Can I Wear A Polo Neck If I’ve Got Big Boobs?

Ask any big boobed woman what single garment she's always assumed that she 'can't wear' and she will almost certainly reply, 'a polo neck.' Despite the fact that we all know academically that we can wear whatever the hell we want, this idea that polo necks are not for women with big boobs is pervasive and hard to shake.

Personally I blame Trinny and Susannah, the TV duo who went around ripping polo necks out of the hands of women with large breasts and convincing anyone over a size 8 that they had to wear a wrap top with a deep v-neck and an a-line skirt.

Trinny and Suze were styling women in an era where the idea was to look as thin as possible at all times, without much consideration to anything else. I spent much of my teenage years wearing a wrap dress with heels, despite the fact it made me look ten years older than I was, because it wasn't about style, it was about 'disguising my flaws'.

A polo neck is not going to 'disguise' your boobs. If you want to slimline your appearance, a deep v-neck with long sleeves, made of a thick and supportive fabric, is the 'best' thing to wear. But for lots of us, the desire to wear a polo neck isn't about looking slender or appealing to the opposite sex, it's about enjoying an aesthetic.

Just because I've got massive tits doesn't mean that I resist the lure of dressing like the sexually aggressive PA from Love Actually.

I wear a polo neck on the reg, partially because I think it looks great tucked into a high waisted skirt with tights and ankle boots and that's the level of effort I'm willing to put into looking smart on a weekday.

Wearing a polo neck makes me feel sleek and put together, and yes, it does my make very big boobs look a bit bigger than they actually are. There's no way of wearing a wall of fabric over your entire torso up to your neck which will avoid that. But it's also not a reason to stop doing it. Your boobs aren't a secret you need to cover up.

The key to wearing a polo neck is either to deliberately add bulk by going for a really chunky knit, and enjoy the fact that it's oversized, or to pick a sturdy but thin fabric.

For the latter I favour a skinny knit or ribbed polo, so that the fabric texture disguises any bra lines. I like fabric with as little bulk as possible so they're easy to tuck into a skirt or wear under a dress.

As with most shopping, it's worth trying to buy natural fabrics, washing them carefully and shopping around for the perfect shape and investing. That said, one of the best polo necks I've ever bought is theNew Look Organic Yarn roll neck which is just £8.99, one of the few items I've re-bought year on year. It's true to size, so I have a size 14 for a tight fit (I'm a 36FF cup) and a 16 for a more relaxed fit.