Spring Summer 2010 is all about showing off curves in a body con (conscious) dress, and you don’t have to be super slim to wear it!

Initially the brainchild Hervé Léger in the 1985, the bandage dress, part of what is often categorized as the "bondage" trend, is the latest obsession in Hollywood. The body con dress is THE dress of the moment.

Ever since the voluptuous Kate Winslet turned up at the premier of her film The Reader (New York December 3rd, 2009), in a figure-hugging black Hervé Léger bandage dress, according to Hellomagazine.com, women have been asking “where can I get that dress?" Kate looked equally as stunning at the UK premier of Revolutionary Road (January 18, 2010), in another black body-con dress, this time from Narciso Rodriguez.

The Hervé Léger dress (£1,300) has put designer Max Azria on the map. The label's styles immediately inspired a host of celebrity-inspired dresses from high street labels such as Top Shop, Jane Norman, Lipsy and French Connection, although these do not necessarily have such figure-constricting power of a £1,000+ high-end designer dress.

What is a Bandage Dress?

The bandage dress, so named as it is made up of layers of elasticated fabric, woven around like a bandage, has miracle properties when it comes to figure shaping. The dress itself acts like a pair of magic pants, holding in unsightly bulges, clamping thighs together, lifting up the bust and straightening the back. Squeezing yourself into one is no mean feat and given its boa constrictor properties it is difficult to walk in and move about. However, just as women defy the pain of walking in high heels, the body con wow factor is worth it!