Achieving the ideal female shape is the crossdressing “holly grail” some are lucky enough to be naturally slim and it is a case of a little padding here and there and voila! However, for me and probably the majority of us Tgirls, it is a choice of going on the never ending diet or giving nature a helping hand by means of shape wear. I’m sure you have noticed the term shape wear thrown in there, this is deliberate as there is not just corsets to be taken into consideration, well, at least in my opinion there’s not. To achieve a better female shape (a male body being the starting point), one must first take into consideration the physical differences between the male and female frame. Ignoring the two obvious points (keeping it clean here!), the male chest area is more box shaped than the female counterpart, in addition the males floating ribs are less mobile. Add in the additional considerations such as the fact that males have less fat deposits around the hips and a women’s natural waist is higher than a man’s and you start to build up a picture of the differences, and degree of compensation / adjustments you will need make when trying to achieve that wonder figure you so desire. So in summary what are we actually trying to achieve here:
1. Give the illusion of a reduced waist
2. Possibly enhance the hips
3. Give a correct proportion of chest / waist hips
Oh! if it was that easy…. This is where the challenges begin. We can try and achieve all of the above by finding the wonder garment, the garment that will combine everything together. Sadly, even after almost twenty years of searching I have not found it (hence the term holly grail – this article is not thrown together you know!) while some consider “their” faith full corset the answer, and at times I have to agree, there are other options available. With corsets you have to make a choice and sadly that choice can some times be purely commercial (how much can I afford is the usual question), after all, it is not a garment you may consider wearing everyday so that fact may guide you as to how much you wish to invest in your corset. Listed below are my thoughts on corsets and alternative garments you may wish to give consideration to: Corsets Standard or custom made? – Having worked with and supplied many of the leading corset ranges over the years you can not help but pick up a trick or two. The majority of corset manufacturers offer “standard” corsets or “off the peg” versions, primarily these patterns have been graded and adjusted over the decades to take into consideration minor changes in female shapes, but in effect the designs have not altered much. I have never met a “standard” person in my life, however, manufactures’ must have a starting point from which to craft their designs, after all, we are all slightly different but yet we still class ourselves as a UK size 10, 12,14,16 when it comes to dress selection. The same assumptions are made it corsets also, although the focus is different.
At Translife we have always worked on the assumption of a 4-6 inch reduction for the selection of a “standard” corset to give the desired reduction. This means that if you had a male 32 inch waist we would recommend purchasing a 26inch corset (slight pause for thought here….) This DOES NOT mean you are going to achieve a dramatic six inch reduction in you waist, thus resulting in the fact you can now get into a size 8/10 ladies jeans. Sadly it does not work that way. By studying the design of the corset you will find the actual shape is such that the corset “waist” for a shaped corset is about 1-1.5” higher than your natural male waist. If you were to take a tape measure and run it around your new waist line you will find a possible reduction of maybe 1.5-2 inches at a maximum but hay the visual effect is there. You will also find out that for an under bust corset it will close fully at the bottom and potentially open up more as you progress up the back this is because a male torso is wider the a female torso. So far I have discussed the under bust corset because I believe it is better or more suitable design when crossdressing, the over the bust means you have to take into consideration the bust to chest ratio often meaning you have to have quite large false breast to fill the cups of the corset correctly. You often have to have the cups adjusted as well. For clarity I would say I lump all corsets into the “underbust” bracket that DO NOT have cups in them I know it is not technically correct but then we do not have busts (open for debate). One often forgotten point when wearing a corset is a matter of simple physics whilst you are reducing your waist you are in effect moving “mass” some of which is taken internally but quite a bit takes the form of “bingo wings” ……. or a gathering of excess skin (I have not used the offensive term fat here) under your arm pits which can look a little unsightly. Worth taking into consideration as you Oh so energetically heave on those corset laces….. Not to tight now! If you are going to wear the corset as an under garment and not wear tight Lycra clothing then I think a standard corset is ideal and not an expensive option (we offer heavy lacing corsets starting a £49.99 which are ideal). With the correct fitting or tailored top or dress the effects can be quite stunning. If you are considering wearing a corset as an over garment I would select one with a 2-4 inch reduction and allow the back to close fuller this does look better when viewed from behind. I often wear a sheer blouse under the corset with jeans or trousers and high heels the additional height of the heels and reduction in the waist gives a good illusion. Custom made corsets Once you start to mention custom made you automatically think “expensive” well yes and no. Most manufacturers offer a custom made service and it is not as expensive as you may think, always ask is my advise.
Moving away from price for a minute, there are obvious advantages with custom made. Firstly if measured correctly it will fit like a glove in ever aspect, length , chest, bust every where. I have mine custom made if I need an over the bust one as I can have pockets fitted to slip my breast forms into, this type of design when done up creates the illusion of a real bust. Elasticated options There are always several answers to a problem. Corsets are one way of reducing your waist, be it by an under bust version or a waist clincher type. There are several elasticated waist nippers around on the market which are extremely comfortable to wear and focus just on the stomach region. Very good for under tighter fitting cloths and easy to wear all day / night long. With respect to size I would recommend purchasing one size smaller than your normal waist size for effect and comfort. Padding (including silicon pads) So far we have discussed “reducing” areas, one other option is to “increase” an area WHAT! Yes, women in general have larger hips and bottom than a size for size man so you can add padding to these areas to give the impression of a curved lower section. The trick is to get the proportion correct. I use foam or padded panty garments which have it all combined, that way I do not have to worry about their position or the fear of them moving. There are silicon padded bottoms available for the additional “feel” factor which add to the experience, these warn with silicon hips are fantastic and very real. As with the elasticated garments try to select one size smaller in terms of the waist size. At this point one has to temper ones expectations a little. If you study a ladies lower anatomy you will find a nice long arch from the waist into the thigh giving that hip / bottom combination, sadly it does not matter how hard manufacturers have tried to reproduce this shape its almost impossible so try and select the longest possible design of hip and thigh pads you can. One final word of warning, creating the shape is one thing, having to possibly wear a multitude of garments to do so can be restricting, uncomfortable and dame right hot! Add in the additional challenge of wearing a wig and at times you may literally melt so as with all things in life moderation is a good choice.
Links to items discussed in this article
1. Corsets
2. Hip and thigh pads
3. Silicon Hip pads
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