Finding the Right Fit After 50
A personal note on dressing for the body, and the woman, you are now.
by Belinda Abbott, Founder & Creative Director
I’m writing this one personally because it is personal.
I’m over 50 and my body is not the body I had at 35, and I design clothes for a living. So when women tell me that clothes no longer fit or feel the way they once did, I understand it professionally, but I also live it.
Over the years, I have had hundreds of conversations with women in fitting rooms, at our Styling Studio and through OnceWas. One thing has become very clear: when a woman says her clothes no longer fit, she is rarely talking only about the clothes.
IT'S NOT JUST YOUR SHAPE THAT CHANGES. IT'S HOW YOU SEE YOURSELF.
For many women, something begins to shift around this stage of life. It may be the way clothes fit, but it can also be the way we see ourselves in them.
Our bodies can settle differently through the middle, bust and shoulders. That part is real and completely normal. But the deeper change is often about identity.
Some women tell me they feel less visible in rooms where they once felt completely at ease. The brands they used to wear no longer feel like them, but nothing else does either. They stand in front of a full wardrobe and think, I don’t know who I’m dressing anymore.
Fashion often seems to offer two unhelpful choices: keep buying the same shapes even when they no longer feel right, or retreat into shapeless clothing labelled “age appropriate”. I don’t believe either option is good enough.
The woman you are after 50 is not a faded version of the woman you were. She is a more fully formed version. She knows what she likes. She has earned her opinions, her tastes and her seat at every table. Her clothes should reflect that.
YOUR BODY DIDN'T FAIL YOUR WARDROBE. YOUR WARDROBE FAILED TO KEEP UP.
Let’s talk practically, because I am a designer and fit is where the difference is felt.
If the waistband that once sat comfortably now cuts in, or you have been sizing up only to find everything becomes larger everywhere except where you needed room, the problem was never you. Most clothing is designed around one body at one fixed moment in time. Real bodies do not stay still. Mine certainly hasn’t.
When I design, I think about how a garment will move through real life, not only how it looks on a fit model standing still. I fit every piece on myself so I can understand how each piece will drape and feel. We consider how bodies change through the bust, waist and middle, how shoulders need to sit, and how the garment should move when you sit, walk, travel and live in it.
It is also why I am drawn to breathable natural fibres and considered blends with softness and movement, and why we continue working to offer a broader, more inclusive size range across the collection. Fit is not an afterthought. It is the starting point.
WHY I KEEP COMING BACK TO THE MAXI DRESS.
Ask me what our customers over 50 buy again and again, and the answer is a well-cut maxi dress.
A good maxi does not hide you. It does the opposite. The length creates one long, elegant line. The right cut skims rather than clings, moves when you move, and lets the print and colour do the talking.
I can wear the right maxi to lunch, an exhibition, dinner or a summer wedding and rarely feel underdressed or overdressed. But 'well cut'; is everything. A flattering maxi only flatters when the proportions are right:
- The waistline sits where your waist actually is
- The hem grazes the ankle rather than dragging
- The sleeves and neckline frame you rather than overwhelm you
- The fabric holds its shape while still moving with you
I don’t like describing clothes as ‘forgiving’, as though the body has done something wrong. A well-cut maxi is simply flattering because the proportion, shape and movement are right. You feel it the moment you put it on.
Explore our most-loved Maxi Dresses →
Left to right: Belinda Abbott wearing the Wanderlust Pearl embellished Maxi Dress in Dark Tropique (also available in the 5'4 collection), Marie from Monday Project Co wearing the Cascadian Cotton Silk Maxi Dress in Bordeaux (also available in the 5'4 collection), Danielle Appi wearing the Wanderlust Pearl embellished Maxi Dress in Dark Tropique (also available in the 5'4 collection).
AND IF SHOULDERS SIT TOO LOW AND THEN HEMS ALWAYS DRAG, THIS IS FO YOU.
If you are 5’4” or under, everything I have described is often compounded by a problem you have probably dealt with for years. Shoulder seams sit too far down the arm. Hems always need taking up. Waistlines land closer to the hips. And when you search for petite clothing in Australia, you often find styles designed for someone decades younger, or garments that have simply had length removed.
That is why we developed our Under 5'4 Collection. We did not simply shorten an existing garment. We reviewed the entire proportion: shoulder position, bodice length, waist placement, sleeve length, volume and hem.
You wear your usual OnceWas size. The garment simply sits where it should, with less to alter and less to manage.
I have written more about the thinking behind it in You Might Be Buying the Wrong Fit (And Not Even Realising It).
Explore the Under 5'4 Collection →
MY FIVE FIT PRINCIPLES, IF YOU TAKE NOTHING ELSE.
1. Start with the shoulders and bust.
In structured styles, these are generally the hardest areas to alter and poor fit is often most visiblE there.
2. Choose fabric with softness, movement and breathability.
I often favour natural fibres and considered blends because they feel beautiful against the body and move well throughout the day.
3. Let length do the work.
Maxi and midi lengths can create line and elegance, but only when the proportion is right for your height.
4. Wear the colour. Wear the print.
A beautiful print draws the eye to the whole of you. If safe neutrals no longer spark anything, consider this your permission to try something more expressive.
5. It should not require constant managing.
A small alteration can be worthwhile for a piece you love. But if a garment needs strategic layering, repeated adjustment or constant pulling into place, the cut is probably not right for you.
Left to right: Kerri Robertson wearing the Gayle Leather Skirt in Oxblood and the Roselle Marino Wool Knit Top Bordeaux, Linda Gowdie wearing the Simona Sheer Viscose Gold Detail Blouse and Adele Linen Viscose Belted Pant in Dark Tropique (also available in the 5'4 collection), Claudia Hackman wearing the Eden Silk Pleated Shirt and the Adele Linen Viscose Belted Pant in Cathedral Bontanic (also available in the 5'4 collection),
YOU'RE NOT DRESSING TO DISAPPEAR. YOU'RE DRESSING TO ARRIVE.
The women I design for are not disappearing from life. They are travelling, working, celebrating, caring for families, starting new chapters and saying yes to experiences they once postponed. They have more confidence, knowledge and perspective than ever before, and they still want clothes that feel expressive, considered and alive.
I know because I am one of them.
I am not interested in designing clothes that make women look younger. That was never the goal. I design clothes that help women feel like themselves: vibrant, confident and comfortable in a body that has carried them through five decades and counting.
If your clothes have been telling you a different story, it is not you that needs to change. It may simply be time to find the shapes, proportions and fabrics that fit the woman you are now.
If you are unsure where to begin, our team is always happy to help with fit, sizing or choosing the right shape. You can email us, send us a message on Instagram or come and see us at one of our fortnightly Styling Studio appointments.
These conversations are one of the most valuable parts of my work. They help us design better clothes, and they continually remind me why OnceWas exists.
Belinda x
