Hourglass Angel

With spring on the way you may already be thinking about lighter options for layering and shaping. Adding a camisole is a great way to smooth out your silhouette. Coming in many styles, prints and designs, there are a huge number of ways that you can make a camisole a part of your unique look. One of the most exciting styles of shapers emerging in the market is the lingerie look camisole. Several brands have introduced a shaping cami that looks like a sexy intimate, while smoothing the midsection and offering the support of a bra cup. These are perfect to layer under daywear or evening attire. Whether you show off a peek of a camisole like the Glamouflage Cupped Shaping Cami with Lace by Skinnygirl Smoothers n’ Shapers (7165) or wear the Lift and Hide Cami by Body Wrap (BW3907351) to bed these are chic shaping essentials that you must check out.

If you are looking for something more basic, there are also plenty of options available that are ready to suit your needs and pair or layer perfectly with almost anything. The Get the Scoop! Wear Your Own Bra Cami by Skinnygirl Smoothers n’ Shapers (7086) insures a custom fit, as you are able to wear your favorite bra with it. Its underbust design lifts the bust as it shapes. For our new moms, the Everyday Cami by Ingrid and Isabel (1114) must be touched to be believed. This stretchy soft piece covers your contours and curves and is great for layering with almost everything.

And if you want the coverage of a camisole without adding another layer, you’ll love the way the Snap-to-Bra Lace Cami by Cleava gives you a little extra coverage and modesty without adding any additional warmth. It’s perfect for spring and summer and is a great way to take a take look to night. All you do is remove it for a more provocative look.

No matter which style of camisole you choose, the thing they have in common is that with their versatility, your new cami is sure to be the center of any new look this season.

With so many pretty designs on the shapewear scene, there’s no reason to hide your favorite piece of shapewear. Show off a slimming bustier top like the Longline Smooth Strapless Bra by Dominique 8541 by pairing it with a high-waisted wide-leg pant for a long lean look.  Make a statement with a striking piece of signature jewelry and add bold pumps.  Your shapewear just became outerwear!

It’s no secret: We LOVE shapewear. As a company, as individuals, as women of all shapes and sizes, here at Hourglass Angel, from bustiers to booty enhancers, we adore it all! And we’re not alone, shapewear is an exploding trend in women’s apparel. But, naturally, with any rise in popularity, there must be a counterpoint. Some media outlets have called Octavia Spencer’s triple Spanx silhouette at the SAG Awards “extreme.” Others have questioned Molly Sims using special maternity shapewear. While critics may not share our enthusiasm for shaping and sculpting the bodies we live in, we thought we might provide a little perspective on the history of body modification and compare our passion for shapers to other enhancement techniques women have used.

Consider, for example, the bound 4-inch “lotus foot,” idealized as the ultimate indicator of femininity in ancient China. This practice, which often crippled women, continued well into the 20th century, long enough that thousands of photographs exist of it. The binding process not only injured women with bound feet, it also hindered them from participating fully in social, political and educational life, making them second class citizens. Then, in the 16th and 17th centuries, the poison, belladonna was commonly used to dilate the eyes of women, creating a doe-like appearance, while often eventually leading to blindness. And, if you can believe it, Elizabethan women often slathered on lead-based makeup, which had a range of dangerous physical effects. And today, even with a battery of precautions, even the most commonplace cosmetic surgeries carry dozens of risks. When you put it all in perspective, it sort of makes you love shapewear even more, doesn’t it?

Put simply, the desire to decorate, reshape and enhance the body is something that comes natural to humans. It’s a part of who we are. Just as we paint the walls of our homes and hang art on our walls, we celebrate, shape and sculpt the works of art that we live in. We love women and the huge numbers of shapes and sizes that they come in. We love the bodies that we have at this very moment. We believe that participating in beauty is a right for women of every size and age. We also believe that there are many kinds of beauty and we support women as they explore their own vision of it. There’s a difference between “fixing” a body and enhancing it. And of the thousands of ways that people have enhanced their appearances over the years, shapewear is not only one of the most flattering, it’s also one of the easiest and safest and that’s why we love it.