To really keep a dress, a skirt, shorts or trousers in place, or simply to visually mark the waist, the belt can only be an accessory, it can be a real pillar of the wardrobe.
Sometimes forgotten at the bottom of a closet or inherited from a loved one, those that are too big, that hang a little too much, deserve an extra hole or two or more loopshowever, it can also be very useful!
Focus on simplistic techniques, requiring no leatherwork or shoemaking skills, or fancy equipment, we promise.
Techniques for using a belt that is too big
As just spotted Shethis TikTok video from the @americantreads account offers three tips for oversized belts. Stupid but potentially game-changing hacks if we didn’t already know them!
How to use a belt without holes without making new ones?
The first tip, faced with a belt that lacks sufficient holesis simply to… do without it.
Once the accessory has been threaded through the loops of the garment, instead of inserting the tooth into a hole provided for this purpose, you can instead fit it under the part with the holes, in a lower corner. And it even works with a round belt buckle as the video shows!
Once the tooth is locked in as it should be, you can thread the rest of the drilled part through the rings as normal.
But for even more support and/or extra style, especially if you don’t like the rest hanging freely, you can tie a knot/loop from the bottom: we pass the part with the holes under the part with no hole from the bottom to bring it up from behind the belt, then we iron the perforated part into the loop we just created. And there you go.
How to prevent a belt from hanging out from too far apart belt loops?
The second tip, faced with a belt that protrudes ugly from the loops too farit’s simply adding a rubber band.
Before fastening your belt, add an elastic band of the color of the accessory so that it is as invisible as possible, and slide it to the part where you would dream of having an extra loop, to avoid having your elbow continually caressed by a premature piece leather.
Then we thread the belt through the belt loops normally, and this is where we can hold the part with the holes against the part without holes thanks to the strategically placed elastic. Eureka.
What about using a belt on a garment without loops?
If these two previous suggestions may be known to a large part of the general public, the third seems less known and allowsadd a belt over a garment that has no belt loops!
It’s simply a matter of squeezing it snug on the tuft in question, then holding the part with the holes against the part without the holes with double-sided tape or lingerie adhesive.
It’s as simple as pie, but it can completely change the look of a blazer, jacket, coat or even a suit, for example!
Instead, it’s better to do it for occasions when you don’t necessarily intend to take the garment off and on several times with the belt in question, for lack of finding yourself with an adhesive strip that no longer adheres sufficiently after two or three times. — or having to walk around with a roll of duct tape in your pocket as a preventative measure…
This technique will work fearlessly on a leatherette belt, and can also be used on smooth genuine leather, but it will leave something to be desired on suede (such as suede calfskin or returned goatskin).
No need to tighten your belt to buy one in your size!
Front page photo credit: TikTok screenshot @americanthreads.
Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
