Part 1 here deals with building a nice pair of hips and a waist for those of us who too little or too much in that area to fit well into a dress or cute pair of pants. It’s all about image in general and self image in particular and stuff matters to someone like me; maybe you, too. It is not about trying to fool anyone.

Oh, and do you remember what Ann Landers once said about the teenage girl who padded her bra? "It is no sin to pad with cotton that which nature has forgotten."

Regardless of your body shape, you probably want a dress to look as good on you as it would on genetic lady. I certainly feel that way. I have spent years developing what seems to be the ideal method of achieving a body with minimal cash outlay. That way I can afford Snickers Bars which seem to change the image anyway.

Back in the old days, I tried stuffing hand towels into my panties. It looked OK but I soon found that my hips had migrated to my knee caps and the image fell accordingly. It was inventive; it was imaginative; it was free; it did not work. Next I tried various ways of simply reducing my waistline; a bit like “don’t raise the bridge, lower the water ”. If I chose to give up breathing, it worked but the blue color that crept into my face was very unflattering.

Fast forward the today and the wonders of modern thinking. This is what I do and works extremely well. I have the body I always wanted and I am totally comfortable with it. It basically consists of two parts:

a. The hips themselves: I use two foam rubber sheets that I get at any good artsy-craftsy store such as JoAnns. A sheet usually measures 18”x18”x2”. I draw out the outline I wish to have which emphasizes the rear end a bit and cut it out. After much experimentation, I found that the best tool for cutting is a kitchen electric knife; it gives great control. Next I trim the edges down to where they will blend with my body. You will probably experiment a bit with what looks best for you, but you should know that it need not be an exact science of engineering.

b. The other part here is a hip pad container. I have found that the body shaping garments you find in Wal-Mart or Target work great. They are not actual girdles and provide a great deal of comfort. Do not get a briefer since you will want the legs to hold in the lower part of your pads. Regarding the size to get: think big here. You are interested in containment – not compression. I cut a slit from the front to back which serves two purposes: 1. it allows me to relieve myself in either way without taking the shaper off and 2. It makes it much easier to put the shaper over the pads because of the reduced compression effect. (I must sound like an engineer. I am actually former biologist.) A nice pair of panties covers the whole thing. Use briefs, not bikini types.

When I put it all on, I put on the briefer first and roll it down so that I can insert the bottom (the leg part) of each pad. It is very easy the pull it up over the pads and I am done!

I hope the pictures are more clear than my directions. My writing is about 500 words and a picture is worth … well, you know.

More tips from my experience can be found on my blog.