Padded pants a hit as women mimic Pippa Middleton

And now there has been a rush on sales of padded pants to women who want to create for themselves the same sculpted behind as Pippa Middleton.

Department store Debenhams has created the £18.99 Invisible Shaping Bum Boosters which, it claims, adds two inches to the vital statistics of the wearer’s rear end and a whole 15 degrees of curvature.

At the store’s branch in the Ocean Terminal shopping centre in Leith, the pants have been flying off the shelves.

“When we first got them in, we all laughed,” said one saleswoman. “But people love them. One woman bought a pair then came back for a second. She said they were fabulous.”

Discreet, cheek-enhancing structures built into the back of the lining give extra bulk and curvature to the wearer, turning a flat bottom into a competitor for rear of the year.

Control panels at the front also flatten the tummy to emphasise the effect, while invisible seams remove all outlines of the garment when worn underneath clothes.

“Slim women are looking for a helping-hand to put curves in all of the right places,” said Michelle Dowdall, spokeswoman for Debenhams. She said Pippa Middleton’s shapely behind – as well as other famous figures with celebrated rear ends such as Jennifer Lopez – had sparked a trend for larger, more defined bottoms.

“Widely publicised photographs of Pippa’s shapely behind have made ‘bum envy’ a part of everyday conversation for women all over the UK,” she said. “She has set the standard for how a perfect rear should appear.

“Buying a pair of padded pants gives instant results compared to hours and hours of working hard in the gym – and costs a lot less too. It’s a look we’ve seen on Hollywood celebs such as Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Lopez, but since Pippa has moved into the media spotlight, she has propelled the desire for more junk in the trunk to new heights.”

Tessa Hartmann, a fashion expert and the founder of Scottish Fashion Week, said the industry had used its own version of the padded pants in runway shows and photoshoots for some time, but added that she was delighted to see them being sold on the high street.

“I think women will really go for them – we have reached an age of experimentation with our body shapes and, with examples like Beyonce and J-Lo, it is all the rage.”

She added: “However, as a word of caution I think there are really only a particular type of woman who can wear them – or it could be a comical fashion disaster.”