Sarong, It’s Been Good to Know Ya
Dear Fashion Police: Is it my imagination, or have I been seeing guys in sarongs?!! Usually it’s larger guys in colorful prints. I . . . I think I like it!
--GETTING AN EYEFUL
Dear Getting: Hmmm . . . Where exactly have you been seeing these men? Please send us the exact locations where you’ve spied said sarong-clad males ASAP so we can do, ah . . . research! Yes, research!
Evidently you’re not the only one noticing men exchanging shorts and pants for sarongs, those large rectangles of cloth that wrap around the body (men usually tie them at their waists and wear them with or without a casual shirt). While sarongs are and have been common in Indonesia and environs, they’re also catching on in the U.S., and not just with women.
Even Ralph Lauren has featured a male model in a sarong-esque get-up in a magazine ad, and other designers have recently had men cruise the catwalk in long-skirt looks. We’d like to encourage men who are comfortable with their masculinity to adopt this style and wear sarongs in appropriate places, such as poolside or at the beach. And please try not to cringe when people ask you where you got your “skirt.” Some must still be educated. We’d also like to emphasize that men who are familiar with the insides of gyms or know a bicep curl from a Cheez curl, look best in sarongs.
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Dear Fashion Police: I am a 49-year-old professional woman, and I’d like to know how a B-cup can get the effect of a lift with cleavage, such as we see actresses in films and at events. I’ve tried push-up bras and gel-type falsies but cannot get the effect. I’d love to wear lower-cut cocktail dresses, but I have no cleavage. Even when I was younger, I had no cleavage.
--NO THERE THERE
Dear No: This yearning for cleavage just won’t go away, will it? Well, we do admire you for not heading to the plastic surgeon to satisfy a current but transient ideal of how the female form should look.
Since the issue of bust enhancement is essentially a technical one, we asked an expert: Los Angeles-based fashion stylist Rita Rago, who’s worked on loads of magazine layouts and TV commercials and knows how to get something out of nothing.
“Sometimes you have to do more than one thing,” Rago notes. In other words, it might take a push-up bra and those gel pads to get the desired effect. “Try different combinations,” she adds. “And maybe it’s not the right push-up bra at first, so try a few different ones.”
Here are some of her other tips: For a low-cut cocktail dress, go with a push-up demi-cup bra--”And not a wimpy bra that has a lot of lace on it.” If you’re a B-cup, start with a C-cup bra, which will leave you room for pads. Then, Rago says, “Work it.” Lean over while adding the pads to facilitate extra lift. And, she adds, “Don’t be discouraged if you don’t get it on the first try.” Again, experiment with different arrangements of bras and pads (you might need two sets instead of one) until you get the look you want.
Rago also suggested trying some new bust-enhancing bras on the market. In addition to the good old Wonderbra and Victoria’s Secret’s Miracle Bra, Lily of France offers the X-Bra, which has an adjustable front closure that--well--pulls things together. It comes in various styles, including cups with liquid-filled pads. View them online and find out where to buy them at https://www.lilyoffrance.com, or call (800) 289-2727. Vanity Fair has a Vanity Air contour underwire bra with removable air pillows in the cups (don’t worry, they won’t make you airborne). It’s available at https://www.barenecessities.com, or call (877) 728-9272.
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Write to Fashion Police, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles CA 90012, fax to (213) 237-4888, or send e-mail to socalliving@latimes.com.
