My Girdle Ate My Fat - And That Is A Good Thing!

If you poke yourself in the ribs, extra flesh surrounds your fingers. When Victorian ladies wore corsets, their nineteen-inch waists were achieved only by inflating the hips and midriff with displaced flesh.

Most girdles have panels on the front to help contour the stomach. Many provide figure "guidance" for the hips and derriere as well.

The purpose of a modern girdle isn't so much to press in the flesh as to distribute it evenly and change the contour of the body. Since girdles come in so many variations now if a woman has a problem with fat bulging under the legs of the girdle, she could buy a long-leg girdle. If fat is sneaking out the midriff than a high-waist girdle will solve the problem.

The flesh is so loose (some of us have looser flesh than others) that it can be redistributed without discomfort. The modern girdle is made of softer and more giving fabrics and could act more like a back brace or an athletic supporter - providing support can actually feel good.

The picture here is of The Lady of Shalott, with a medieval girdle around her waist (John William Waterhouse, 1888). Girdles at this time were more belt-like than today.

Between 1910 and 1960 girdles where considered essential garments for women. Can you imagine having to wear a girdle all the time? I suppose it would seem common place if we lived in those days. Heck some of you reading this may remember those days or know of someone who has spoken of this.

Girdles were initially designed by the French designer Paul Poiret, to be worn with the clothing he was designing. (Figures it was a man who designed this.) Poiret's clothing fit closer to a women's body than other clothes of earlier period.

After 1960 most of the time women wore pantyhose with control tops which took the place of girdles for those women who mainly used girdles to hold up their hose.

First of all most people call them "girdles" however but those who are members of the trade, they prefer to call these undergarments "shapewear."

Because girdles conjure up an old-fashioned image of undergarments that were/are very confining and uncomfortable. Old girdles had no give to them, so, like too-tight belts, they used to send flesh creeping out from under the elastic bands, which were usually under the bottom or above the waist.

Full figured women are aware of so-called minimizer bras that work by redistributing tissue over a wider circumference. When the flesh is spread out over a wider surface area, it actually appears to be smaller in bulk.

Modern girdles work much the same way.

Go ahead press a fatty part of your body with your whole hand there should be much more displacement of flesh than there would be if you just poked the same part of your body with your finger.

In 1958 DuPont scientists developed Lycra as an alternative to the rubber previously used in corsets. Lycra is like spandex and is a registered trade mark of Invista. Invista was formerly DuPont.

Lycra is used in many different types of products besides girdles. For example the thinnest type would be hosiery.

Lycra allows garments such as a girdle to be more lightweight and breathable as well as being able to stretch. It dries quickly and is resistant to bacteria, ultraviolet rays and chlorine. Another great advantage is that you won't experience the static cling or piling in shapeware made of Lycra. All in all Lycra is a great upgrade from rubber used in vintage girdles

Men who don't like exercise or dieting may find a mirdle or man-girdle better than their fruit of the looms.

Mirdles come in all shapes and sizes. There are some reports that claim that men's intimate apparel are out-selling women's.

Men find after they start aging they develop muffin tops just like women. Even Spanx has a product for men.

Remember girls, Christmas is coming up this may make a great gift for your other half!