All images courtesy of Sezane – Left to right: half tuck, tuck & blouse over, French tuck, full tuck
You can hardly fail to have noticed that, these days, when it comes to wearing tops, it’s all about the “tuck”.
This has become more of a focus with the move away from skinny jeans to a more relaxed silhouette. A basic styling rule of thumb is that if you are wearing volume of one part of your body, you need to balance it with a more fitted element elsewhere. Hence, skinny jeans work well with baggy tops but wider leg jeans and trousers need to be balanced with a shorter, neater-fitting top. One way of achieving this is to tuck the top in. Tucks tend to work best with a mid- to high-rise waistband.
Different types of tuck
Full tuck
This is where you tuck your entire top into your waistband. It gives a neat, polished look that works particularly well in the workplace and for dressier occasions. This tuck is best used with lighter weight fabrics to avoid adding bulk.
Tuck in and blouse over
This is similar to the full tuck but you ease out some of the fabric from the waistband all the way round and blouse it over the top so that the actual waistband is not visible.
French tuck
This is where you tuck the front of your top into your waistband and have the back flowing freely. Your tuck can be dead centre or off to the side. Works best with looser style tops.
Half Tuck
This tuck only really works for shirts or cardigans as it involves tucking just one side of your top into the waistband and letting the other side hang loose. It’s a casual, relaxed look.
What sort of tuck will work best for you?
This depends on a number of factors, namely:
- Your style personality
- Your proportions
- Your shape.
Style personality
If you have a classic style personality, you like to look neat and well put together. You may well find the French or half-tuck feels a bit too casual and think it looks like you’ve got dressed in a hurry and forgotten to fully tuck your top in! You will probably feel more up together with a full tuck or tuck and blouse over, depending on your proportions (see below)
If you’re a Natural though, you’ll probably like the casual, relaxed look that the French and half tucks provide.
Proportions
Tucking in will visually shorten your top half and lengthen your legs so your natural proportions will have a strong bearing on which type of tuck looks good.
Long body – short legs
A full tuck with a belt that is the same colour as your bottom half is an excellent choice if you have a small waist and long body.
Short body – long legs
If you have a short body a full tuck could make your top half look a bit squashed. Therefore, if you want to tuck in, either blouse it over the top of your trousers so that it falls at high-hip length or wear a belt in the same colour as your top so that it visually elongates the upper body.
Body shape
When it comes to body shape and tucking, the key consideration is whether you have a defined waist. If you do, tucking in will highlight this narrow part of your body and make you look slim and shapely.
If you have a straighter body shape or carry your weight around your midriff though, a half or French tuck will be more flattering.
Stylist hacks
Achieving that casual,” I threw this on and just happen to look effortlessly stylish” look does take a bit of effort. In fact, it can involve a bit of faffing to get your tuck perfectly positioned and may involve multiple adjustments throughout the day as you move about. Fortunately, there are a few hacks that can help.
The humble elastic hair band
If your top is quite full and particularly if it’s in a lightweight fabric, using an elastic hair band to bunch up and secure a section of the fabric at its hemline before tucking it in to the waistband will help your tuck stay in place.
Waist belt or elastic band
Fold your top (or part of its hemline) over an elastic belt worn at your waist. You can buy belts specifically for this purpose very cheaply but you could easily make your own. Personally, I just use an ordinary big, thick elastic band (courtesy of postie!) as it will not be seen.
Use your bra!
No elastic? You can take the bottom of your top and tuck it up into your bra band and then adjust so that it falls at a good length on you.
When it comes to the deciding whether and how to tuck, it depends on multiple considerations including personal preference, proportions and the type and volume of fabric you’re dealing with. My advice is to set aside a bit of time and have fun trying out the different options with different combinations of tops and bottoms. You may well find that tucking allows you to create some new outfit options and give your look a little more “edge”.