How to Wear a Body Shaper Bodysuit: Fit, Bra and Washroom Tips
To wear a body shaper bodysuit, sit down and step in feet first, ease it up over your thighs and hips in small sections, then slip your arms in and settle the bust before smoothing the waist and back. The back panels should sit over your seat without riding up. You can wear it on its own or over your own bra.
A bodysuit looks simple until you're holding it: one long piece of firm knit, with the most hold right at the middle, which is exactly the part you have to get past your hips. The usual mistake is pulling it on from the top, like a T-shirt. Put on properly, it's the smoothest base for a bodycon dress at a cocktail night or a fitted choli at a reception.
How do you put on a shapewear bodysuit, step by step?
Allow ten minutes the first time, and put it on before your makeup. Skin should be dry and free of body lotion, which makes the knit drag.
- Sit down and gather it. Holding the bodysuit by the top, bunch the fabric down towards the leg openings.
- Step in with both feet. Bring the leg openings up to your knees while you're still seated.
- Stand and work it over the hips. Move the fabric up in small handfuls, a few inches on each side at a time. The firm core section is the tight part, so take it slowly.
- Bring the top up to your waist, then slip your arms through the straps.
- Settle the bust. Lean forward slightly and lift each breast into the shaped area, so the style lines sit under and around the bust rather than across it.
- Smooth from the centre out. Run flat palms from your tummy towards your sides and back, pushing any wrinkles towards the seams.
- Check the back and legs. Reach behind and ease the back panels down over your seat, then make sure the leg openings lie flat.
The Shapify snatched bodysuit is firmest at the core and waist and lighter elsewhere, so it's normal to feel the most pressure around your middle. It comes in black or nude, in combined sizes S-M, L-XL and 2XL-3XL. Measure your bust, waist and hips and use the bodysuit size chart; when your waist falls in a bigger size than your bust or hips, the waist decides. For example, a 35-inch bust, 31-inch waist and 40-inch hips makes the waist an L, so L-XL is the right pick.
Should you wear a bra with a bodysuit?
The snatched bodysuit has shaped style lines that lift and hold the bust, so it works on its own or over your own bra. Which way to go depends on the outfit and on how much support you like.
- On its own: good under fitted dresses and jumpsuits with a regular neckline, when you want fewer layers and no bra band at the back.
- Over your bra: better if you have a fuller bust, want a particular shape such as a padded look, or need extra support for dancing. Put the bra on first and the bodysuit over it, so the bodysuit covers and smooths the band.
- Backless, halter or strapless outfits: a bodysuit's back and straps will show. Wear a stick-on option such as the backless sticky bra, with shaper shorts below, instead.
Wearing the bodysuit over your bra is also the simplest fix for band lines at the back under fitted tops. Our guide on how to hide bra bulge and back lines has more on that.
Where should the back panels, straps and leg openings sit?
Run through this check in front of a mirror before your outfit goes on:
- Back panels: the contoured panels should sit over the curve of your seat, shaping it rather than flattening it. If they've ridden up, pull down gently from the leg openings and re-seat them.
- Straps: flat on the shoulders, not twisted, and not pressing grooves into your skin. If yours adjust, set them so the bust is lifted without the straps doing all the work.
- Leg openings: flat at the top of the thigh and level on both sides.
- Torso length: if the straps pull hard on your shoulders when you stand straight, the bodysuit may be short for your torso, and the next size up may fix it.
How do you go to the washroom in a bodysuit?
Answer this one before the event, not during it. Bodysuits handle it in different ways: some have an opening at the gusset that fastens with hooks or snaps, and others have to come down from the shoulders like a jumpsuit. Check how yours opens when it arrives, and practise once at home.
- If there's an opening, unfasten it, then fasten it carefully afterwards so nothing pinches.
- If there isn't, slip the straps off, roll the bodysuit down to your hips and lower it from there. It takes a few minutes, so go a little early at a long function.
- On days when you'll mostly find crowded venue washrooms or Indian-style toilets, high-waist shaper shorts are quicker to manage.
- Don't cut back on water to avoid the trip.
Which outfits is a bodysuit best for?
| Outfit | Why a bodysuit helps | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Bodycon or fitted dress | One smooth line from bust to hips, with no gap between bra and shorts | Leg openings under thin jersey |
| Satin or slip dress | Smooths the torso under fabric that shows everything | Nude under light satin, black under dark |
| Jumpsuit | Keeps the waist smooth where the jumpsuit is fitted | Your washroom plan, since the jumpsuit has to come down and the bodysuit may too |
| Long choli or blouse that covers the midriff | A neat torso under the blouse | Neckline and back depth |
| Shirt tucked into trousers | A smooth torso, with the bra band covered | A shade close to your skin under white shirts |
For the belly and thighs as well, pair the bodysuit with high-waist shaper shorts, or choose the bodysuit and tummy tucker combo; each piece is strongest where the other stops. Our guides on what to wear under a bodycon dress and tummy tuckers vs bodysuits help you decide when you need one piece or both.
How do you take a bodysuit off without a struggle?
Slip the straps off your shoulders and roll the bodysuit down from the top to your hips, letting it turn inside out as you go. Sit down, then peel it off over your thighs and feet. Yanking it from the leg openings strains the knit. Never sleep in it.
Turn it right side out, hand wash it in cold water and dry it flat in the shade. Skip fabric softener, which coats the fibres. If you'll be wearing it across a wedding week, a pack of two lets one dry while you wear the other.
Put a bodysuit on seated, feet first, and work it up slowly before settling the bust and back panels. Decide on the bra and the washroom plan at home, not at the venue, and it becomes one smooth layer you can forget about for the evening.
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SaleFrequently asked questions
Can you wear a shapewear bodysuit under a saree?
Yes, if your blouse is long or the drape covers your midriff, since the bodysuit runs from bust to hips. With a short blouse and a bare midriff, high-waist shaper shorts under the petticoat work better.
Should I choose a black or nude bodysuit?
Nude under light, white and sheer fabrics; black under dark dresses and blouses. If you wear both kinds of outfit, a pack of two in black and nude covers you.
Does a bodysuit flatten the bust?
It shouldn't. The snatched bodysuit's style lines are shaped to lift and hold the bust rather than press it flat. If yours flattens you, it may be too small through the torso.
Why does my bodysuit ride up at the back?
Usually the back panels weren't eased down over the seat, or the bodysuit is short for your torso. Re-seat it from the leg openings, and size up if it keeps happening.