The Only Two Body Shapes You Need To Know To Get Dressed With Confidence
If you’ve ever struggled to figure out what your body shape is or how to dress it, trust me — you are not alone! In fact, as someone who falls squarely between the hourglass and pear body shape, I struggled to dress my own body for years. That’s because traditional body type advice is outdated and overly complex. So, forget the hourglass, the apple, the pear, and everything else you’ve been taught. The hack I’m about to share will completely change the way you think about dressing your body, help you easily identify your shape and most importantly, get dressed with confidence. Ready for it?
While every body is unique, most styling principles actually fall into one of two categories: curvy or straight.
All you have to do is look in the mirror! If you notice that your waist appears smaller than your hips, then you likely lean curvy. But if you notice that your hips appear proportionate to your waist or your shoulders appear larger than your hips and waist, then you likely lean straighter. Once you can identify which one you are, getting dressed becomes so much easier. While there is some nuance from shape to shape, I can promise you that this approach is much simpler than trying to equate a human body to the shape of a fruit. Let me break it down in more detail…
The Curvy Body Shape
One of the biggest misconceptions in fashion is that curvy means plus sized, when in reality, it simply refers to the shape of your body — regardless of your size. Curvy shapes typically have a clearly defined waist that appears smaller than their hips. If you struggle with the waist gap in the back of your jeans, that is a clear indication that you have a curvy shape.
As a curvy shape, you may have shoulders and hips that are about the same size with a waist that appears smaller OR narrower shoulders with a waist that appears smaller than your hips. You don’t need a ruler to figure this out, all you have to do is look in the mirror to see if your shape follows one of these patterns visually. If it does, congratulations! Embrace those beautiful curves.
Universally, there are a few silhouettes that work well for curvy shapes: structured jackets and blazers that fall just above or just below the widest part of the hip, wrap tops and dresses, A-line dresses and skirts, anything belted (like belted dresses, trench coats, etc.), and straight leg, bootcut and wide leg bottoms. If your shoulders and hips are about the same size, you’ll want to choose silhouettes with similar proportions on the top and bottom. If your shoulders are narrower than your hips, you may consider adding some details or volume to your top half to help balance your proportions visually. For example, a blouse with a subtle puff sleeve paired with straight leg jeans will add volume on top without contributing volume to the lower half.
The Straighter Body Shape
As a straighter body type, you may feel as though you don’t have a clearly defined waistline. You may notice that your shoulders, waist and hips all appear to be proportionate OR you may feel as though your shoulders (or top half) is broader or larger than your bottom half visually. If you notice that your jeans tend to have a little extra room in the seat, this is a sign that you may be a straighter body type.
If you are straighter body shape and you want to create the illusion of curves, ribbed bodycon style dresses, silk slip skirts and/or the strategic placement of a belt is an easy way to create movement and softness visually. If you’re belting, simply place the belt where your elbows bend, as this is normally where a waistline on a curvier shape would fall.
If you are a straighter body type with broader shoulders or a larger top half, consider balancing your proportions by adding volume and shape to the bottom half. You can achieve this with a wider pant leg, like a bootcut or wide leg style OR with a voluminous skirt on the bottom. If your goal is to minimize your top half visually, consider a longline cardigan or jacket. These vertical lines will instantly create balance visually.
For more prescriptive guidance on how to dress for your specific body and lifestyle, consider booking a Style Therapy session. Together, we can identify your best silhouettes, your signature outfit formulas and other style secrets that will help you get dressed with confidence!
xoxo
Alexa