Small bust, big heart

I’m British: therefore, I moan about the weather. It’s part of the wiring of people that hail from this inclement isle. That said, when the sun does shine, there’s nothing better than a British Summer’s day… blue skies, sun twinkling through the trees, birdsong and the smell of meths & burnt sausages that so often accompanies a British barbecue.

There’s one garment that smacks of carefree summer days — the camisole. So, as I start to get excited about the annual heatwave that’s sure to be upon me soon (please!), here are my top three camisole tops for small-busted women:

Blue jungle print cami top, £19, Dorothy Perkins

Blue jungle print cami top, £19, Dorothy Perkins. This cool cotton cami top has thin shoulder straps and a tie at back. The feminine style is cranked up a notch by the all-over multi-coloured floral jungle print. Small-busted women can take this bold print, so go for it.

Limited Collection pure cotton embroidered lace camisole top, £19.50, Marks and Spencer

Limited Collection Embroidered lace camisole top, £19.50, Marks and Spencer. Lace, embroidery, stud detail, cool white cotton… Uh, how many trends can a camisole embody and yet still look totally effortless? The petite-up-top look great with a little detail around the bustline.

Pink lace insert camisole, £22, Miss Selfridge

Pink lace insert camisole, £22, Miss Selfridge. Wondered how to wear this season’s nude trend? Here it is: a beautiful strappy cotton camisole with a lace insert to the neckline and a tiered layer to the front. Bang on trend, but also timeless: a win win situation.

Tags: cami, camisole top, small-busted style

Don't try this look at home!

There are some fashion trends that seem to be dreamt up to make fools of us. I imagine fashion designers cackling maniacally as they scheme to make hideous styles popular through the mass hysteria of hype.

Harem pants, for example. As far as I’m concerned “Hammer Time” was over and should have stayed so. Shoulder pads, too, were a fashion crime of the 80′s, and yet came back to shame another generation.

This season, watch out for jeans with low crotches that make women look like Linford “The Lunchbox” Christie. The look is not good, but I would lay money on designers converting fashion victims and victims spreading the fashion virus amongst the masses… that sock-down-the-trouser look will be The Emperor’s New Clothes of 2010.

Along with, wait for it, wearing your bra ON TOP OF your T-shirt. You’ve probably already heard that lingerie-inspired outerwear is big for S/S 2010. That’s cool, I thought, imagining a glimpse of lacy bra beneath a crisp shirt, or a lacy camisole or body worn as a top. I’m not shy… and once wore a sheer, stretch-lace slip for a night out clubbing.

But, if Vogue’s March issue is to be believed, one of this year’s incarnations of the underwear-as-outerwear theme is a bit more literal. Think Superman with his kegs on over his tights. Except, this time, it’s all about bras over T-shirts. London designer Louise Gray, a fan of the bra top, says, “I wear them all the time. Always over a white T-shirt or vest.”

Can you hear it now? That shrill laugh at the conception of this brilliant idea and the thought of millions of innocents giving it a go: Mwah ha ha haaaa!

Let me know if wearing bras superhero stylee comes to a high street near you.

Tags: bra, cami, lingerie