Camelflage: How To Prevent The Dreaded Camel Toe In Leggings

If you’ve never heard of camel toe, the best way to describe it is an awkward wardrobe malfunction where your lady region is a bit more on display through your clothes than you would like. This tends to happen with tight-fitting clothes that cling to the body, like leggings for example. While it’s great that leggings show off your curves, there are probably curves in a particular region of the body (ahem, the nether regions) that you would rather not show off. When this happens, you’ve got a case of camel toe. 

High waisted leggings have made camel toe more of a concern because this style naturally gets pulled up much higher on the body. This creates a very flattering silhouette on the waist but leaves you much more vulnerable to camel toe. There is also camel toe’s less embarrassing, but still not always welcome cousin: barbie crotch. I’m sure I don’t need to help you visualise what that looks like. 

Here’s the thing though: not everyone cares about camel toe or sees it as a problem. It’s really up to personal preference, comfort levels, etc… It’s the human body. There’s nothing shameful about it, and it doesn’t need to be hidden if you’re happy and comfortable with the way you look. The only issue I see is that camel toe and barbie crotch can be fetishised and sexualised by some people, which can make you the victim of gawking or unwanted attention. It’s good to be mindful that it could make you a target in certain situations. The fault is with the predatory people who victimise others, but you do need to protect yourself from those people and be safe. That does not mean there is something wrong or shameful about your body because you get camel toe. It’s them not you. If you are genuinely not bothered and feel safe, rock that camel toe if you want to!

For those who don’t like the look and want to prevent it, I have some hacks that will help you eliminate camel toe in leggings. Here they are:

Leggings with no front seam

If you love high waisted leggings, but you want to prevent camel toe at all costs, leggings no front seam are the answer. Look for leggings that have a flat front with no seam down the middle. Eliminating the front seam goes a long way in getting rid of camel toe because it forces the crotch stitching into a reverse scoop shape that works directly against camel toe. It’s literally anti-camel toe!

Make sure your leggings have a crotch gusset

A crotch gusset is a diamond or triangle patch of fabric that is sewn in where the leg inseams and front and back seams all meet together at the crotch. This humble piece of fabric helps eliminate camel toe because it positions seams further away from the crotch region and provides a flat layer that smoothes out contours in that area.

The underwear dilemma

Should you wear underwear or go commando with leggings? I really don’t like wearing underwear with leggings because I think the panty lines look terrible. But if you’re main concern is preventing camel toe, going commando removes an extra layer of protection from the dreaded c-toe. If you really want the added protection of undies, but you don’t want seams ruining the sleek appearance of your leggings, try wearing a seamless thong or briefs instead of regular panties. They’re very easy to find, inexpensive and will keep everything ultra-smooth down there. If you’re not bothered by underwear lines, go ahead and wear your usual undies to get some additional camel toe protection.

Good quality fabric

Thinner leggings that are cheap and poor quality have a pretty high chance of giving you camel toe. That doesn’t mean that all leggings made from thin fabric are going to definitely give you camel toe. This would be a real shame for those of us that love second-skin leggings. Look for leggings made with good quality fabric. Even thin leggings that are good quality have a higher thread count than their cheap counterparts, providing more coverage and retaining its shape. This will help fight camel toe. If you really want to be sure, go for thicker fabric instead of second-skin leggings. These will have a much more soothing effect on the body and provide more coverage.

Pantyliners

This camel toe prevention hack is a little out there, but it can work in emergency situations. Let’s say you’re at the gym rocking your leggings. You planned on going home straight after your workout, but you look at your phone and see a text from your boyfriend inviting you to lunch to meet his parents for the first time. Here’s the kicker, the lunch starts in 10 minutes. It’s a really important lunch since you’re meeting the parents for the first time, but you won’t have time to go home and change first. You’ll have to go straight to the restaurant. Good thing you’re wearing your favourite cute black leggings that look fabulous in every situation. You take a last glance in the mirror before you go and realise to your horror that you have a serious case of camel toe. Not approps for meeting the boyf’s parents! With no spare time before you go, what can you do?

There is a simple solution that will instantly get rid of this camel toe situation. Pop a pantyliner into the crotch of your leggings exactly as you would attach a pantyliner to your underwear. Camel toe gone! It’s not exactly the most comfortable thing in the world and I wouldn’t use it as an everyday solution, but there is zero chance of even a hint of camel toe. I would only use it in emergencies or if you’re EXTREMELY anxious about camel toe.

I hope these tips will help calm your fears around camel toe and make it a thing of the past.