Waikato Herald
  • Waikato Herald home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Locations

  • Hamilton
  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Matamata & Piako
  • Cambridge
  • Te Awamutu
  • Tokoroa & South Waikato
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Weather

  • Thames
  • Hamilton
  • Tokoroa
  • Taumarunui
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Waikato News / Lifestyle

Fashion: The frill of the waist

By Susan Edmunds
Hamilton News·
26 Mar, 2013 05:00 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

I am really surprised peplums are back for another season.

I had thought they wouldn't take off again in a big way because who - apart from Brooke on Shortland Street, who appears to live in hers - would want to add a band of frilly fabric around their waist or bottom?

For years, all the styling tips I've read have been about how to draw attention away from this area. Adding a frill seems almost as bad as wrapping yourself in a bit of wadding before putting on your tightest jeans.

But, after being told by several seemingly knowledgeable people that it is possible to wear a peplum without adding an illusion of extra girth, even when you aren't on a soap-opera set, I decided to test the theory.

And it seems it is achievable - but that comes with a number of caveats.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Whether you wear a peplum on the top or bottom half of your outfit can make a huge difference to how it looks.

A peplum at the bottom of a fitted top can actually help disguise a thicker waist, and one set high on a high-waisted skirt can help cinch in your middle. Whatever you wear below the peplum should be fitted, otherwise you'll just end up with a really bizarre effect.

This might sound counterintuitive, but people who are a bit curvier often look the best in a well-placed peplum. The style draws attention to hips and waist, so if you don't have a lot of shape there it can look a bit strange. And peplums can be a great way to make a stretch, body-con shift dress work for a slightly fuller figure.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

If you're wearing a peplum, the skirt should fall to just below your knee. The horizontal line it adds around your waist can give the impression that you have shorter legs than you really do, so don't add another horizontal line around your ankles - a court shoe or peep-toe is the only style that really works here.

This is a retro look so pick a modern fabric to update it.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Lifestyle

Lifestyle

Watch: The latest highlights from Smokefreerockquest and Showquest

Waikato Herald

NZ actress accuses Australian policeman of using CCTV to spy on her

Lifestyle

Watch: Smokefreerockquest and Showquest's finals around the motu


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Lifestyle

Watch: The latest highlights from Smokefreerockquest and Showquest
Lifestyle

Watch: The latest highlights from Smokefreerockquest and Showquest

Regional finals from Auckland, Canterbury, Far North, Northland, Nelson and Wairarapa.

14 Jul 10:25 PM
NZ actress accuses Australian policeman of using CCTV to spy on her
Waikato Herald

NZ actress accuses Australian policeman of using CCTV to spy on her

06 Jul 12:48 AM
Watch: Smokefreerockquest and Showquest's finals around the motu
Lifestyle

Watch: Smokefreerockquest and Showquest's finals around the motu

03 Jul 06:00 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Waikato Herald e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Waikato Herald
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP