How Emily Ratajkowski Tells Whether Her Clothes Are Too Sheer

Black clothing is reliably sexy and reliably versatile. You can wear a black dress almost anywhere, especially if you look and feel great in it. But key to feeling great is knowing no one can see through your dress, straight to your underwear—well, unless you want them to.

Figuring this out usually requires some maneuvering—a lot of standing in the brightest light you can find, contorting your body until you can see your butt in the mirror and asking everyone in sight to weigh in on the opacity of your fabric.

But thanks to Emily Ratajkowski, we’ve discovered  an easier way to answer the age-old question: How the hell do you tell whether your black clothes are too sheer?

MORE: The Surprising Place Emily Ratajkowski Puts Blush for Her Sun-Kissed Glow

On Monday night, Ratajkowski stepped out wearing a figure-hugging, off-the-shoulder black dress. She wore the look to an Emmys afterparty and naturally, posted a picture of it on Instagram.

But instead of uploading the photo and leaving it at that, EmRata added a caption—one that shared her go-to how-sheer-are-my-clothes hack. “Real friends take flash pics to see how sheer your dress is before you leave the house,” she wrote.

Source: Instagram

The trick is so easy—so obvious—we can’t believe we didn’t think of it ourselves. A camera flash does the same thing bright light does, but more dependably; the brightest source of light in your house probably isn’t as intense as the blinding flash of a phone camera. Plus, you can point your camera wherever you want to—no twisting around, bending over or contorting your body necessary.

MORE: A Guide to Emily Ratajkowski’s Hottest Swimsuit Photos

Of course, as EmRata’s Instagram revealed, her dress was pretty sheer. Like, really sheer. Like, so sheer you can see her bra and underwear through it sheer. But as we noted before, that’s a look.

So whether you’re worried your clothing is too transparent or not transparent enough, there’s no need to fret—you now have a go-to hack to rely on. Thanks, EmRata.