
Hi
I get asked this question A LOT ! So I thought I would let you know how I tend to work with my customers. This is not really a science but will require a bit of trial and error. But persevere and you should get to near where you want to be.
The most important thing to emphasis is that there really isn't a definitive answer to what is an hour glass figure, and what is YOUR hour glass figure. What you will be able to achieve will depend a lot on your start point - your current body shape and your frame. There is only so much padding and squeezing you can do.
That said - I think it is really useful to have some guidelines to try and help keep your figure as feminine as possible. For me one of the most important things in achieving this is to keep everything in balance. There is always the temptation to go bigger (especially on the boobs !) - but this does not necessarily make you look more feminine.
I work with a couple of guidelines to try and help my customers keep everything in proportion - and to give some clues about what parts of the body might need padding or pinching in. Once again I am trying for a realistic feminine figure - not a caricature. I like to keep things really simple - so I just have two very easy to follow guidelines.
- Your overbust and your female hips should be roughly the same (within 2")
- Your female waist should be 6-10" less than your overbust / female hips
Thats all there is to it !! Well as always the devil is in the detail. Looking at each of these in a bit more detail.
1. Keep your overbust and your hips roughly the same size

Why is this important ?
Keeping your hips and boobs in proportion will stop you looking to top or bottom heavy - and give you far more realistic feminine figure I generally suggest keeping them within 2" of each other. Most genetic women would kill for a figure in balance like this - but you actually have the choice to make it happen - or at least get as close as you can.
Getting the measurements right is really important here as the terms overbust and feminine hips have a very specific meaning
1. Overbust:
The overbust is is your chest measurement, measured with your bra on around the fullest part of your boobs.
If you know your bra size then you can use the following table:
A | B | C | D | DD | E | F | |
Overbust =Bra Band size PLUS | +0 | +1 | +2 | +3 | +4 | +5 | +6 |
So a 42D bra has a 45" overbust (42 bra band size PLUS +3).
If you don't know your bra size then you are going to have to start measuring yourself.
- Start by using a cloth measuring tape (not a metal one !!)
- Measuring your chest 3" below your nipples.
- Make sure the tape is held tight. As tight as if it was an elastic band - but not so tight it digs in.
This is your underbust.
Your bra band size will be your underbust plus 2" (if its an even number) or plus 3" if its an odd number. So a 38" underbust gives you a bra band size of 40". You can then use the table above.
2. Hips:
Measure your feminine hips around the FULLEST PART OF YOUR BUM. This will be typically lower than where you would normally measure your hips.
Remember its not around the top of your hips or where hipster jeans sit - it is much lower and will be the largest measurement you have around your bum.
2. Keep your waist 6-10" less than your overbust & hips

Why is this important ?
The female torso is far more curvy than the male torso. Men are a bit "straight up & down" while women have fuller hips, smaller waists, and boobs ! By ensuring your waist pinches in compared to your bust and hips you will get more feminine curves. The bigger the difference the curvier your figure will appear. Just the mere act of pinching in your waist will instantly give the illusion of larger hips, without doing anything to your hips at all.
Once again getting the measurement right is really important.
The feminine waist should be the narrowest part of your torso - and should sit at belly button height. This is much higher than you might normally consider where your waist is. So measure your waist around your body at belly button height.
Do not be tempted to pull the tape tight this time - just keep it snug against your body.
Also remember your female waist measurement is NOT your male trouser size !
So how do I get an hour glass figure ?
Well the first thing to do is to make sure you know your feminine vital statistics - you can then assess them against the guidelines I have provided above. You can use these to help you decide:
1. how large your bra/boobs should be
2. if you need your hips padding to match with your overbust / bra or provide more difference to your waist
3. decide if your waist needs pinching in compared to your overbust / hips
I tend to look at things in that order - boobs/bra - then hips- then waist.
So by way of a simple example…
Lets say you know your current bra size 42D - giving and overbust measurement of 45" and have feminine vital statistics of:
45-38-40
Overbust / Hips
Lets say you are happy with the boob size on your body. This means you should pad your hips by 5" to make it the same as your overbust.
The most you can really pad out your hips is +4" - which would take your hips 44" and give you vital statistics of:
45-38-44.
This has your overbust and hips within 2" - so that should make you look balanced top and bottom.
Waist / Overbust Waist / Hips
Your waist is actually already 6" less that your hips - so you could just leave that be.
I would probably suggest using a decent (and comfortable) cincher to squeeze your waist down by 2".
This gives a final vital statistics of:
45-36-44 - NICE !!
I might even consider going down a bra cup size to 42C (with a 44" overbust) giving:
44 - 36 - 44 - WOW!!
I hope that helps - just remember these are only guidelines.
Geraldine x