If you flipped through any fashion magazines in the last few years you’ve noticed beautiful flowy deep V tops and dresses. Up until recently, I’ve avoided tops with this neckline for all sorts of reasons. Then I learned how to wear a deep V-top like a lady.
The key to wearing a deep plunge top is maintaining the bare skin to clothes proportion. Too much skin and you look like a streetwalker, too much covered and you appear indecisive.
What is a deep V-top?
The deep V top is low cut or plunge style neckline that shows the middle breastbone. It can be shallow, wide, narrow, or very deep and can be found on a number of women’s tops and dresses. Unlike tops that just show off the shoulders or the arms these deep V experiences can go South quickly (no pun intended).
Look, I’m a mom and a doctor. I don’t want to give off the wrong impression. I love my body and would never body shame another woman for wearing a particular style. Unfortunately, people make split-second decisions about who you are in a biased and automatic fashion. My problem is with women who are showing disproportionately too much body in the grocery store and while running errands. I definitely think there is a time and a place for everything.
How to wear a deep V- plunge top?
Choose the time and place wisely.
The deep V-top is probably not the top or dress to wear to work ladies; especially if you are in a conservative workplace. This is top is lovely for Saturday brunch with your friends, date night, or a night out. So this likely this is not the top you wear to pick up your toddler from daycare or to a corporate meeting.
Be deep V- Picky.
Not all deep V-dresses are made equally. For example, as a petite and curvy fashionista, I avoid tops with lots of texture and fullness near the neckline. I find that it makes me look shorter. So, I don’t wear plunge necklines with lots of layers like cowl types.
Don’t over accessorize
Let the top or dress speak. The plunge is the showstopper. Therefore, adding long or distracting accessories will give the onlooker too many focal points. Especially be careful with necklaces. Make them small and dainty, like a bar necklace. And try studded bling for earrings. Also, purses and shoes bring this look together.
Wear a camisole
If you feel uncomfortable in it, everyone will know it. So, if you feel more comfortable with more coverage create that feeling with a plunge style camisole or even a full camisole. No one wants to repeatedly pull up or pull together their dress through dinner or brunch.
With or without a shelf bra, this may be a good option if you desire the support of a bra for a deep V-top. You also have excellent coverage and won’t have to worry about potential embarrassing exposure.
Ya might need a bra, seriously
Larger chest women may need to wear a bra with a deep plunge top. So, what kind of bra is virtually invisible? There are several options. Which one a diva chooses is largely based on style and preference. Try the rabbit bra (which I reviewed here), the Wonder Bra Ultimate plunge bra, or other specialty bras.
As a larger chest petite lady with a 32DD sized chest, I simply can not (or don’t feel comfortable) going completely braless.
Other full chested women have used fashion-tape and other tricks to get that vogue, polished, classy, look. For me, the rabbit bra worked the best but it has its limitations.
Skip the bra
I would only recommend skipping a bra with a low-cut top if you have relatively small breasts. Hey, if you are the diva that can go braless on a daily basis, this will likely work for you. Women with larger breasts may be uncomfortable and feel unsupported throughout the day or worse yet have a major malfunction while dancing or partying.
Make a Shoulder Alteration
Make sure the shoulder fits. I made an Ankara V-neck kimono style dress from Vogue patterns. The struggle was making sure that the upper part of the dress properly fit. Because the bodice of the dress was originally ill-fitting without alterations I almost scrapped the entire project. The problem? A shorter upper torso than normal. The solution is shortening the shoulder seam and bottom bodice. If you don’t sew, you may invest in this alteration for your show-stopping garment. It’s worth the money to look flawless!
Combine methods for the best look
For a shortie like me, the best method is a sticky bra plus fashion tape. With this method, I don’t get any wardrobe surprises. As a result, my top stays in place and there is no nipple (areola) see-through action.
I use the fashion tape on the edges of the V on the dress to prevent the top from peeking open.
I made this dress from Vogue Patterns twice, Vogue 9253 (also known as Vogue 1735) and it has a super deep V, put I pulled it off using the tips above. The second time I made it, I didn’t wear a bra at all but I had a little more confidence and I’d lost a little weight. You can check out my second make on the blog here.
