How to Pick Underwear When You Don’t Look Like the Model

Picking underwear for form and fashion is difficult if you don’t look exactly like the model on the page. Since “doesn’t look like an underwear model” is an description of most of us, don’t panic. You can learn how to pick underwear without comparing yourself to someone who gets photographed for a living. This is how you do it right.

Read the Sizing Chart

The sizing chart is your best friend when it comes to sizing underwear. This is true of both men and women. While women are a little more used to arbitrary sizing (when your body fits one brand’s 2 and another brand’s 6, it’s enough to drive you up the wall!), men often don’t realize that “Small”, “Medium”, and “Large” aren’t actually that descriptive!

Find the sizing chart on the underwear, read it, and then take measurements of your body. While this isn’t always the most fun part, it’s the best way to get the right fit for you. Underwear needs to fit you better than any other piece of clothing you wear. Your regular clothes have more room for error; smalls will stretch out, and slightly baggy too-large sizes aren’t that much of a problem. For underwear, you need a perfect fit.

Think Function Over Form

On your first pass through underwear selection, ignore style. Flashy colors and pretty styles won’t be as important as finding underwear that will fit you and get the job done. If you need underwear that keeps you cool during a long workday, go for that first. You can choose between the green and black or the patterned once you know what your form requirements are. The key to how to pick underwear is to identify what you really need this piece to do for you.

Know What You’re Going to Want

It’s easy to be bold once in a while. It’s easy to look at a model, and a style, and think, “I could absolutely pull that off.” It’s harder to do that when you’re holding the underwear at home. If you know that you’re really only going to want to wear comfortable underwear day to day, with one or two pairs that make you look fancy and feel sexy, opt for the comfortable pairs. Not everyone is going to be comfortable in a high waisted thong all day every day, and that’s okay. The model probably doesn't wear one when he or she isn’t at work, either.

How to pick underwear that works for you is a combination of planning and doing your research. Once you know the styles you’ll want, and the amount of support vs breathability you require from your underwear, all that’s left is to pick the size. Get a fresh measurement every time you order underwear, so you always know how to pick underwear in the perfect size.