have all sorts: The shaping cami that you can wear your own bra with, bodysuits with bra included, and high-waisted (up to just under the bust) shorts type ones.

I look way better with a bit of smoothing through the midsection, and without it quite a few of my clothes wouldn't look very good on me.

I don't see it as a replacement for "the hard-but-better way, with exercise and by pulling back from the table" as a previous poster said. I am working at losing a few pounds, and I certainly do exercise, but at any weight, my body looks better under certain clothes with a little smoothing.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I have a pair of Spanx high-rise tights that I also like mainly for the smoothing aspect rather than actual compression. For fitted outfits like the tiered striped B44 dress I just feel better in them. I'm usually more concerned about smoothing out the bumpy bits at thigh/hip than belly, since belly is not my problem, so yeah, I do hate the "segmented worm" syndrome some tights and shape wear create. Hence the high-rise Spanx tights, which actually come up to the bra line.

I also have a Spanx slip for similar uses. I like it pretty well and don't feel terribly constrained by it, but you'll never catch me wearing it in summer. Way too warm, which is useful in winter.

I don't wear them very often (maybe once a month?), but they're helpful when I feel like I need some smoothing. Maybe my running capris have desensitized me to tight-fitting items!

Anonymous

I don't, mostly because I live in such a hot climate.

Emily

Veteran

I own shapewear because I am uncomfortable with my body. I have a pair of the high waist shorts and a shaper cami, when I wear them I feel more confident and am reminded to practice good posture.

Diana

Veteran

Don't own any. The thought of wearing something that tight and constricting honestly makes me feel a bit panicky, especially since it would need to come up to my rib cage to avoid segmented worm syndrome. Things that are too tight around my rib cage and diaphragm give me something spasmy that feels like heart palpitations or a mild panic attack, which is not pleasant.

My personal belief is that if I don't feel comfortable in it without something more than a slip or hose, then it's too tight/clingy for me to wear.

modgrl

(website)

Veteran

I have spanx high waisted pantyhose. I like the smoothing effect. Mostly I wear them because they are completely totally opaque, and give the impression of a deep, smooth blackness like no other hose out there. I also wear shapers and enhancers of ALL sorts that are not made by spanx. They can be hard to wiggle into but they don't hurt once they are on.

teri

Veteran

I own a few.... Wear them when I want an extra smooth finish in a fitted garment.

Anonymous

Yes, one real Spanx and a department store brand. I am wearing one tonight at a formal dinner as the dress is snug....and I tried one last week under a dress I never wear as I look pudgy in it. I was very surprised how it smoothed out my less than lovely bits...but they do pinch after a while,

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