Ok, this cracks me up. When I initially ran this post in 2007 I received HEAPS of grief – nobody liked the semi-tuck! I did then and I still do, albeit not for everything. (Seen the Eddie Bauer catalog recently?)
Why it works: diagonals are great for fooling the eye and most women have a proportionately long rise.
The look pictured would be better if the color values were inverted.
When we ran our fashion lab on baby doll tops here, these were my favorite solutions for the problem of this season’s tops making the wearer look pregnant:
- If the top is short enough, wear something very slim and fitted under.
- Belt it, either high (I did that this past Sunday to wear to a show) or at the waist.
- Tuck it in.
This picture illustrate my favorite way to wear the loose-flowing top. 
Hmmm. I have to say, Rebecca, based on this snapshot I’m not 100% convinced. I think I’d have to see it completely tucked in and completely loose before weighing in …
I’m sure I’ll wear it again like that, so I’ll try to take a picture from the side. 🙂
Rebecca, thanks for the tip. Unfortunately, I don’t think this is a very cute look. The top is supposed to flow – that’s what makes it look so great. I do however, like your idea about wearing something slimming on the bottom half.
I’m experiencing a bit of deja vu here: it seems there’s been a time before around here when I posted an outfit that wasn’t generally well-received. After having a little bit of time to adjust to the idea, my conclusion is that is a perfectly natural thing. I am, after all, unique.
Thank you both Wendy and ALS for leaving your honest feedback. I still like this shirt best worn like this (however, it does not work with looser fitting pants!) and consider it a victory to be able to feel that way even when it’s not a popular opinion.
=D
Rebecca, if we all thought exactly the same way the world would be a very boring place!! I’m glad you are comfortable and confident in your look and decisions. As it should be!
Well, interesting that you bring this up, seeing as how I’ve been meaning to tell you that I’ve now given up baby-doll tops altogether.
Several weeks back a man at a local store kept insisting that he carry some boxes for me that I had picked up. I kept insisting I was fine, saying “I carry my two little guys around constantly. I think I can manage cardboard boxes!”. “Oh”, he says, “then I bet you hope this one is a girl.” I am confused for a sec, look down and realize I’m wearing a babydoll top and realize the man thinks I’m with child!!
I immediately came home, switched tops and said to hubby, “WHY IN THIS WORLD DIDN’T YOU TELL ME I LOOKED….. PREGNANT?” with disgust. “You don’t!” he said.
It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter that the man that asked me was slightly mentally challenged and that he probably wouldn’t know fashion if it stared him in the eye. I. AM. NOT. WEARING. THEM. AGAIN.
LOL LOL
Back to the picture at hand. I honestly am not sure I like the style with it half way tucked in. I think I’d like it better all the way in, or all the way out. Although, I am certainly not one to speak because my style makes it appear as though I’m expecting a babe!
PS. Sorry I have not been a frequent visitor as of late. I moved and had dial up, and with my loading issues I couldn’t begin to load the page. Now that my DSL is back, I will be here again more often! I just have to let it load while I’m doing some other task and then come back to it. But it is totally worth it cuz I love you! 😀
Ah Carrie, now you’ve gone and done it. You left a funny comment — I was going to delete this post!
Well, I’ll tell you one thing, this look does not work at all if the pants are even slightly too big. I have this bad habit of poofing my stomach out ever so slightly in an attempt to make my pants feel normal. he hee.
Just because all you guys don’t like this look, I’m going to wear this exact outfit this weekend. With the wedges. And maybe even a necklace. LOL
i admire your ability to stand out in a crowd. congrats on being unique! we should all learn to stand up for something we appreciate.
however, i would caution you. at this point, no one has left a comment insisting that this is an attractive look. with that being the case, it seems to me that you might want to take the feedback to heart and made adjustments accordingly. had the response been meet with mixed reviews, it would be one thing. unfortunately, none of the individuals posting have suggested that you continue to wear the shirt in this fashion due to its stylish ways.
just something to consider. afterall, it’s important to be open to feedback – espeically if you’re putting yourself out there like this.
Hey Jamie, I appreciate your advice – and your diplomacy 😉 – so here’s what I’m going to do: I’m going to change into the outfit pictured right now. In a half an hour I am leaving for my mid-day outings: to downtown on the sidewalk at my hero’s office, then for a walk in a nearby residential area, then I can stop at some nice stores before coming home. The first part won’t be a great test, as I will be wearing my Chacos, but I will throw a nice pair of shoes and a necklace in the car to change into.
I have gone out in some failure outfits before and I can usually tell by somebody’s eyes being drawn to a spot I’d rather they weren’t. Like when I wore this top loose and people were looking at my tummy. Or when I wore dark shoes with dark capris and they were looking at my feet. Everything else on me looks normal today: my hair’s okay, I’ll put on a little makeup, etc. This’ll be fun! I’ll come back and report.
You’re right, as long as I’m putting my ideas out for people to comment on, we might as well all benefit from them! 🙂
Well, I’m back and it was definitely inconclusive. 😕
First off, my husband didn’t look at me weird when I got out of the car at his office (but he sure did when he went back in to work and I changed my shoes and put on a necklace!), but unfortunately when I went into his office I only saw one person, and she was sitting behind the receptionist desk.
After changing my shoes I went over to a really nice vintage clothing and jewelry store, where I was waited on by the owner and another young lady. While I did not detect any strange looks, I did get a compliment on my necklace from the owner – those kind of compliments can sometimes be a cover for not liking the outfit. However, when I got back home I got the same compliment from my daughter and I know she wasn’t covering.
So, then I went to the mall downtown. Received quick, friendly service and smiles from other shoppers at Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, White House Black Market, and Nordstrom shoe dept. Was completely ignored in Nordstrom Savvy and Point of View, and got nothing but a friendly greeting in TBD. However, a friend/acquaintance of ours is a salesman in shoes and he responded to me very normally.
My tentative conclusion is that it’s okay. I have one more specific person in mind to test it on, but I don’t see him very often. he hee. The last time I saw him I was wearing the short sleeved pants and he made a smart comment about me getting ripped off because I didn’t get the whole pants. 🙂
I think it looks sporty…and isn’t that part of your style personality (and none of ours?!)
Bonnie, that’s a good point I hadn’t considered. Very comforting, thanks. 🙂
For reasons perhaps particular to my own idiom, I still like this look best. But I don’t recommend it for anyone else, since it has not been well received. How’s that?
Well Rebecca….I’d like to see you belt this loose style instead. Still casual and still comfortable. Loose is great for tops like this when they are longer ( like a tunic). What do you think?
I have a belt that looks good with this top, it matches perfectly. Worn up high it looks great, but if I do it again I will use double-stick tape so I don’t have to cinch it so tight to keep it in place. I couldn’t breathe!
I like the semi tuck on others – on me it reveals just how much bread or pasta I have just had. So it’s one of the areas I rarely want to call attention to. Plus, when it was rarely seen, it had a kind of hurried, forgetful charm. But as the standard nowadays, it’s affected, in my mind. Could an army of folks have been so hurried when leaving the toilet? Makes me think of Chaplin films shown at the wrong speed for silents.
It really does look hoaky in the Eddie catalog, repeated on every page. If it works for someone within their own idiom, I have no problem with them wearing it all the time. But, styling multiple models in various looks all the same in a catalog seems gimmicky. IMO. 🙂
You know that I like and wear this tuck all the time (very nearly daily). I wonder if I would have liked it seven years ago… (no idea). But I’m glad that fashion has finally caught up with you, at least in this one area. To me, it’s not only the diagonal line that I like, but the sort-of nonchalance from tucking in just a part of a shirt. It not only looks good, it looks effortless.
And it is great if you want to show off your belt buckle, but not the rest of the belt! 🙂