Essential Styling Tips for Big Boobs

How to dress your bust

Sometimes, it really feels like clothes aren’t made for bigger busts. And often, it’s because that’s true. Dressing for a curvy body type can be challenging when certain trendy silhouettes simply aren’t made to accommodate a larger chest size. At Honeylove, we hate that there are women out there feeling this way, and we’re determined to help you wear whatever your heart desires. That’s why we’re tackling four of the trickiest styling challenges for women with big boobs.

Our #1 styling tip? Finding a bra that not only fits, but adequately lifts and supports. Proper fitting undergarments are the key to getting that nice silhouette underneath your outfits. Of course, different outfits will require different bras. If you want to learn your accurate bra size once and for all, check out our guide here. If you’re wondering what bra style is right for your outfit, we’ve got another handy guide right here. 

What is the best shape top for a fitted bust?

According to our internal research (aka asking the women in our office), the four outfits that are most difficult to wear for women with large breasts are: a button-up shirt, a v-neck shirt, a strapless shirt, and a high-neck shirt. Luckily, with a few styling tips and smart hacks, women of every chest size can wear these styles with confidence and ease. Let’s dive in!

What to wear: Fitted button-up shirt

We all know the most common issue with fitted button-up shirts is the dreaded gap that happens between the top buttons, revealing your bra underneath. This is especially frustrating because these are often the tops women are told to wear in professional settings. For women with big boobs, it can have quite the opposite effect. 

Best bra

The best bra for this type of outfit is a minimizer bra. Why? Because a minimizer will compress your breast tissue so it lays flatter against your body, which can combat the projection that is causing this gap in the clothing. 

How to dress

As far as the clothing itself goes, look for fitted button-ups that have darts. Darts are little seams sewn at either the sides of the bust or below the bust to add shape to the garment. Darts will enable the blouse to sit tighter at your waist, while allowing more fabric at the bust. This can definitely help prevent button gapping. If you love a shirt but it doesn’t have darts, you can also pin the fabric together where it’s gapping so it doesn’t open while you move. You can even go as far as sewing on an extra button or invisible snaps if you want a more permanent anti-gap solution.

What to wear: V-neck shirt

V-neck shirts are mainly an issue if your goal is to NOT have cleavage. It’s a super flattering cut to wear, because exposing a bit of skin at the neckline cuts the line of the fabric and helps break up color blocking, which can have a nice visual effect if you’re especially top-heavy. However, as we know with bigger busts, a v-neck can easily become too va-va-voom with the wrong undergarments and styling. 

Bra recommendations

If minimal cleavage is your goal, you’ll want a bra that separates and doesn’t add bulk. Unlined bras are great for this; you’ll get the support you need from the underwire, but because there’s no padding, it won’t push your breasts up and together. 

How to dress

Once again, you can utilize a pin here. By securing the center gore of the bra to the v-neck of the fabric, you can control how much skin is exposed and ensure your bra never pokes through. 

What to wear: Strapless top

Ah, the notorious strapless top. These can actually be quite flattering on a bigger bust, but the main issue is that a) they’re hard to wear a bra with, and b) they’re difficult to keep in place. The trick is finding the proper undergarments and looking for specific chest-friendly garment features.

Best bra

The trick here is to find a strapless bra that really works. The majority of a bra’s support comes from the band, so look for a strapless bra with wide, supportive wings. Extra boning at either side of the bust also helps the bra stay in place. Grippy silicone is also often added to the inside of strapless bras to keep them from slipping.

How to dress

As far as styling goes, fashion tape can help the fabric stick to your skin to prevent roll-down. Another option altogether is to look for a strapless top that has corsetry elements built in, like boning or lacing in the back. While not all built-in bras are created equally, there are some that may work for your specific size and shape. These extra support elements will not only keep the top in place, but they can also add extra lift and security. 

What to wear: High-neck shirt

For anyone overwhelmed by their cleavage, a high-neck top seems like an obvious option. However, the tricky part about these tops is the surface area of the garment. When a top starts super high on your neck, it can create the illusion that your breasts start super high, making them appear bigger than they are and adding extra visual bulk.

Best bra

Once again, the best bra option here would be a minimizer that compresses breast tissue against your body to limit breast projection without compromising your shape, since you’ll still be able to see the silhouette of your bust in a tight shirt like this. 

How to dress

Look for high-neck tops that are slightly sheer, and wear a tank top underneath. The slight difference in opacity can help cut up some of that color blocking, which gives the illusion of less bulk.

Another trick is to emphasize the waist. Choose a shirt style that’s tight around your midsection; flowing fabric will add too much volume. A more cropped style that sits at your natural waist is a great option. High-waisted pants are also a great item to style this top with. And, of course, adding a belt can help cinch things in visually as well.