Book Review: Trinny and Susannah The Body Shape Bible

The The Body Shape Bibleby Trinny Woodall and Susannah Constantine is exactly what is says: A bible for those looking to dress to suit their shape. If you’re in the market for a book on dressing for your body shape this is the one to get, study and take shopping with you.

I have to admit I was sceptical when I first got it. I thought, wonderful, I’ve just shelled out thirty odd dollars to find that instead of a quarter of the book being about my particular shape it’s actually a twelfth. Yes, Trinny and Susannah have broken the four basic types down even further into twelve distinct types: Goblet, Hourglass, Cello, Skittle, Vase, Pear, Apple, Column, Bell, Cornet, Brick and Lollipop. Each of the categories comes with it’s own description to help you choose what shape your body is. For instance a Lollipop is someone with ‘big tits, slight waist, slim hips and long legs’ and a Cello is someone with ‘big tits, short waist, big hips, big bottom, big thighs and slim lower legs’. Whatever your particular ‘stats’ you’ll fit into one of the 12 groups.

For those of you who don’t know Trinny and Susannah are the UK based hosts of ITV’s “What Not To Wear” which they started about six years ago. The ground breaking show has spawned books, the spin off’s “How To Look Good Naked” and “Undressing The Nation” as well as other shows both in the US and all over the world. The Body Shape Bibletheir latest book, is written with their trademark depreciative humor, brutal honesty and gentle but insistent nudging in the right direction.

I find that I agree a lot more with Trinny and Susannah than with other author’s in the genre. One of the items I struggle with is shoes. Don’t get me wrong, I love shoes, but I tend to prefer peep toed heels and round toed shoes. However I’m quite short and my legs are pretty thick so other writers have suggested pointed toed shoes as the best option to elongate my leg and make me look taller and slimmer. In The Body Shape Bibleit’s suggested that a curvy larger lady like myself is better suited to curvy shoes with a sturdy heel rather than a stiletto, something that I would naturally choose myself. I love the boost of confidence I feel that my instincts are right as to what would suit me. A lot of what they suggest is almost common sense.

I really recommend this as a great book for someone who wants a ready reference for styling your shape. It’s easy reading and easy to apply. Make sure you read the whole book as well. I found there were two or three shapes that I could fit into and correspondingly clothes from both that would work for me. More importantly it’s important to know what’s suggested for other body types to grow you list of things to AVOID like the plague. Seriously if a dress suits someone who fits the ‘tits on a stick’ category, it’s unlikely it will work for someone with a little extra around the middle or lots of junk in the trunk. Forewarned is forearmed as the old saying goes.
Buy the book today – you won’t regret it.

LISA