The "Gap Girls", David Spade and Chris Farley, said it best in their hysterical 80s SNL skit: "Just cinch it!!!"
Let me reiterate: Belts are your friend! Whether it’s a delicate cincher the width of a garden snake or a super-wide corset that would make a Victorian blush, a belt pulls any look together and makes its wearer look more polished.
If you have a tiny waist, a belt will show off your best asset. If you have no waist at all, a belt will create one for you!
COUTURECARRIE'S GUIDE TO CINCHING:
LEATHER BELTS: 
Ways to wear a thin belt:
Ways to wear a thin belt:
- Over a coat: I love how Diane von Furstenberg paired dainty belts with blouses and unbuttoned blazers – so chic! (See photo at upper right, courtesy nymag.com/fashion).
- With a shirtdress or classic shift. Accentuate your waist and make that frock more interesting with a bright accent.
- With a high-waisted skirt, particularly one that has belt loops, though it can work with a simple swath of jersey material as well.
- In Multiples: If you have two or three belts of similar width in
Ways to sport a wide belt:
- Over a tunic or corset top
- With a duster or overcoat
- With a minidress (and opaque tights, natch)
- With a white button-down shirt tucked into a high-waisted skirt
- Low-slung. I don’t LOVE the idea, but it can work: see Blumarine’s runway look at right...
- With a high-waisted pant
- With a ball gown! See Valentino, runway pic courtesy style.com
FABRIC BELTS
The Grosgrain: A staple of the preppy diet since medieval times, this striped cincher works with jeans or a tennis dress.
The D-Ring: Again, a WASPy essential, usually printed with diminutive whales or other other marine life – good for a BBQ on the Vineyard, but don’t let me catch you wearing one more than a few miles from the beach!
The Obi: A cummerbund or sash is a daring way to shake up an average outfit. . . Check out VPL’s take on the wide fabric belt at left. Hint: you can totally use a tube top as a belt, ladies!!
The Bow: A lovely velvet or silk bow makes your look flirty and feminine. See BCBG’s bow-belted neutral dress.
BRIGHT AND/OR TEXTURED BELTS
As demonstrated aptly on the Fendi Runway this Spring, a colorful, chunky belt need not strand alone – feel free to combine it with other patterned pieces, as long as the designs
don’t fight with one another. I love a huge 80’s-style elastic belt in bright green to offset a magenta dress, for example. See Etro's Spring 2008 Runway look, pairing a scalloped mustard corset with a wildly patterned mini! Or layer a multi-stone cincher over a striped frock, as Fendi did (see lower left).
One thing is for sure, my lovelies: The belt is not going anywhere! Waist cinchers were ubiquitous in both the Spring and Fall Collections.
As demonstrated aptly on the Fendi Runway this Spring, a colorful, chunky belt need not strand alone – feel free to combine it with other patterned pieces, as long as the designs
don’t fight with one another. I love a huge 80’s-style elastic belt in bright green to offset a magenta dress, for example. See Etro's Spring 2008 Runway look, pairing a scalloped mustard corset with a wildly patterned mini! Or layer a multi-stone cincher over a striped frock, as Fendi did (see lower left).One thing is for sure, my lovelies: The belt is not going anywhere! Waist cinchers were ubiquitous in both the Spring and Fall Collections.
So you are on a mission: Grab at least one lovely piece from each of the above categories and WAIST KNOT, WANT KNOT!!
P.S.: MATH LESSON
It is not the circumference of your waist that matters, girls. It is its proportion in relationship to your hips. It has been scientifically examined and documented that the ideal waist:hip ratio for women is .70. So divide the circumference of your waist at its narrowest point, just under the ribcage, by your hip measurement, and you have your magic number!
It is not the circumference of your waist that matters, girls. It is its proportion in relationship to your hips. It has been scientifically examined and documented that the ideal waist:hip ratio for women is .70. So divide the circumference of your waist at its narrowest point, just under the ribcage, by your hip measurement, and you have your magic number! For more fab belted looks, see the left-hand column of CoutureCarrie!!
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