Style Your Body Shape

It was pointed out to me just recently that a lot of women, well actually a lot of men, prefer a women’s ass to look big. They find it incredibly sexy. And we do like to please our men. So for those women who want to make your bottom the focus of an outfit here is how to do it.

NOTE: Fit is always the most important thing to keep in mind. You clothes should skim your body hugging your curves. Not tight and not loose. A figure hugging outfit is always sexier no matter what your shape.

TO PLAY UP YOUR BOTTOM HALF

• A pencil skirt hugs the hips and bottom, follows the curve of the thighs before narrowing at the knee. It will highlight hips and bottom as the widest part. This is your best weapon.
• A straight skirt is a good alternative – a similar shape but it does not narrow at the knees. It is better for someone who is extra curvy as it will contain thighs better than a pencil.
• AVOID a pencil skirt if you are a pear shape. It will highlight your thighs instead.
• Avoid an A-line skirt as it minimizes hips and bottoms.
• Mid knee length is the best hem length.
• Opt for a shorter hem and higher waist if you are petite. It will make your torso look shorter and your legs longer.
• If you have a tummy to conceal opt for a heavier fabric like denim or corduroy to offer more support and avoid bulges.
• A bias cut chiffon is a good option to cling to the curves of your thighs and bottom. Again AVOID if you are a pear shape.
• Pockets, buckles, buttons on the hips will accentuate the hips but work best on the very slender.
• Pockets on the bottom will accentuate the bottom but should be in proportion to your size. A big pocket on a small bottom will make the bottom look smaller and vice versa.
• A godet skirt (flicks out at the bottom) will balance your hips by creating volume around your knees. This is a minimizing strategy but showcases the bottom and upper thighs.
• A skinny leg jean will highlight your thighs more than your bottom.
• Pants should cup and mould your bottom and then fall from the waist in a straight or wide leg. This is a minimizing strategy but gain it looks fabulous.
• A bootleg jean highlights the thigh. A flare will give the suggestion of curves (this is actually a great way to balance out a full stomach).
• A darker color will minimize the lower half, particularly paired with a brighter top. Opt for a bright color on the lower half. The brighter the color the more the more it catches the eye. Balance with a neutral or soft color on top.
• A patterned skirt or pant will draw the eye and highlight the lower half.
• If you are narrower on your top half then wear a structured jacket to broaden your top half and maintain proportion.
• Look for dresses in jersey fabric to cling to curves. Wear with shapewear to get rid of any bulges.
• Look for dresses that echo the pencil shape.

Pencil Skirt

Godet Skirt

Glitterati Dress

Celebrate your curves. Make the most of them. They area an integral part of your signature look and if it includes a fine rear end, make the most of it.

Remember your shapewear to iron out any bulges if you go for a look like this!

Have a good day,
LISA

I spend a lot of time talking about the pear shape, mostly because it’s the most talked about and most recognizable shape. But the more research I do the more I realize that it’s really impossible to define body shapes that accurately. For instance lets examine the pear shape. The standard definition of a pear is that your bottom half measured around the hips is larger than your shoulders by more than 5%. That seems fairly straight forward. But all pears are not created equal. Lets really examine this.

Some of you will have heard of Kim Kardashian who appears to have become famous by being rich and beautiful and having a big butt. Saving any discussion on good taste lets look at this famous butt. Baby’s got back or junk in her trunk or a big ole bubble butt which basically means that her bottom is round and full and the rest of her body is slender by comparison. Women with this shape tend to accumulate weight on their bottoms. There’s no doubt this shape is bigger on the bottom hence, by our definition a pear shape.

But that is only part of the story. Other women are bigger in other places. For example Jennifer Hudson is wider around her hips and her bottom is quite flat. Women with this shape, me included, tend to have bigger thighs and a little something extra around the waist. When they gain weight it’s stored on their hips and belly – the spare tire – and their inner thighs. This shape is particularly susceptible to the ‘muffin-top’ look. Whether or not they fall into the pear shape category will largely depend on the size of their upper bodies. Jennifer has slender shoulders so would be a pear shape on measurement but the fact that she’s quite busty offsets that by creating the hourglass look.

But wait there’s more. Some women are wider around the top of their thighs and when they gain weight it is stored on the outside of the thighs first. ‘Saddlebags’ is the term and from this photo of Jennifer Love Hewitt, a size 4 on a bad day, it’s easy to see it’s a specific shape rather than a lack of diet and exercise. Women with saddlebags tend to have flatter stomachs and smaller top halves. This is the actual pear shape for which the term was created.

Each of these women will face different issues. Those shaped like Kim Kardashian will look more proportionate from the front while from the rear it’s a different story, for which a lot of men are profoundly grateful. Kim’s best strategy will always be to play up her bottom half – it’s there, it’s not going away, work with it.

A pear shape by contrast will always be better off playing up her top half to bring more proportion to her look – a small slip and you’re a caricature rather than overtly feminine.

And someone like Jennifer Hudson, who has the goods on top as well, is going to be better off playing up her waist to even out her whole torso.

The purpose of this post is to illustrate the differences in our bodies even within the same basic category. Trinny and Susannah in their book The Body Shape Bible address this issue by identifying 12 different body types. Kim Kardashian would be a vase, Jennifer Hudson a cello and Jennifer Love Hewitt a pear. Then there’s the skittle which I haven’t even talked about but is those with wide hips and big thighs like Jennifer Hudson paired with a small top half. It’s great to have so many different categories but it all still seems very confusing.

FOCUS ON YOUR OWN…ISSUES

No one is going to fit exactly into one category no matter how many you break it into. It’s a much better idea to examine your own shape to find out what you think of your body. You will feel differently about different areas that another woman of a similar shape. When you know what you want to achieve then look for tips on how to do that. For instance you may be bigger on the bottom and want to minimize your bottom, accentuate your waist and add volume to your top half. Someone else who is the same shape may want to maximize their bottom and add volume to their top half. And this is before the issue of height has even been added to the mix.

Notice I don’t mention weight: Shape is consistent. If you are a size 4 pear shape like Jennifer Love Hewitt you can gain a hundred pounds and you’ll still be a pear shape and the same shape clothes in bigger sizes will still work for or against you.

When I talk about a pear shape I mean someone with ’saddlebags’. When I talk about bigger on the bottom I mean exactly that – it may apply any shape that fits into that criteria, even a pear. I am going to reorganize the categories on this site along those lines so any feedback you give me will be greatly appreciated.

My advice is to look at all categories that might have any application for you. Then trust your own judgement and pick and choose what works for you.

Thanks for reading,

LISA

The goal of looking slimmer is about feeling more attractive and at the end of the day that’s a mindset rather than a practical solution. Simply feeling good about how you look will do more for your confidence than any optical illusion you might create. That said it’s really a catch 22 because creating the illusion of being slimmer will help make you feel better about yourself and give you confidence that. Try these tips to even out your silhouette for a slender more confident you.

1. Wear Clothes That Fit

Some of you might be thinking, hello, of course they fit or I wouldn’t be wearing it. Let’s clear this up right now. If it’s tight, it doesn’t fit and it will simply draw attention to every imperfection. If it’s loose, it doesn’t fit and it will make you appear bigger than you actually are. It also makes you look old. If it skims the curves of your body barely touching then it fits.

Wearing clothes that fit is the single most important thing to do to look slimmer, and correspondingly it’s the hardest thing to achieve. And not because of your body; it’s the clothes that are available. A one-size-fits-all approach cannot possibly address myriad body shapes we come in. Keep looking because you will find items that work. When you find a brand that fits, stick with it. This is also the reason it’s a good idea to buy investment pieces, like a pair of wool pants. Good quality fabrics wear better so it’s worth investing a little more to get a classic style tailored to fit perfectly.

The extra added bonus of fit is that your clothes will be comfortable to wear. Say goodbye to wedgies forever.

2. Wear Clothes That Flatter

No this is not the same thing as fit. It will be possible to find a pair of skinny leg jeans to fit most sizes and yet for all but a handful of people they will be instantly unflattering. Dressing to flatter is about dressing strategically to minimize your flaws and maximize your assets. It’s about style and acceptance. Your body is the shape that it is. Embrace it, learn to love it and especially learn what flatters and what doesn’t.

The thing that I love the most about wearing clothes that flatter is that I don’t feel self-conscious any more. I sometimes even go a whole day without remembering the size of my butt. Everyone can look good just by wearing a shape that suits their shape and looking good makes you feel good.

Clothes flatter you if they create an illusion of proportion. For women that means an hourglass shape. Working with shape is all about misdirecting the eye to create that illusion.

Just a subtle hint: this website is about what flatters your shape. Bookmark it, digg it, stumble it, tell your friends. Thanks.

3. Stand Up Straight

Its sounds really simple and it is. It’s truly amazing how many people stoop – the shoulders just kind of hunch forward and the neck pokes out, or, another exciting version, the stomach leads the way and the butt follows behind. Incorrect posture makes you look shorter and fatter. Correspondingly by standing up straight you will look and feel slimmer. This is particularly important for those who are bigger on the bottom. Hunching your shoulders makes your top half look smaller again and hence your bottom half bigger than Ben Hur.

4. Wear A Supportive Bra

If your breasts are anything over a B-cup then putting on a supportive bra can actually make you look up to a size smaller. Particularly if you have a little extra around the middle. A supportive bra will lift your breasts into the position they would be had gravity not had it’s way, and separate them into two individual breasts. A uni-boob – where your breasts look like a shelf or one big undefined blob – is aging and adds extra pounds. Get a bra that fits properly and you will instantly look slimmer.

Knowing what bra will work with your body shape is a great idea as well.

5. Use Color, Texture And Pattern To Camouflage

Darker colors camouflage and lighter colors highlight ergo wear the darker colors on areas that you want to hide and lighter colors on areas where you want to draw the eye. And the same works with pattern. The eye is drawn where the pattern is so wear it where you want people to look. For instance say you’re bigger on top. Opt for a plain darker colored top like a chocolate brown (over your supportive bra!) and pair it with a brightly colored A-line skirt with a busy pattern. The eye will be drawn away from your top and onto your bottom half.

Textured fabric is a way to create the illusion of volume without sacrificing fit. So if you’re bigger on top then wearing a boucle (nobbly) skirt on the bottom half, say with a tweed pattern, will create the illusion that the bottom half is bigger and more in proportion to the top.

If you’re camouflaging an area remember to have somewhere on your outfit that draws the eye. If there isn’t anywhere to look then by default the biggest area on your body will become the focus.

6. Shapewear

When all else fails bring out the heavy guns – shapewear. Shapewear is support underwear – the modern day version of the corset, except now you can get shapewear to minimize your waist and hips as well as slim your thighs or lift your butt or hold in everything from bust to knee if that’s what you want. Made from many layers of spandex shapewear comes in a multitude of shapes and sizes and will instantly slim and shape your body without benefit of hours of exercise.

Shapewear should only be used for special occasions, times when you want to look particularly spectacular.

Good shopping,

LISA

If you have a small bust then you need to go with sleek, chic clothes.

OPT FOR

• Halter necklines
• Crew necklines
• Subtle revelations (eg fitted blazer with nothing underneath)
• Girly details like ruffles, bows etc

AVOID

• Structured bodices
• Scoop necklines
• Clingy fabrics
• Corset style tops

CELEBRITIES WITH SMALL BUST

• Debra Messing
• Selma Blair
• Kylie Minogue
• Sarah Michelle Gellar

You know how sometimes you get up in the morning, chuck on some clothes, maybe try some different combinations, and create the perfect outfit for how you’re feeling. Mission accomplished – I look fabulous. Oh but wait, possibly this pair of jeans is not the best idea for work. Don’t give up just yet; any outfit can be dressed up, or as the stylists say, torn down.

A great piece of clothing makes a statement all by itself but it’s what it’s paired with that makes the outfit. Take for instance this sequined skirt that Rachel Bilson wore to a day-time event. Generally sequins are a strictly after-dark item but in this case the pairing with the very casual blouse, plain shoes and casual loose hair detracts from the formalness of the skirt. If she’d paired this with a dressier shirt, even a black shirt, she would have looked overdressed. It’s the boxiness of the shirt, the I’m-really-ordinary-ness of it that detracts from the movie-star-glamour of the skirt and vice versa. With anything other than the sequined shirt Rachel would have looked as if she were heading for the gym rather than making a public appearance.

In our example above re jeans for work the idea is to smarten up the jeans enough that they become suitable for work.

These great wide leg jeans will flatter big bottoms, wide hips and heavy thighs. The classic rise will cut across the stomach so will flatter larger bellies as well.

This elegant blazer is a three button blazer with a shaped hem. The tabs at the waist with bows and the detail stitching describe a slender waist and the deep open v-neck, notched collar will draw eyes upward and keep them there. It’s perfect for defining a waist and will work for a rectangle or someone wanting to conceal a little extra in the middle.

Pair the blazer with some classic jewelry to further dress up the jeans and simple classic pumps for a very dressy look that’s torn down by the jeans. It’s a great way to mix up day and evening wear.

Good shopping.
LISA

I just love the pattern on this dress. Patterns and detailing on the clothes you wear are a great way to add extra definition to your frame, to trick the eye into seeing what it is that you want it to see. For instance with this dress the eye is drawn first to the neckline of the dress where the v-neck cuts the body creating the illusion of slenderness (though it’s not much of an illusion on this particular model). The stripes change from being on an angle to vertical just below the breasts effectively reinforcing that slimming effect by creating an empire waist. From there the stripes look as if they flow straight down when actually the fabric is draped so the stripes on both the arms and the body of the garment are actually getting further apart as they go down giving the illusion that the model is straight up and down. Without the colored band on the skirt the effect of the stripes would be more apparent and the dress would look quite severe. The waves also add a hint of curviness in the lower part of the body to counteract the stripes. This is a cleverly designed dress, which is probably why it retailed for $1,000 (sold out now).

It’s amazing how much difference seams, patterns and just plain the way the garment is put together can work with your shape. Sometimes they flatter, make you look thinner, like the dress above, and sometimes they just work against you. So be aware of the detailing on your clothes.

Good shopping.

LISA

An A-line skirt is a skirt that flares out at the waist to a hem that is wider making, funnily enough, an A shape.

An A-line skirt will

• Create the illusion of curves on a straight frame
• Minimize hips
• Minimize a tummy
• Complement extra curvy frames

An A-line Skirt Will Suit

• The A-line skirt is the staple for every wardrobe as it’s a style that’s simple and easy to wear and will be flattering on all body types; BUT
• If you have a big butt be careful because some A-line skirts can billow out over the bottom making it appear bigger than it is

How To Wear It

• The best hem height is mid or just below your knee. Showing the upper curve of your calf makes your legs appear longer and thinner
• If you’re bigger on the bottom then make the skirt plain and darker colored and pair with an eye catching top
• An A-line is enormously versatile and can be worn in any number of ways:

FOR PLAY

Empire waisted tops are an ideal way to conceal a stomach as it’s cinched at your narrowest part giving the illusion of a small waist. The empire waist also creates length in the entire body. The halter neck draws the eyes up to the shoulders and bust and keeps it there with the bare shoulders look. The A-line skirt will offset any heaviness around the middle, bottom or thighs and give you extra curves. The knee length hem will display your shapely calves making your legs look longer (and therefore narrower) and the shoe will not interrupt the line of your leg as a strapped one would so will again make your look taller. This particular skirt is made of broderie anglaise which is a sturdy fabric which is great for those with a little extra curves as it helps keep things in place. Avoid this top if you have big breasts – it will be too difficult to carry off with class.

FOR WORK

This great outfit would be perfect for the pear or rectangle shaped lady. The A-line skirt is great for minimizing heavier thighs and bottoms and the jacket with it’s subtle horizontal pinstripe will add volume to the top half. The change to vertical stripes at the waist combined with the detailing where the two stripes meet gives the illusion of a curvy waistline. The monochromatic look will increase the length of your body and make your legs look longer. The shoes just make the whole outfit pop. This is an outfit that would work well for a petite lady as well because it is simple and will make you look taller. Be cautious if you are bigger on top as the pinstripe may make you look bigger again.

One of my biggest ‘pet peeves’ is that plus size clothing is so often shapeless and smock like, not to mention plain. It’s as if clothing shops decide if you’re over a size 14 you must be so ashamed that the only thing you want to do is cover up and fade into the background and in all honesty once upon a time that was an accurate estimation of how I felt. But not any more. Now I believe that I, like all big women are just the same as our slender, less curvy sisters … only, um, bigger. We need sexy, stylish clothes as much as the next woman.

Finding it can be a bit of a challenge, which is one of the reasons I started this website. I find I spend a lot of time going through clothing catalogs looking at individual items of clothing. Luckily I enjoy this or it would quite quickly become mind numbing. One of the things I find with most plus sized sites is that the majority of clothing is big, bulky and shapeless, with a few excellent items buried in the chaff. Again, since I enjoy the process it’s not that much of a hardship.

If you prefer to get straight to the point then www.curvety.com is the place to go. This is a United Kingdom based site offering clothes from size 16 to 36. They have a great range of clothes from designer dresses to your daily basics. Prices are mid-range and they will ship internationally.

The thing that I love about curvety.com is that almost everything in the catalog will work with a curvy shape. Curvy women are ultra feminine and there’s just no hiding it. Covering up is not a good strategy. We need to work with our curves and that means creating an hourglass silhouette. Much of what you find at curvety.com is going to help create those curves. Since all the models are plus-sized it’s easy to get an idea of how things will look.

Check out www.curvety.com today.

LISA

Plus size women’s Clothing Online shopping emporium of plus size womens clothing and lingerie with designer chic and a comfortable fit, offering plus size women out size fashion clothes that celebrate our curves!

Jennifer Love Hewitt in a casual yet feminine outfit on the 4th of July. The wide legged jeans are baggy and do a good job of distracting from the width of her hips and any saddlebags while the extra length covers her heels and makes her legs appear longer than they really are. The tiered top is ultra feminine, which perfectly reflects Jennifer’s style and it resists crossing over into girly territory with it’s simpleness. With a u shape neckline it opens up her chest drawing attention to her face which is great for Jennifer as shes quite .. um stacked. The sleeveless top keeps the eye very much centered on her top half.

On the downside this outfit could easily cross the line into frumpy without the right hair, jewellrey and makeup, or flat shoes with those ultra baggy pants. The layers could easily overwhelm such a small frame. but the length on the pants, combined with the heels gives Jennifer the extra height to make here whole body look longer.

This is a great casual outfit but could easily be turned into something a little more dressy with a different top and shoes.

If you’re petite, or as more commonly referred to, short, then you need to create long lean shapes.

OPT FOR

• Clean shapes
• Heels (but avoid heavy ankle straps)
• Compact accessories
• Extra long jeans and pants – wear them with heels and your legs look much longer

AVOID

• Anything that makes you look like a boy
• The ‘chop’ effect (division of top and bottom)
• Cuffed or cropped pants (including rolled jeans)
• Any sort of detailing that is ultra feminine (bows or ruffles)

PETITE CELEBRITIES

• Reese Witherspoon (slender)
• Alyssa Milano (slender)
• Jennifer Love Hewitt (pear shaped)
• Salma Hayek (big busted)
• Rene Zellweger (triangle)
• Julia Louis Dreyfus (average)
• America Ferra (curvy)
• Roseanne Barr (extra curvy)