A Complete Dressing Guide for Your Body Type
Being at ease in your own skin is vital for strutting around with confidence and flair. To do so, you’ll need to pick clothing that accentuate your greatest characteristics. When you don’t know your body type, this can be difficult.
Have you ever struggled to understand and dress for your body shape? When you’re gazing through the racks of clothes in a department store, it’s easy to get caught up in the gorgeous colors and eye-catching designs. You may be drawn to an item of clothing because of its beauty, but when you try it on, you may discover that it does not fit or look as good as you had hoped. Then frustration sets in, and you wonder, “Why can’t I find the right clothes to fit me?”
There are numerous styles of clothing available, including fitted pants, ornamented jackets, shapeless t-shirts, boyfriend jeans, and flared dresses. Not every piece of clothing will look well on every body type.The key is to have a thorough awareness of your body type in order to find the ideal cuts and styles for you. It’s easy to focus on “problem areas,” but while determining your body form, try to evaluate your entire body.
The five most common body types:
Body types are generally categorized into 5 different types. These classifications can also give you some direction as to how to plan your wardrobe to make dressing up more enjoyable and rewarding.
- Apple (aka oval or round)
- Pear (aka triangle)
- Athletic (aka inverted triangle)
- Rectangle (aka straight or banana)
- Hourglass
Here is the complete dressing guide for the above mentioned body types:
1. Apple Body Shape
When you have a heavier upper body in relation to your lower body, you will have an apple-shaped (or oval-shaped) form. People with this body shape typically have broad shoulders and a larger bust line, which is why the weight appears to concentrate around the belly.
This is a tough body shape to buy for at first because the instinct is to buy things bigger to compensate for the wider top half. A focus on proportional dressing will help with this, as we will see later.
Dressing Tips For Apple Body Shape?
Because the majority of the weight and concentration is above the hips, the midriff seems heavier than the rest of the body, which has a narrow waistline. So the aim here is to draw attention away from that aspect of your body and focus on your strengths. Look for fabrics that don’t cling but sit near to your body, such as soft cotton, silk, linen, tweed or gabardine. Avoid shapes that imitate your figure, such as scoop necklines, by wearing an A-line cut dress or an empire waistline. Avoid belts that bring attention to your waist and instead emphasize your legs with a pair of heels or a short skirt.
Wrap dresses, boyfriend button-ups, flowy tunics and any other dresses that either define or take attention away from the waist are a great fit.
Go for: A-line silhouettes, flowy tunics, relaxed boyfriend button-ups, asymmetric tops and wrap dresses!
Best Clothes For Apple Body Shape!
You should wear A-line or Empire cuts. Wear printed dresses or patterned jackets with a layer to draw attention away from your face. Looks in monochrome, dark colors, full or 3/4th sleeve dresses, and flowy tops will help. To achieve balance, you might also wear flared bottoms, palazzos, and so forth. Also, because your shoulders are broad and you may already have a larger bustline, wear the appropriate bra.
Avoid wearing figure-hugging dresses or shirts with slim jeans; this will draw attention to it. To establish a balance, try replacing the waist belt with an upper waist belt. Waistband trousers and skirts with elastic bands flatter this figure.
2. Pear Body Shape
The pear body shape is all in the lower part of your body. Your butt and thighs are visually bigger than your upper body. So, make some room for that base. To produce a slimmer overall shape, stick to a single color palette. Look for big skirt dresses that will assist balance out your proportions if you want to draw attention away from your hips.
Dressing Tips For Pear Body Shape?
If you design this body type appropriately, you can create the illusion of an hourglass form. Your shoulders are little and your hips are large. All you have to do is find a happy medium. Wear clothing that highlight your lower body; either option works great.
Wear a striking top or dress with an embroidered neckline to bring attention to your upper body. If you’re going for a busy top, go for bottoms that are tight at the waist and in a darker shade, such as navy or black, for color contrast.
Best Clothes For Pear Shaped Body
Wide-legged trousers, A-line skirts, or dresses look excellent with patterned or ruffled blouses that define the upper body. Skinny jeans with loose shirts serve to create the illusion of an hourglass figure. Crop tops, sweetheart, V or deep-V, padded jackets and tops, scoop or boat necks will help to balance out your bottom.
A-line and maxi dresses look great on women with this body shape, especially with hemlines that fall just below the knee.
Avoid skin-fitting tops, halter necklines, and loose bottoms unless you prefer the look.
3. Athletic or inverted triangle Body Shape
The athletic or inverted triangle is the most athletic-looking body type. Your shoulders are much broader than your hips. So, your arms and shoulders need to be enhanced as much as possible. Dressing for this type is all about balancing out your broad shoulders by drawing attention to your lower half.
Dressing Tips For An Inverted Triangle Body Shape?
Dress styles with ruffles or pleats below the hips will draw attention and volume to your hips and legs. This not only takes attention away from the upper body but also helps to define the waistline. In this case, you can also go with padded jackets, horizontal stripes, and light colors on the upper part of the body
You must remember to provide definition to your hips and hence concentrate on establishing equilibrium. Straight-cut jeans and skirts with a natural inverted V-look are all appropriate for your figure.
Best Clothes For Inverted Triangle Body Type
Because your hips are significantly smaller than your shoulders, pencil-cut skirts, skinny jeans, and so on will look terrific with any top. However, keep in mind that your upper body does not require much layering or definition. V-neck lines are flattering and provide the appearance of narrow shoulders, so this should be your go-to neckline.
Allow any patterns, ruffles, layers, and so on to be part of your lower body, and keep your upper body simple. You will accomplish more than good as long as you remember this.
A dress (or top) with the right neckline can also work wonders for you. You should avoid wide, square necklines and off-the-shoulder styles.
4. Rectangle Body Shape
If your waist measurement is not significantly different from your bust or hip measurement, you have a rectangle or square body shape! From the shoulders to the hips, the rectangle-shaped physique is usually perfectly balanced. So your silhouette doesn’t have a lot of definition, and it’s very simple. This is where you want to define that waist and create an illusion that you’ve got a waist.
Dressing Tips For A Rectangle Body Shape?
With the rectangle body shape, you wear the same size in tops and bottoms. The rectangle body type will benefit from creating the illusion of a waist. Belts around the waist, mid-waisted pants, and belted coats are all excellent choices.
If you opt to concentrate on the top part of your body, attract attention to your arms and shoulders while emphasizing your waist. Curvy rectangles look wonderful with crew, cowl, or V-neck tops, whereas petite busted rectangles might benefit from embellished necklines or striking collars.
Best Clothes For Rectangle Shaped Body
Select A-line skirts with ruffled or layered tops. Dresses with defined waists and necklines that add muscle to the upper torso. You prefer sleeveless, strapless, and sweetheart necklines. Blazers, long jackets, and capes lend much-needed drama to this look.
Avoid vertical silhouettes, such as a straight jacket with straight trousers, which will offer you little definition.
5. Hourglass Body Shape
An hourglass figure features uniformly proportionate shoulders and waistline with a slim stomach.
This body type is the most balanced, with a proportionate upper and lower body and a well-defined waistline. So, when shopping for dresses, look for ones that will accomplish just that for you. It’s a body to die for, so show it off properly.
Dressing Tips For An Hourglass Body Shape?
If you have an hourglass figure, embrace your curves! Avoid oversized garments and ruffles around your shoulders and bust. High waisted pants and pencil skirts are fantastic wardrobe staples. Consider gowns that cling to your body and create a dynamic silhouette – the mermaid type dress is ideal for the hourglass figure!
Wrap dresses, jumpsuits, sheaths and fit-and-flare styles with cinched waists are great for this naturally balanced body structure.
Best Clothes For Hourglass Body Shape
Your greatest fit will be in dresses that constrict at the waist. V or plunge V necklines, as well as sweetheart necklines, allow you to show off your upper body. To draw attention to your waist, wear a belt at your natural waistline or below the belly button – either way, it looks wonderful. A-line dresses or similar cuts work on the lower half of the body, and body-hugging dresses are obviously your thing.
Avoid shapeless or baggy garments that will overpower your hourglass figure and can even make you look bulky.