Fitting into your body the “right” way

“If you celebrate your differentness the world will too…” ~Victoria Moran~

Stop striving to be like the girl next door, your “perfect” best friend, or the model on the cover of your favorite magazine! You’re different and so are they. Not one person on this earth was born exactly the same and that is what makes us all so perfectly unique. The world would be so boring if we all looked the same; it would be like looking into a mirror all day.

One  characteristic that makes us so different from others is our body shape. There are four main body types that women fall into but that does not necessarily mean we all fall into one of those categories. Referring back to my post from last week It’s the imperfections that make us beautiful you will find a chart on the main body types. Since we all do not have the same type of body, we all should not wear the same type of clothes either. There is clothing tailored to flatter every shape.

 

www.sheknows.com

www.sheknows.com

 

 

Pear (Triangle): Your upper body and torso are smaller than your hips. You will typically have a rounder butt and fuller hips.

 

 

 

 

clothcare24.blogspot.com

clothcare24.blogspot.com

 

 

Inverted Triangle (Wedge): Your upper body is larger than your hips. Your bust is fuller than your hips are in width and you tend to have smaller legs.

 

 

 

 

www.norwichbulletin.com

www.norwichbulletin.com

 

Hourglass: Your bust and hips are the same width but you have a defined waist. Typically the waist measurement will be between 8″ and 12″

 

 

 

 

www.sheknows.com

www.sheknows.com

 

 

Rectangle (Ruler): Your upper and lower body are about the same width.

 

 

 

 

 

www.sheknows.com

www.sheknows.com

 

 

Apple (Circle): A round appearance, no waist definition

 

 

 

 

 

Here are a few sites that you can visit for more information on the different body types:

The Chic Fashionista

Dressing for your Body Shape

Find Fashion that Flatters

 

If you would like to figure out what body type you are this link will help you find out!

The second link above also provides a body type quiz!

 

Once you have figured out what your body type is you can then begin to dress appropriately. As I stated earlier each body type has different styles of clothing that are flattering; just because your neighbor is an hourglass shape and can fit into a shirt with a cinched waist does not mean you should be able to as well. You might be an inverted triangle and a v-neck shirt would be the most flattering look for you.

 

Dressing for your body type is comfortable because your clothes “fit” you the way they are supposed to, and when you feel comfortable in your clothes you feel good in them and that makes you confident!

 

The Pear (Triangle): For tops you’re all about layers upon layers. lightweight cardigans and quarter sleeves look great on you. You want to fill out the upper body a little to create a balanced look between the upper and lower body.

An  A-line cut with dresses and skirts flatters your curves, and boot-cut pants especially with heels creates length in your legs.

 

The Inverted Triangle (Wedge): In order to lessen the upper body you should gear more towards cowl-necks and V-neck tops.

For dresses you can pull off what many people can not, a drop waist dress! So go for it 😉 In order to match the upper body in fullness you want to wear wide legged pants.

 

The Apple (Circle): For tops you want to wear jackets and shirts that have angles and create structure for your shape. Cowl necks and tailored blazers are your best bet.

For pants a straight legged jean works best, and wearing a heel looks slimming. Dresses that bunch at the waist create an hourglass look.

 

The Hourglass: For tops please avoid the layers! A scoop neck shirt looks very flattering. Wear blouses that cinch in at the waist. Your best accessory is a waist belt. Jackets that come in at the waist and flow out are your best fit.

Pencil skirts are your best friend! Skinny jeans that flow with the natural curves of your body and are fitted (but not too fitted) are very flattering on you.

 

The Rectangle (Ruler): You already have a very athletic body so try and avoid the boxy tops. Ruffles on the shirt, one-shouldered shirts, and halter tops give a feminine look for your body shape.

To enhance your curves wear pants that are high-waisted or bootlegged. Due to the angles they create on your silouhette wrap dresses are great for you.

 

~Refer to the second link Dressing for your Body Shape for more details about what type of clothing you should shop for~

~You can also refer to my other blog where I have posted outfits that I found flattering on others and the appropriate body type for that outfit is labeled.

 

“The dress must follow the body of a woman, not the body following the shape of a dress” ~Hubert de Givenchy~

It’s the imperfections that make us beautiful

The Today show did a survey done in 1984 and 16,000 women were asked to participate in a body image survey 75% stated they were too fat and over 60% stated  they were dissatisfied with their stomach, hips and\or thighs.

Unfortunately this probably has not changed one bit. Women everywhere are so much less confident with themselves than they should be. We need to stop comparing ourselves to the models on magazine covers and the runways because not everyone is built the same way; that’s what makes us beautiful! Who wants to look just like everyone else? I most certainly don’t! I believe that everyone is beautiful and it’s those imperfections we have that make us beautiful, because if we were just like everyone else we would be pretty boring.

Like I said before, we are built differently and just because one girl can fit into an outfit with an hourglass fit does not mean that you should be able to too. You may have a different body type than she does.

 

This chart is a visual on the different body types.

alamodest.com

alamodest.com

~Next week I’ll talk about these body types and what types of outfits you can feel the most confident in~