NashVogue

The Pear shape is, in my opinion, the body shape of the average woman. As the saying goes, “Once on the lips, forever on the hips,” – you carry your weight at your hips. As with the apple, we want to think about balance. The human eye is draw to proportional shapes, so what we need to do is downplay your hips and draw attention to your torso.

Top it Off: Since your top half is slimmer than your bottom half, you can get away with looser fitting tops (although fitted tops look great on you as well). Blouses with a lot of detailing, such as ruffles, help draw the eye upwards and can also create the illusion of a fuller chest. Puffy sleeves and wide straps have the effect of broadening your slim shoulders and creating more symmetrical curves on top. Stay away from high necklines, but, instead, look for necklines that are scooped, vee’d, rounded or squared – as these help to broaden your torso.

Bottoms Up: When choosing bottoms, think of cuts that help to camouflage your curvy hips. In skirts, choose a-line or flared cuts that flow away from the body. In pants, look for flared or wide-leg. Cuts that are straight from hip to ankle are also extremely flattering on you. In jeans, choose a darker wash as this helps to hide curves.

Sample Look:

Off Limits: Avoid tight skirts, tapered legs, and high-waisted pants. All of these will only accentuate your widest area. Also, avoid bottoms with a lot of pockets or detailing on the backside. Again, this will only draw attention to an area that stands on its own. Avoid jackets that hit at the widest part of the hips. Flashy belts will only draw the eye down toward your hips.

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With the apple, balance is key. Since you carry most of your weight up top, we want to elongate your torso and create curves in the right places. This involves slimming the shoulders and drawing attention away from the tummy to show off your chest and enviably slim legs. If we focus on the positive attributes, it will help you feel more confident about your body shape.

Top it Off: One thing the apple has in common with the Rectangle and Hourglass is the gorgeous way in which wrap tops accentuate your figure. You can’t go wrong here. High-waisted, or empire, tops will help to camouflage some of your problem areas. Another great look for you is to pair a great cami with a jacket. Make sure the jacket hits you at the waist or mid-thigh (avoid jackets that hit at the fullest part of your thigh). Wearing the jacket open creates nice long lines – elongating your torso and drawing attention away from your shoulders.

Bottoms Up: When picking out bottoms, think long lean lines (even if they are just your legs!). You can wear shorter skirts (1-3 inches above the knee – NOT miniskirts). A-line skirts also look great on you. It creates more curves in your legs and helps to give you the appearance of an hourglass shape. Don’t be afraid to play with patterns or color in these type of skirts. The bold patterns and colors help draw attention downward – elongating the torso in the process. Try to find pants with pockets. These pockets with help to give your backside curves. Stick with pants that have a bit of a flare at the bottom.

Sample Look:

Off Limits: Absolutely stay away from skinny/tapered leg jeans and shoulder pads! The shoulder pads will only accentuate and draw attention to your “problem area”. Skinny jeans will give you what I call the “frosty cone” look. You have a lot of weight on top that tapers to a point at the bottom. The is probably the least flattering look for you.

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The hourglass figure is probably the most  recognizable body type out there. It is the coveted figure of Hollywood bombshells. The Hourglass is shapely, with a full chest, curvy hips, and a well defined waist. There is very little she can’t wear. However, as with all body types, there are things that make her look her best and a few things that don’t do her gorgeous figure justice.

Top It Off: Like her rectangle cousin, our main goal with the hourglass is to accentuate her waist. Wrap tops are again a great example. Basically, any top that is fitted at the waist (not tight) will make her curves even more defined.

Bottoms Up: The best bottoms for the hourglass are those that hug her curves. We’re not looking for tight jeans. In fact, once past the hips, we would prefer a straight or flared leg. Mid-waist pants are also great, as they elongate the legs, show off the waist, and create more definition to the curves in the hips and backside.

Sample Look:

Off Limits: One area that the hourglass does not need help with is her full chest. Stay away from shirts that are tight through this area. Also, avoid ruffles or frills around the bust, as this will throw off the proportion in your curves. Since the hourglass does have a slim waist with a large bust, fit it crucial. If your top has a defined bust line (generally with a seam of some sort) make sure it fits below the bust. There is nothing worse than an unsightly line across the chest from an ill-fitting top.

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The Rectangle – the coveted shape of today’s top models. With her lack of feminine curves, the Rectangle has the lack of hips and chest that characterize the boyish, athletic look seen walking down the runway.  If you are a rectangle, lucky for you! There is very little you can not wear. The primary focus in dressing a Rectangle is to create an illusion of feminine curves.

Up Top: When looking for tops, it is important to pick tops that will accentuate your waist. Since we are looking to create curves, a top that draws attention to the most curved part of your torso – your true waist (the area below your bust and above your belly button) – is ideal. A great example is the wrap top. Anything that draws attention to your waist and makes your bust look fuller will help to emphasize what you already have.

Down Below: Again, we want to help create curves. Straight leg pants with a bit of a flare at the end will give shape to your legs. Well placed pockets on the backside can help give your bottom a fuller appearance. There are not too many skirts your can’t wear. Pencil, as well as a-line, skirts will help give shape to and show off your gorgeous legs.

Sample Look:

Taboo: There is not much you can’t wear. The main thing to stay away from anything that makes you appear long and lean. This includes vertical stripes and patterns which elongate the torso; short, cropped jackets; loose or baggy clothing that hides your figure; and high-waisted, straight pants or skirts as these will just lengthen your already long frame.

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Before delving too deeply into the 4 different body types, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about what makes the body types different. The main difference between the types is weight – where you carry your weight and where you gain weight.

Body Type #1: The Rectangle (Also known as Banana or Straight)

If you are a rectangle, your weight distributes pretty evenly across your frame.  If you do gain weight, this new weight also distributes evenly across your frame. This causes a more masculine shape, with few feminine curves. The Rectangle body type is most predominately found in today’s models.

Body Type #2: The Hourglass

The hourglass is probably the most well-known figure type. Weight is distributed relatively evenly across shapely hips, shoulders, and a slender waist. The bust tends to be a bit above average and the waist is well-defined. Add these attributes to shapely hips and bottom and the outcome are the curves of a bombshell.

Body Type #3: The Apple (Also the Downward Triangle)

The apple is fuller on top than on the bottom. Your weight is concentrated in your broad shoulders, full chest, and fuller waist. Your waist is undefined, narrowing into shapely legs and a flat bottom. If you gain weight, it is in your mid-section.

Body Type #4: The Pear (Also Spoon, Bell, or Upward Triangle)

The pear is larger on bottom than it is on top. This seems to be the most common shape for women in my experience. The pear has fuller hips, a curvy bottom, a defined waist, an average or below average bust, and narrow shoulders. Your weight gain goes straight to your hips and backside.

The best way to figure out your own body type is to look in a mirror. Consider the qualities listed above and try to determine where you fit. If you can’t determine your body type by simply considering the qualities, think of the image presented by each body type. Which picture are you?

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Hi there! Welcome to the first post of NashVogue – a blog designed to help the everyday woman find her outer fashionista. Every woman is beautiful on the inside. It’s that inner beauty that counts. However, I believe it is sometimes hard for that beautiful inner woman to shine through, when she feels uncomfortable about her outer self.I don’t want to promote the negative self image that comes with being so focused on outer appearances, but help every woman more easily show her gorgeous inner colors by eliminating the self-conscious barrier of clothing. Bottom line: When a woman feels good on the outside, it is easier to be more confident on the inside.

The world of fashion is ever changing and can be an intimidating world. Many women I know, when asked, would say they want to be more fashionable or feel uncomfortable about the fashions one can see on the models. In my opinion, most runway fashions aren’t made for the everyday woman. They are too elaborate and impractical to be worn by the girl next door, the soccer mom, or hip granny down the street. Runway fashions are a showcase of a designer’s imagination. They are, I feel, a launching point for the rest of us to base our fashion choices for the season. One can easily glean the season’s hot colors, fabric styles, and basic cuts from the models on the runway. We can than take those ideas and make affordable and wise fashion choices that help us feel fashionable without the hundred, or even thousand, dollar price tags and the impracticality of the original design.

There is another reason the world of fashion can be so intimidating. Body type. Not every woman is the same. Most high fashion is not designed for every woman. Models have pretty much the same body type. They are hired to look a certain way – for the clothes to fit a certain way. Therefore, just because it looks good on the models does not mean it will look good on you. Again, we must use high fashion as a launching point. Take their idea and make it your own. I’ll help.

Over the next few days, I will go through the different body types. I will answer several questions:

* “What are they?”
* “How do I know what body type I am?” (You may be surprised!)
* “How do I dress my body type?”

Hopefully, just going through these basics will help you become more confident in being the fashionista you know you are.

Technorati Tags: Body Type, clothing, Fashion, Nashville, Runway, woman