10 Biggest Body Shape Mistakes

Knowledge is power

Not knowing with 100% certainty what their horizontal body shape is.

Different stylists may have different categories and different names for them, but at the core of it, are five, hourglass, pear, apple, rectangle and busty.

The internet is a fabulous tool & you can work this out yourself.

If you pay a professional, they will not just tell you your shape, but how to dress for it and be at your side when you try pieces on, to demonstrate why something works (or doesn’t).

Vertical body shape is important too

Once you have worked out your horizontal body shape, it’s time to work out your vertical shape. Most stylists agree there are three options:

Long in body/short in legs

Short in body/long in legs

Balanced (similar body length to leg length)

The weakest link 

The measurements you use are crucial in working out your shape

You need to make sure you are measuring your bust, waist & hips correctly.

***Every second person I see measures their waist incorrectly.  

***Every fifth person I see is also getting at least one of the other two wrong.

You cannot measure your bust size if you are not wearing a supportive bra which represents what you would normally wear day to day. If you haven’t been fitted for a bra in the last two years, do it now.

Also check your tape measure back to a ruler every year or so.

Technical flattery isnt everything

Body shape analysis is about figuring out your shape & then dressing to flatter it. Typically, this involves balancing out your body. So if you are a pear, you try to use accessories, colours, trims & shapes to enhance your upper body & minimise your lower body. If you are a rectangle you emphasise upper & lower & minimise your waist area. I call this technical flattery.

A few hundred years ago, we would probably be trying to pad ourselves out. 

You need to decide how much you want to conform to technical flattery & how much you don't. Irrespective of the journey you decide to take, you have to know your starting point. That's called your body shape.   

It’s not a set & forget.

Horizontal body shapes vary over time.

Eg: Life changes like having a baby, surgery, changes in medication, weight loss will all cause those measurements to move around and your shape to change.

There is no best body shape

I see women skewing their measurements so they can be an hourglass.

I see women get depressed because they turn out not to be an hourglass.

I see young women wanting to be skinny rectangles.  

This is not a judgement process.

In fact, the hourglass shape is the easiest to get wrong because it is the easiest to unbalance, just by adding Balmain shoulder pads or palazzo pants. 

Trust me when I say that most people don’t care about your shape – they are too busy obsessing about their own.

And I certainly dont care whether you are an apple, a pear or a cream puff donut. In fact, I prefer donuts! 

It’s better to know your shape & dress it flatteringly than dress yourself like a shape which isnt yours. 

Look forward, not backward

I don’t care what your body shape was nor that you were an hourglass prom queen in your hey day. Assess who you are today and dress for it today. Forward counts, backwards confuses both you & me.

Size isn’t relevant

I don’t want nor need to know your size to dress you so you look amazing.

The only things I need to know are your colouring, your height, whether you are plus size and your body shape. Your actual size is irrelevant, but the ratio of your bust, waist & hips is vital.  Don’t waste time on what’s irrelevant.

The link between shape & size is that FIRST you identify shape, then you eliminate the styles that don’t suit that shape. THEN when you decide to pick some of what remains, you need to flip through each garment in that style to find your size.

Each body shape category is a range of numbers

Each body shape category is a range of numbers. Sometimes you will be close to the border of two categories.  

Firstly, no one will be right on the border because this is subjective & that fence line can never be precisely drawn, let alone identified. 

Secondly, I promise you that no one will be able to dress using the principles of both those categories AND look equally flattered. You will look better on one side of the fence than the other. Spend the time or the money to understand which one as this will make or break your look.

One tool in the toolkit

Style is about much more than understanding & dressing for your body shape. However if you get this wrong consistently, it’s unlikely that you will have personal style.  Body shape is one tool. 

You know the other tools - individuality, grooming, etiquette, hair, make up, skincare, accessories (these tend to work in with body shape), health, emotional, spiritual & mental well being etc. 

Go to it.