Sweaters

I forgot to go to Walmart, end of July/beginning of August, to stock up on light weight sweaters. 

Luckily, there were still options available online. 

I ordered three neutral sweaters to tide me through the next year. 

I tend to wear these in air conditioning all summer, in the cold of winter, and in the cooler weather of spring and fall. 

Part of the year I wear them over a shirt sleeved T. Then I switch to a long sleeved T. 

Either way, they are a necessity. 

They do not wash well. So I wear them a very long time and then they get relegated to sewing sweater or dog class sweater. Then they go to the garbage. 

I had this for sale on Poshmark but am now wearing it

The problem, red.

I am just not a fan of red for most clothing.

When I got this in Canada, several years ago, it was only available in red.

I hesitated at the time, but it was now or never, and I bought it.

The poor thing then hung in my closet and eventually was listed with a whole lot of things I (unsuccessfully) tried to sell on Poshmark.

I decided this week to just start wearing it.

First if all, when I have it on, I only see the black part, not the red.

And when I have it on, other people can see me (walking dogs, parking lots) because of the red.

Plus it is a lot more “together” looking than a fleece jacket or a hoodie.

I still would be happier if it were blue or green or purple. So when I wear it out, I will replace it with something in one of those colors. But for now, I am wearing it all fall. In fact I will be able to layer under it and probably wear into early winter.

Clicking on a picture will enlarge it. Middle was my model for these Poshmark pictures.

Breaking out the mock turtle necks

I ordered multiple long sleeved rash guard shirts from Landsend a couple years ago. Multiple colors and prints.

I wore one every day all this past summer. A uniform of sorts.

I wore them with knit black or gray solid shorts or capris (Walmart).

Yes, it was a hot summer. No, the long sleeves did not bother me.

The shirts allowed me to be outside and only use sunscreen on my face. They protected my arms, shoulders, chest.

I have a solid navy one I wear as a swim suit with navy swim shorts. I wear a sports bra under it. The shorts have two layers, longer with a brief bottom built under it. Also LandsEnd.

I buy rash guards and swim shorts on clearance from Landsend. I buy enough for free shipping. I think I have 9-10. I wash them in warm water on gentle, only with each other. I line dry.

The temperature dropped here on Friday night. And very interestingly the Rash guard shirts do not keep me warm, at all. (So there must be something about them that kept me cool all summer.)

So I am now in my fall/winter uniform.

A cotton mock turtleneck (LandsEnd) in gray or black over black knit pants (Walmart). The neck keeps me warm. I can layer many things over them.

I also bought these on clearance, last spring. I see they are on sale. I am ordering more, now that I know they really work.

Not sure any of them will work, but ordered these to try.

The first two are from Landsend.
And I would wear a sports bra under the shirt.

The last two are from Kohl's.
And I might wear a sports bra under those too.

I have been looking for something to help keep me warmer.
I was originally looking for more of a pool wet suit,
but every one I found, there were issues.
None seemed to be the right thing, to even order to try sizes.

I ordered 2-3 sizes of each (below).
That is my normal routine,
order the size I think I am, the size up and the size down.

I had enough to have free shipping.
Returns can be made locally so no return shipping.

Tracy links

Shauna gets the credit for finding Tracy originally.

I get Tracy's weekly post in pictures.
http://www.shutterbean.com/category/my-everyday-life/
I love getting it.

My husband says she has an incredible eye for photography. I also forward it on to my kids. My older two are overtly artistic. My youngest is too, in different ways. But I do not think you have to be artistic to enjoy Tracy.

She lives a very unique life (she only has one kid, her work is art, she travels, she lives in San Francisco area).

When her recipe food posts hit my inbox, I delete them without opening. I can tell by the title that it is a recipe.

Her food pictures (in her week in review) do not bother me. She takes pictures of food for a living. She also cooks things separately and cooks ahead. I have learned a lot from her about sorting, storing, labeling. So I look at her food pictures from an organization viewpoint.

So, for example, I did not look at what food she served for thanksgiving. I looked at how she did her table. I look at how she packages her pre cooking as she preps and puts it in the refrigerator too. Etc.

Alcohol is in a lot of her pictures, that does not bother me either, I just ignore it. But I just wanted to forewarn.

Blue painters tape now lives in my studio, kitchen and computer room because of Tracy. I label a lot of things. Dates, content, owners names. (When we were at our friends over xmas, I realized how much I use blue tape when she did not have any in her kitchen. Drove me a little nuts.)

She used to write another column for Homefries on organization.
http://homefries.com/category/high-straightenence/
There are some good posts there.

This post started because I was thinking about how Tracy rotates her clothes.
I had to look to remember what she calls it - capsule wardrobe.

I searched the word "capsule" on her blog
http://www.shutterbean.com/?s=capsule
And you can see past posts on that topic.

I am not suggesting following her fashion trends.
I am suggesting looking at how she thinks about her closet.
I look at all her organizational posts this way - the labeling and the sorting,
but not necessarily the content.

More dresses

The first post is here.

I ordered a few additional things to try.

I basically ordered all the Nine Wests with 3/4 or long sleeved that were warm (thick for cold weather which is now here). Because I now have a track record with Nine West, I only ordered smalls. In the other brands, I tried to order both small and medium, of each item, to try both sizes for comparison.



First, the rejects -

Way too much going on with this dress. Neither middle nor I liked it at all. 

This one is sort of the opposite (pattern placement wise) of the other reject (above), but it still did not work. We think we do not like the "belt". Even though the belt is part of the pattern, and is not an actual detached belt, it just doesn't work on me.

The Keepers -

Loved it. 

This was only available in a medium. And the medium fit just fine.

Ordered in a small and a medium because I was not sure of how this manufacturer fits me. It was the small that fit. This is the thinnest of all the dresses pictured (down to this point in this post) but I really liked it. Because it is long sleeved and I will wear with heavy tights or leggings, it is still warm.

Remember the Vera Wang from the last dress post?

Great dress. Still trying to decide. If I need a dressier winter weight dress, this would be a good one. If I just need more practical winter weight dresses, then I am not sure how durable this one will be. 

The second denim jacket ended up being a cold weather solution for me.

I wrote about winter weight dresses earlier in the week.

I wrote about my second denim jacket months ago.

Those two posts merged on Tuesday.

I discovered the slightly larger, squarer, second, denim jacket works perfectly over heavy weight dresses. Perfectly.

I had my alteration lady add inside pockets to the second jacket, when I discovered there weren't any.

I seriously, truly love these pockets for daily life around town (car fob, cell phone). And for travel (hotel room key, cell phone, money, passport, airline tickets). I very rarely carry a purse.

The more substantial second jacket felt a little bulky with summer weight dresses, tops and skirts. It is perfect with heavier winter clothes.

So I have my original jacket with the mended elbows for half the year and the new one for colder months.

I almost never wear denim (skirts, dresses, jeans), so the denim jackets go with most everything I wear (dresses mostly) and are definitely my GO TO items for every day life.

Yes, I wear other jackets. But not as much as I wear my denim ones.

And honestly, I should take my other favorites in for an alteration lady consult, because inside pockets in all of them would mean greater happiness.

Inside view of both jackets. Original, lighter weight jacket is on the left. The newer, heavier jacket is on the right. Original pocket on left, added pocket on the right. Tall, skinny pockets. Deep. Really love them.

Control top undies, helps hold excess skin

I had a flier in the mail that Macy's had all kinds of underwear things on sale.

I needed new underwear, couldn't remember the brand/style, decided it was easier to go in and inquire in person.

My underwear comes in packages of two.

Regular price is $36.

In the store, on sale for $14.99.

I need a medium. There was one package of 2 nude and one package of 2 black. I bought both sets.

At that price, I wanted more. So, I ordered two additional 2 packs of black and 2 packs of nude (order placed at sales counter at store).

So I was originally writing this post to say - if you like these too, great sale in process.

When I looked these up on line (to post the pictures/info for you) I discovered the $14.99 price was in the stores only (copy of my receipt is second picture below). On line sale price (first picture below) is $26.99.

So clerk at store, placing order for my additional sets, gave me the store sale price. And waived the shipping fee.

Dresses - I have to try on multiple sizes, every time.

I had a year where I lived in 3/4 sleeve blouses. Then I didn't wear them for a several years, and almost got rid of them. But this year, I wore them all spring. Beloved again.

The summer of the boot (2012), I lived in the four skorts that now live at Brenda's. Lived in them. But then wanted them gone because they were confinement related.

Last summer I had several dresses I wore and wore and wore. This summer, I can't even remember which ones those were.

I am not sure how I found the dresses (below). I don't read Women's Day or Women's World, so it wasn't there.

I have not been able to wear wrap dresses in the past. Just never worked right with my chest.

These dresses work great. I don't know if it the dresses or the fact that I had my chest 'fixed', but either way, these dresses work super well for me, now. But I had to reorder to make them work.

I always order things in two or three sizes, to try.

This time I only ordered (the first two dresses below) in medium. I wore them several times each.

Then I thought - wonder if I should have gotten these in smalls?

So, I hemmed and hawed for a few days and reordered in smalls. When they came, I realized, yes, I did need the smalls.

I could have returned the mediums, because at LandsEnd you can return at any time, for any reason. But I did not feel right about doing that (it was my own mistake, I had worn them several times each). So, I passed them on to a friend.

Moral of the story - must try everything in at least two sizes and sometimes three. Something will seem as if it fits, but unless I have comparison, I don't really know which is the best fit.

This dress is very fitted all the way around the bodice. Very fitted, which I love. The way the top is cut and hugs, it makes me think of ballet or yoga clothing. Really love it. And the wrap, lays perfectly. No tugging, no awkwardness.

The cut of this dress reminds me of Marilyn Monroe era dresses. Not as full, but that same sort of style (in my mind anyway). This dress looks like a million bucks. I am a sucker for blue and white floral print, really like it. Chest works perfectly fine on me. In the past, it would not have.

I ordered the same blue print in orange. Looks great with my denim jacket. Love the combination of orange and denim. 

This is a great green with blue dots. Same cut as the aqua one above. Love this one even more. 

Actually returned this one (to Sears). It looks great in the picture (same as aqua and green dresses above). But in person did not like the pink dots. Too something for me.

Jen's Gwynnie Bee (clothing rental service) information

I apologize if this is a repeat. I thought I had already posted on this topic, but when I searched, I could not find it.

Jen belongs to a clothing rental service called Gwynnie Bee.

She has written about Gwynnie Bee several times. 

That link will pull up all her Gwynnie Bee posts with the most recent on top. Scroll down to read her previous Gwynnie Bee posts.  I would suggest reading all her posts. She and I also chatted in the comments attached to those posts.

Jen chooses which outfits interest her, and they send a set number to her. If the items do not fit or she does not like them, she returns them and they send her a different thing from her list immediately.

I plugged in my information (email, etc) on Gwynnie Bee and that got me free access to their site. It was very interesting. They are geared toward dress up and work clothes. They supply mostly larger sizes. There are lots of clothing/style pictures from their customers and their plus size models.

I can see this working for a lot of women - People steadily losing weight who want a variety of clothes without investing in sizes that will only fit for a short time. Women wanting to try a wide variety of styles to see what works on their body and with the rest of the clothes in their closet. Women who do not have access to larger sizes in their area. Working women who need a larger wardrobe. Women who need special occasion dresses. My understanding is these rental clothes can also be purchased (at a discount because they are used).

When I was pregnant with my oldest, and working, I belonged to a maternity rental clothing service. It was locally owned. I think I had 5 work outfits at a time. They did all laundry. If my belly outgrew something, I could trade it in at any time. Otherwise I traded clothes every other week (if I remember correctly). They had a wide variety of choices. It worked great for me. When business casual became more common, maybe 20 years ago, the local maternity clothing rental place went out of business.

The story of the black skirts

The style is called a skater skirt.

They are A-line.

Think the style an ice skater would wear.

Middle and I bought this same black, knit skater skirt at JC Penney's last fall.

She wears it with black leggings.

Then she can layer fun tops and jackets or sweaters on this very neutral bottom half.

She looks very slim, arty, put together in these clothes.

Some people throw on a pair of jeans, she puts on leggings and a skirt.

We realized a week or two ago that this particular skirt was not going to make it long term, it gets way too much wear.

I looked on line and it was sold out in black, medium.

Oldest and I went back to our Penney's and could not find a size medium for her.

I called other JC Penney's to have them check. (They do not ship from the store to a customer. I called four where we had friends close by who would go pick up and then mail to us.) No luck at those four either.

I sent notes to Ellen, Laura, Brenda (bloggers who live within several hundred miles of me, so their Penney's probably carry the same stock). All three very kindly looked at their Penney's, to no avail. Between all of us, we could find every size except mediums.

Running errands with my husband on Monday, we drove back by Penney's. And the thought - RETURNS flicked through my brain. We stopped, we looked through the same rack oldest and I had checked the week before, low and behold, one size medium. From the way it was on the hanger, I am positive it was a return. Then my husband looked through racks of other style black skirts in adjacent racks and found another medium which had been mis-stocked. So TWO additional mediums of this beloved skirt. And the price had dropped to $7.99 (I thought the original $15 was a deal).

I am still on the look out for these skirts.

If I found a couple more, I would buy them.

Clothes that children with autism would consider friendly or fun

It is never Autistic Children.

It is children with autism.

You might remember middle plans to work in a specialized clinic/school, one on one, with preschool children with autism.

I watch for clothing these children will appreciate.

We call this first one the Dr. Seuss sweater. Can you see why?

(actually Put Me in the Zoo was not written by Dr Seuss, instead it was written by Robert Lopshire).





Children with autism tend to have favorite things.



Sometimes these are numbers -

Sometimes these are dinosaurs -

She has both the numbers and dinosaur sweaters from Target. Don't get your heart set on them, they are mostly gone now.


We are on the look out for a great solar system shirt or sweater. So far, those we have seen have been too arty or abstract. The kids will be happier with something in more of a classroom poster format.



She also has a collection of (actual) costumes including cowgirl, witch, gypsy.

Contemporary, dressier jeans, looking for suggestions - 33 days

I had a fabulous pair of Geoffrey Beene women's jeans somewhere in my weight loss process. I think it was long ago, like part way through the first 60 lbs. so those jeans are long gone.

I saw a woman in a very similar style yesterday.

Middle and I have learned, when you see something really great - go ask. They will not mind.

Total side note: they will not mind, but middle will not tell. She likes to have original things. Usually she can honestly say that she does not know (because I bought it). But even if she knows, she will not tell.

So I asked the woman with the jeans yesterday and she said Talbots.

I do not have anything on the calendar today/Friday.

So I am making the drive and checking out a Talbots.

Hopefully they are well stocked on sizes/styles.

On line information said they have tummy control panels, which REALLY helps with my excess tummy skin and also provides lower back support.

If you have any other suggestions of dressier jeans companies to check, please leave a note.

Clothing alterations - This is the one with pictures of taking in knit tops (links from past alteration posts included in this post too)

I have talked about taking in knit tops many times over the years.

My shoulders and bust remain solid. I buy tops to fit (those, the largest part of me).

I have mentioned I am very careful not to wear things that hang straight down from my breasts. That very much feels like maternity clothes to me.

So I have taken in the lower half of many of my knit tops since 2009.

Here is a series of pictures showing exactly how I take in these tops.

Again, as always, experiment on things you do not care about first, or even tops from Good Will that will not cause sadness if they end up in the rag bag. When in doubt, BASTE, either by hand, with pins, on huge stitch length on machine. Working with tops inside out, basting, trying on, helps.

Stretchy knit tops require something other than a regular straight stitch. Can straight stitch and then put a zigzag right next to it, in seam allowance side of the straight stitch line. Can use a serger (ask around if you do not have one, a friend might). A serger is set up to CUT the shirt as you sew, so experiment on rags if this is new to you. Or there are special stitches on some machines that mimic a serger or do a forward, backward straight stitch. Experiment on rags to be sure tension is right for your fabric.

I measure over 1" from the side seam at the bottom edge of the top and then draw a line straight up to the under arm seam (red line).

I sew a straight seam ON the line. I serge next to the straight seam. The serger cuts the excess fabric as it sews.

Ditto red line.

Ditto seam line.

Yes, it is a subtle bit of alteration, but it makes all the difference in the world on how I feel in these tops. There is more information in the Knit Top Alteration link below.

BONUS -

Long darts in two jackets and two blouses (6/30/2013) 

Shorts under skirts. (Middle's bloomers)

In grade school, both my girls, and all the other girls, wore shorts under their uniform jumpers (K-4) and uniform skirts (4-8). So both my girls are very used to that feel.

Youngest is very much a dress and skirt girl. But since she is so short (5') most skirts and dresses are a good length on her (now).  She still wears volleyball shorts under somethings, but not always. She wears tights on occasion and leggings. The rest of this post is about middle, because youngest's under skirt needs are good to go.




This whole thing started because middle bought a new dress while I was on the east coast. It was one we had seen, she was out shopping while I was gone, and found it on clearance, called me, I told her to go ahead and get it. The dress is on the shorter side. And is a very light color. So she needed a pair of beige/nude shorts (or something) to wear under it.

Middle also has shorter, what I would call, flirty skirts where she really needs to wear something under them.

We are not talking about butt cheek showing short dresses and skirts, we are just talking about short for our house dresses and skirts.

Volleyball shorts work a great deal of the time, but not under everything, and certainly not under light colored things.

At Macy's, Chicago loop, we found a very good solution.

These work extremely well for her.

One pair is nude/beige and the other is black.

They are just the right length on 5'4" middle.

There was another option with slightly longer 'legs' that were too long on middle. They would have hanging/hung out below dresses and skirts. They would probably work perfectly on taller women.

These are exactly enough coverage without falling below her skirt or dress hem line. And if they do show a little, in certain positions, it will be obvious to people they are not looking at her underwear. In other words, people will be relieved to see them.

And I think she wears these as shorts (under dresses and skirts) with a pair of underwear on under them. For coverage and so they do not need washed after each wearing.






She also wears tights or capris or leggings under fall/winter skirts.

I found fleece leggings last winter she loved.

She wore heavier skirts, with fleece leggins, on campus, all winter.

She has been asked if she is Mennonite, just a couple times. The people asking were not Mennonite, if they were, they would know she is not by the brightness of her skirts and the fact she cuts her hair. She has also been asked if she is Muslim. Which also cracks her up because she does not wear a head scarf. We realize not all Muslim's do. But in this area, they do. And middle looks hippy dippy trippy in many of her outfits. Her style is distinct.

She is very much a skirt or dress girl.

So, am I.

Long, vertical darts altering my "under grown" clothes to fit me again - these are alterations done in 2010, but I am still wearing these clothes, hence today's post.

NOTE -

If you are doing these alterations yourself - BASTE, BASTE, BASTE. Practice on a shirt from GoodWill or one from your closet you will not be sad to pitch. Notice she did not cut away any of the excess fabric (blouses).  If you are doing these alterations with a new to you alteration person, I would start with your least favorite item. You can also request the shirt be basted (thread or pin) and then go in for a fitting. The other suggestion I have is to wait quite a while (hitting maintenance) before having any alterations done. First to see where your body settles. And second to see if you REALLY want the piece of clothing long term. Because only true loves should be altered (if you are paying someone to do them).  As I was looking through my alteration notes, most of my alterations happened in summer/fall of 2010 after I hit my final weight in November of 2009. I waited a bit to be sure of what I wanted. 

There is very little ego involved with the pictures I post.

If you look carefully, in pictures,  you will find dust, you will find clutter.

I have posted pictures with bed head.

I have posted pictures in my underwear.

Last week I posted pictures in my pj's.

In early May, I had the idea for this post, after I had spent a very long, hot, humid day running errands.

If I had gotten the idea with a freshly pressed blouse, first thing in the morning, still in air conditioning, you would not now be subjected to the wrinkles in this first set of pictures.

Two problems with that theory -
1) the blouse was not ironed when I started.
2) if I don't take the pictures when I think of it, idea is lost, post never happens.

These are both size medium blouses I had before I lost my last 20 lbs.

I did not save every item of clothing when I got down to my current size, but I did save favorites which were alterable. Not every single thing was. I purged a lot.

I have a middle eastern alteration lady who we all adore. If something comes up and I have the opportunity to give her business, honestly, I do.


The other thing I guess it would help to understand is I carried my excess weight in my belly. My last 20 lbs all came out of the area between the bottom of my arm pits and the top of my hip bones.

I CANNOT stand things that hang down from my breasts (maternity look to me). I need things fitted through my waist, because now it actually indents.

What Sharla and I both discovered is if things are too big on us - they TENT in the back which makes it look terrible in the front. We learned this as I worked with my alteration lady (2010) after my last 20 lbs (2009). Alteration lady makes the corrections in the back (not very noticeable) which then make all the difference in the world in how things are in the front.

Sharla is a long time blogger friend of mine with a private blog - sorry no link.

And one more thing - I wear a size 6 on bottom. I have very broad shoulders. I still have a bust (32D). I am solid. As I buy new clothes now, I am always buying for the biggest part of me (shoulders, bust). So that is why some undergrown, larger sizes have been alter-able for me. I think that all that might combine to make a big difference in altering clothes (for me, being worth it) vs just starting over with a smaller size. (If I had tiny shoulders, bust, would not have altered any of those clothes shown in this post).



I love this first blouse. I love the fact the buttons are in sets of 3. I love the detail on the lower hem. I love the color. So, yes, I paid (gladly) to have this one altered.

This (wrinkly) picture shows the front of the blouse as it was originally sold and as it still remains. No alterations on the front.

Notice the detail at the hem? I love that.

Here is the part that I hope you can see. The top stitched seam on the right is the seam sewing the sleeve to the top. The top stitched seam on the left is part of the original structure of the blouse (there is a seam just like that in the front too). The seam between those two seams, the seam that is not top stitched, is a long, vertical dart the alteration lady added to ease the fullness out of the top when I lost my last 20lbs. This dart runs from the shoulder seam of the blouse to the hem. 

Here is the same (wrinkly) shirt, now inside-out, with my nasal spray pointing to the long vertical dart which was added. Notice the dart starts at nearly nothing by the shoulder seam, is widest at my waist, and then also takes in part of the hem. If you click on this picture, it will enlarge so you can see more easily.

Now the nasal spray is pointing to the identical dart on the other side.

I love this blouse too. Love 3/4 sleeves. It is a nice heavy weight fabric. I like the color. I love the vertical stripes.

No alterations were made to the front of this shirt. Yes, there are vertical darts, under the bust. They are original to the shirt.

Two long darts, were added to the back of this shirt. Because of the stripes, you can see the seam lines, one on each side of the back.

Again, an inside-out view of the blouse. The tips of the two nasal sprays are touching the dart seam lines. So, yes, in the middle of the vertical dart, there is a larger amount of fabric being darted, the dart goes to nearly nothing at the top and bottom of the blouse.  If you click on the pictures, you might be able to see more clearly.

I did not move the nasal spray for this picture. It is showing the exact same position on the blouse. Luckily the thread does not match exactly, and you can see the seam line in this close up, fairly clearly.

I think I had three jackets altered. I think Sharla has one of them now. I later found that same jacket on ebay and ordered a smaller size.

The other two are pictured below.

This first, chocolate brown one is a very thick fabric. I had to talk the alteration lady into altering it as it was a size 14. She argued with me. What won is the fact that if she took it in, center back, the shoulders still fit. And it was good quality fabric. (I had probably bought it somewhere on my way down the scale and it had escaped all closet purges because I loved it. Still do.)

No alterations were done to the front of the jacket. 

The seam you see down the center is an alteration. The next seam over, each side of center, was original to the jacket. Yes, I am planning on wearing this jacket for the rest of my life. . .

My nasal sprays are showing a very large seam which was taken down the center back of the jacket. Because the fabric is so thick, alteration lady did cut away the excess and finished the raw seam. This center back seam starts at almost nothing under the tag. On this one, alteration lady opened the hem, added the center seam, re closed the hem. I actually took this jacket back in, to her, when writing this post, to clarify which seams were hers, and which were original to the jacket. I questioned if she had added the side seams, just off center too, but she had not. Center only, is her work.

As you can tell, the pattern is so busy you will not see any of the darts on the outside of this jacket. I still included pictures, because you can see how well it fits. The black is a shirt I am wearing under the jacket.

On the inside, the stitching is very clear. Again, all alterations were on the back side of the jacket.

The nasal sprays show a seam/dart down the center back of the jacket. There is top stitching on this center seam/dart.

I put the nose of each bottle under the excess fabric, so you can see how much was folded over when this very long, vertical seam/dart was made.

Closer view of the width of the seam/dart. You can see how the seam/dart includes the hem.

In addition to the dart down the center back, I think, two small darts were made on each side at the waist. It is possible these were original to the jacket, these were altered a long time ago, hard to remember. But I think, as I look, they were added by my lady. There are a total of four of these darts, two on each side of center.

If you go back up to the pictures of me wearing the jacket, you can see it fits me very well. I wear it buttoned. It fits great in shoulders and bust and waist. Without the alterations, it would not be flattering, I would have purged it.