The Truth about Spanx

For those who are not up on what the Kardashian sisters are currently doing or what Joan Rivers thinks about Amy Adams' Golden Globes dress, Spanx is a brand of shapewear.

Shapewear, for those who are not conversant in the language of women's fashion, is underwear that pulls in and shapes the body.  What we used to call a "girdle."  By "we" I mean "other people."  I have never worn a girdle.

I live in shapewear.  I do not set foot outside the house unless I am bound from shoulder to knee in a snug chrysalis of lycra.  Losing all of this weight has been a fantastic experience in many ways, but there are drawbacks.  Shapewear allows me to look reasonably okay in clothes and smooths out all of the little lumps and bumps that would occur otherwise.

My first shapewear was the Lane Bryant brand.  Size 26/28, to be precise.  Then I went to 22/24.  Then I skipped right over 18/20 and got into the 14/16's.  While they no longer fit me, I still keep the bigger ones around.  They don't do much, but they're better than nothing at all.

Now I have to find shapewear for non-overweight ladies, which is where Spanx comes in.  Spanx is the preferred brand of shapewear in Hollywood.  Queen Latifah wears Spanx, as does Kelly Osborne and the aforementioned Kardashians.

Hollywood had to get something right eventually.  Spanx are amazing.  They are light and breathable but hold EVERYTHING in.  And they fit the size the chart says they're going to fit.  I honestly forgot I had it on one day.  Really.

Spanx are expensive.  I go for the two-piece, the cami and high-waisted bike short-type thing, and the combination is more than $110.  Additionally, it more or less has to be ordered online, which is problematic when it comes to fit.  That being said, it is totally worth it.

Red carpet, here I come.