How to Wear High-Waisted Jeans With a Tummy

Front Tuck

People often feel that wearing their shirt tucked in draws attention directly to the midsection, and that scares them away from this style. But if you’re going to wear high-waisted jeans, the point is to highlight your waist! By tucking just the front of your top into your jeans, and letting it gently fold over, while leaving the back flowing free, your waist will be accentuated, but you won’t feel like you’re tummy is completely on display.

For this outfit, I chose a dark pair of jeans, but you can really wear any color or shade you like--even white. However, the lighter your jeans, the more balance you will need on top to draw attention upwards. So if you choose jeans that are light blue denim or white, pair them with a top that has a bit of print, or some volume to it. You can also add a necklace or a pair of earrings to keep the focus on your upper body.

Full Tuck

The full tuck is a little bit scarier, but it works well if you choose a top that has an open neckline, or a top that has a bit of volume to it. If you want to try wearing your shirt tucked in fully, try rolling up the sleeves of your shirt, opening your collar, wearing a necklace, or anything else that brings the attention upwards. For this style, you are trying to keep the lower half of your body quite streamlined and add details to the upper half.

If you want to add some detail to your outfit, but don’t want to wear a full jacket, a sleeveless trench or even a long scarf will help to give you a layering effect without being too heavy. It will also make your body appear more elongated and will draw attention away from your midsection. 

If you want this effect, but still wish to highlight your waist, try wearing a belt that has an eye-catching buckle. Make sure the belt itself is a similar color to your pants.

Layer

This is a technique that I often suggest for people who are in the early stages of pregnancy but don’t want anyone to know yet. Choose one color and wear it head-to-toe. Here, I’ve chosen a dark pair of jeans and a dark shirt, and added a bright red jacket for contrast. You don’t need to choose dark clothing specifically for the bottom layer. You can choose any color or shade you like, as long as the top layer clearly contrasts. Wearing one color, top to bottom, will help give the illusion of length to your body, and also serves to camouflage your stomach area. 

Remember that high-rise jeans don’t just come in one cut. You can go for tapered, cropped, wide, bootleg, flared, etc. There are so many different cuts of jeans out there that I’m sure there is one out there for you. Use these styling tips in the fitting room to help you decide whether or not these are the jeans for you.