To be honest, I don’t wear button downs very often. I’m not sure why. Part of it is probably laziness. I mean you actually have to unbutton and then re-button the bloody things. Which doesn’t sound like a big deal, until you get to the bottom and discover that you’ve actually lined the buttons up incorrectly and now you have to go back and do them all over again. No one talks about it, but buttons are hard work, so I usually avoid them.
The other issue I have with button downs is the tucking thing. There are a few schools of thought on tucking…..tuck the whole thing in, tuck the front in and leave the back hanging out, leave the whole thing untucked and hanging out, untuck it and then tie a small loose knot at the bottom….or untuck it but add a belt. Button downs come with options…..they can be styled in a variety of different ways, and that’s a good thing. So I decided to give them another try this season.
On my quest for the perfect button down, I decided that I wanted a dressy one in a soft, flowing fabric, rather than the crisp, more fitted, cotton variety. Here’s why: I carry my weight around my middle. So if I’m going to tuck something in, it needs to be a soft, supple fabric that can be pulled back out a bit to camouflage my tummy area. If you are like me, and have a bit of cushion that you want to camouflage, then a soft flowing style blouse is a better option for you. My favorite way to style a button down, or blouse as we used to call them, is to tuck in the front, leave out the back and then add a stretchy elasticized belt, lower on the waist, an inch or two below my belly button. The belt actually serves to give the illusion of a slimmer waist and a flatter stomach. This is a great trick and hides a multitude of sins. There are some fantastic and quite inexpensive elastic belts on Etsy.
~ Dorrie
Senior Style Bible
