Behold, the Power of Forms

Everyone has a different perspective of what is sexy. However, over the years of getting random emails from random guys, I find myself being taken completely off guard by someone who is drawn to something very specific. I recently received an email from a guy who was very, ah, excited to notice that I wear rings when I am en femme.

Things like that throw me for a loop. It’s not a very common thing to get aroused about it, is it? To be clear, I am not kink shaming anyone who really likes something that does no harm to themselves or others. When someone says they really like girls wearing stilettos or leather I feel that’s more common, but I always get a few messages from a certain guy when I post a photo when I am carrying a purse.

I suppose the above photo is going to make two guys very happy. A picture with a purse AND a ring?? Jackpot.

But I digress.

I feel it is safe to say that with very few exceptions, most people would agree that confidence is theeeee sexiest thing someone can have. Sure, a corset and black seamed stockings are usually thought of as sexy, but that sexiness diminishes if the person wearing the corset and black seamed stockings isn’t FEELING confident.

In recent years I have slowly, but not easily, moved away from obsessing about my dress size and weight. I’ve gained some weight over the last five years and a size 12 dress doesn’t fit as well as it used to (or at all).

But that’s okay. I’m aging and my body is changing.

However, despite this, I still feel beautiful. I may not be able to zip up every size 12 dress in my wardrobe these days but my confidence comes from loving how I look regardless of the number on a dress tag. I’d rather wear a dress that makes me look amazing and makes me feel amazing and a dress that FITS than anything else.

There’s a few things that go hand in hand with a dress that looks flattering on someone, and one of those things is the dress emphasizing and minimizing the parts of one’s body it’s meant to. Speaking broadly, a dress is usually designed for the body of a cisgender woman. Meaning it’s designed for someone with certain proportions.

My body is more or less rectangular. If I try on a bodycon dress in male mode it may very well fit, but it might not be flattering.

But! The dress will fit and hang differently when I am en femme. Why? What changed? My shape. I changed my shape.

I still have the same body, but parts of me have been shifted or redistributed. I also benefit from forms and pads. My corset gives me hips and curves. My breast forms gives me a flattering bust line. The dress fits me better because I have a body shape and proportions that the dressmaker designed the dress for.

Compare the two photos below using the little slidey thing. The first photo is just me, no forms or shapewear but the second is me allllll cinched up and rocking my forms.

I wear forms and a corset not because they help give me a “traditional” feminine shape but because I’ll gain a body shape and proportions that are more in line with what the designer had in mind for the person wearing the dress.

And! Because a dress fits me better, my confidence is through the roof.

And! Just a reminder that there’s not a shape in all of geometry that a feminine presenting/feminine identifying person needs to have.

So, long story short, forms significantly contribute to my confidence.

Years ago, I started to wear Jolie Thigh Pads from The Breast Form Store. They were the first items that really started my appreciation for what shapewear/forms can do for someone’s body and ultimately their confidence and appearance. I’ve added other forms since them, such as the Nikki pads, and I am totally on Team Forms.

Pads/forms do change how a dress fits… and the downside to that is sometimes a dress no longer fits when I wear certain forms. Without pads/forms/corset, I can zip up certain dresses with ease, but when I have all my foundation items on, that zipper can be a lot more stubborn.

So… sometimes the forms are left in their boxes, if I am being honest. You may not think that a silicone pad would make that much of a difference but a bodycon dress or a leather dress (my faves) usually are designed with very little give.

I was very happy when I learned that The Breast Form Store has started to offer their Jolie Thigh Pads in a shorter style. I love the shorter model for two reasons. One is that since they are, well, shorter, I can wear them with more dresses and skirts compared to the original design. The second is that it’s easier to pair them with the aforementioned Nikki butt pads giving me a very different shape.

I mean, look at that second picture. It’s hard for me to comprehend that’s my body. I am not wearing the Nikki pads, the new Jolie designs are doing all the work.

Vavavooooooom!

This dress looks amazing with shapewear and forms. When I purchased it a few months ago and I tried it on, it was… well, it was okay. Just a white shift/bodycon dress. But it’s a completely different dress and experience with a little help. I felt amazing.

The new Jolies are available in different skin tones and in different sizes. Like so many aspects of what we do and what we wear, these are an investment. They are not cheap, and when it comes to forms, I really believe that you get what you pay for. If you are going to invest in any sort of padding or forms, I encourage you to chat with the experts at The Breast Form Store to get their advice for what size is right for your body. I think it’s fair to think that many of us want the curviest shape possible but a proportionate body is pretty important.

For example, when it was time to upgrade my breast forms, after providing the girls at The Breast Form Store with my measurements, they recommended a size that I never even considered. And… they were 100000% correct. I never realllllly wanted to draw attention to my bust so I assumed a smaller size would be better but the size I wear is perfect for my body and my measurements and helps me with a more proportionate shape.

It’s hard to believe that at one point in my presentation journey I avoided items that shaped my body, whether it was a corset or breast forms. I wanted to be as authentic and as physically ME as possible. But I am still ME, it’s still MY body… it’s just that parts of me are enhanced or redistributed, lol. It’s not unlike makeup and how it’s used to highlight or minimize certain features of my face.

I really want to thank The Breast Form Store for providing the new Jolies for this review.

Love, Hannah