I've been losing weight (thanks for noticing), which has its good and bad sides. I am dying to wear some outfits without a corset - swimsuits and things with a bare midriff. Thanks to the weight loss, that's starting to look possible shortly. I already tried one, and it was fun (see Bad School Girl) even if not perfect. Here's the problem: during my weight loss, I hit a sweet spot where, with an assist from a corset, my figure looked reasonably womanly. But now much less curvy. At best, you could call me a Tomboy. Certainly, not the seductive bimbo-shaped being SheDaddy has set as my goal. So what to do to keep my ambitions of Bimbo-hood alive? Padding.
This week, I decided to do something about it and made hip pads. They turned out pretty well (they are "Dom de Luxury approved," ) so I thought I would share the process with you. (Noir Bimbo)
You Don't Have to Make Your Own
You can buy hip pads. These fall into two broad categories:
- Those that are too expensive.
- Those that don't work.
I have never actually tried any of them. Perhaps down the road, I will buy some, but I have other things I would rather do with my fashion money at these prices. If someone out there wants to send me some, I will happily try them out and give an honest report.
Searching for "hip pads" on Amazon.com will turn up an extensive listing of mostly unimpressive products. Surprisingly most of these are for women. The hip enhancements don't look realistic to me. Most of these are panties with attached padding or pockets where you can insert pads. These might work for women who are already "in the zone" and want a little extra in the strategic locations. But there is no way these products will transform a rectangular male body into a curvy female one. To do that, you must do more than enlarge the butt and the hip area. You need to create an hourglass-like curvature above and below the largest points.
The only realistic solutions come from RealGurl and DressTech. RealGurl is the company that makes the truly incredible RealBreasts (I wrote about those here). It didn't surprise me that their hip padding solution looks amazing and is crazy expensive. These are more than pads - they are silicone "shorts." They also function like a gaff; for an extra USD 100, you can get one with a labia. The picture of Raja modeling the product on their homepage is awe-inspiring, as it should be for something that starts at USD 1300 and could go as high as USD 1800. Before I plunk down my coin for this baby, I would like to hear reports about how it survives in the real world, as silicon can be quite fragile. There are limits to how curvy a product like this can get for the same reason, so it might not provide me with what I would consider USD 1800 worth of curves.
DressTech markets their own line of both foam and silicon hip pads. The silicon pads look good to me. They have a mesh reinforcement that should make them more durable than RealGurl's Gurlshorts. They are also a lot cheaper, costing USD 200 -- USD 350 based on the size. I am not as impressed by the foam pads, and I think $110 for fragile foam pads is outrageously expensive. I might buy their silicon pads someday, but those foam pads will never be on my shopping list.
If you have the money, I think DressTech's silicon pads are the best bet. Silicon also has a realistic 'fleshy' feel, nice for potential gropers on the dance floor.
Rolling Your Own Hip Pads
It's much cheaper to make your own. I spent $14 on materials and $18 on an electric carving knife. I also enjoyed making them, which is a plus. It's like sculpting, which always seemed like it would be fun. I think you will probably be able to get something you like if you give this a try, and with the electric knife, it will take you an hour or less from start to finish. I don't think I would have had as much fun with manual knives and scissors, which would probably have taken me hours.
What you need:
- Two pieces of high density craft foam, at least two inches thick and at least 18 x 18 inches.
- Plastic wrap ("cling film") - the sort of thing you use to wrap food for the refrigerator.
- Scissors
- Sharpie or magic marker.
- Electric Carving Knife (recommended!) or another cutting tool.
I got my foam from Walmart for $7/each (including shipping costs). It's important to buy high-density foam. Anything less dense will compress down to your natural shape when you put tights and pantyhose over it.
The ending thickness will be less than 2 inches, perhaps 1-1.5 inches thick. It might not seem like much to you, but you're increasing your width by a total of 3 inches, quite a bit!
Creating the Pattern
You can measure yourself with a tape measure and create a pattern from that, but the best idea I've seen is to create the model directly on yourself using plastic wrap. To do this, place your Sharpie and scissors near you (as you won't be able to walk soon), stand with only some underwear on and your legs next to each other, and wrap many, MANY layers of plastic wrap tightly around yourself. If you're claustrophobic, this might bother you, but I enjoyed this step. (Great, just what I need: another fetish!) You want it to be reasonably thick, at least 1/8 inch, and it should extend from just above the knee to your waist.
- With the Sharpie, draw a line starting just above your 'crack' along the top of your butt, around your side, and stopping in front above your leg.
- Draw a line about 1/4th-1/3rd of the leg width in from the outside of your leg, starting just above the knee and intersecting the line you just drew.
- Starting at the end of the line above your 'crack,' draw a line down along it, then to the outside of your butt cheek, outlining your butt cheek on three sides (top, middle, and bottom).
- Beginning at the bottom end of your butt cheek, extend the line down to your knee on the back of your leg, and connect with the line on the front of your knee.
This creates the basic pattern. Getting the lines right is the most important step, so don't be afraid to repeat it with fresh plastic wrap if you don't think you got a good one. Cut down the front (not inside the lines!) when you have something you like so you can get out of the plastic without destroying the pattern. You only need one leg.
Cut the excess plastic away from the pattern, and now you have a nice pattern for your new hip pads! I recommend transferring the plastic pattern to something sturdier. I used the shipping box from my foam order. Foam doesn't last, and you will have to cut more. Having a permanent pattern saves you from having to recreate it. Here's a picture of mine.
Transfer to Foam and Cut
Place the cardboard pattern on the foam, and trace around it with the Sharpie. Then flip the pattern over and do the same on the second foam piece. That's the padding for your opposite leg. Make sure you flip the pattern over, or you will have two pads for the same leg.
Now bisect the two large areas as shown in the picture.
Where these lines intersect will be approximately where your 'boy pocket' is. This point is the highest point of your pad. The pad should curve down from here in all directions to the edges. The thinner the edge, the better it will blend with your body. It will also be more fragile.
Take your cutting tool and start cutting. And this is a place for a warning:
WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING
Be careful! No matter what tool you use, be careful not to cut yourself. If you are using the electric carving knife, be ESPECIALLY CAREFUL! It is scary-easy to lose track of where the end of the knife is inside the foam, which means it can exit the foam right where your other hand is holding it.
Always keep your free hand behind the blade. I found it easiest to start at the edges and cut away gradually. Continue cutting and sculpting until you have something you like.
Wearing the Pads
To wear foam pads, you need to cover them with several layers of pantyhose or tights. I used tights and managed with only two. With pantyhose, you may need as many as five or six. You can use flesh-toned tights or pantyhose and finish by covering those with fishnets or other stockings. I recommend against using tights or pantyhose with a built-in girdle, which compresses the foam in the wrong places and makes a weird dent. Not cute.
Put on the stockings, and then pull them up over the hip pads. Look in the mirror and position them so you look your best. Enjoy your new hourglass figure!
Thanks for reading!
I hope this has been helpful. I'm always happy to get good suggestions and nice comments. If you have some, feel free to write me!