Your Personal Styling Advice: How to Fit Clothes to Your Body Shape by: Louise Goldsmith (Guest Post)

Body types of all sizes and shapes should be celebrated. To feel as confident as possible, dressing according to one's own individual body type is absolutely essential.

Most people are probably familiar with their own body shape. If not, or if they want to re-assess yourself, you should look into a full-length mirror. Body types are normally associated in to these groups.

1.     Hourglass figures have wide hips and large busts.

2.     Round figures are known for narrow hips and wide torsos.

3.     Pear-shaped figures normally are linked to women with sport wide bottoms and thighs with generally thin rib cages.

4.     Rectangular figures are streamlined and have equally wide proportions on top and bottom.

5.     Diamond-shaped have large thighs and narrow shoulders.

After making an assessment about their own body shape, the next step one should take is deciding which part of their body they'd like to accentuate first. A woman's bust is one of the most popular parts of the body to draw attention to, since a larger bust makes the waist, shoulders and hips appear naturally smaller. In this case, women with hourglass figures have many advantages. They can show off their curves with tightly fitted pants and tops.

Pear-shaped body types should accentuate the top of their body with tightly-fitted tops. Tight shirts, tops and blouses will draw attention away from the hips. If the woman has a larger tummy, she should make sure to buy something correctly sized. Clothing meant to be tight will still fit pleasantly snugly when purchased in the right size. Pear-shaped women should avoid skinny jeans. These will draw attention to the hips, especially when they're worn and dark washed, as most skinny jeans are.

Leggings should also be avoided, and only be worn underneath a dress or tunic top that is fitted according to a smaller chest. Boot-leg cut jeans and trousers provide the same trendy tightness over the calf area while staying normally fitted around the stomach and hips.

Diamond-shaped figures should dress with the goal of elongating the torso. Women will this figure need to avoid wide belts and high-waisted trousers. Instead, low-cut trousers and jeans are a better fit. Shirts and blouses should be long enough to dip below the waistband or trousers or skirts. This will make the figure appear longer and slimmer.

Loose fabrics and baggy clothing must be worn with caution. In general, baggy skirts look universally flattering on all body types. Other loose clothing needs to meet strict guidelines before being worn. It needs to be used to take attention away from areas of a figure that are trying to be downplayed.

Square and rectangle shaped figures need to stay away from baggy trousers and tops. Instead, women with these figures need to create the illusion of shape. This can be done with tops and bottoms that are snug around the stomach. Blouses and shirts with three-quarter or capped sleeves add interest to the top part of the figure.

Leg length varies for every figure. Women who want to make their short or stout legs appear longer should show as much skin as they're comfortable with. This means matching a short skirt with low-ankled footwear. Heels and stilettos were made specifically for women desiring longer legs. Mid-calf boots may appear awkward, and knee-high boots will only draw attention to the shortness of each leg.

Colours are another important part of dressing according to one's figure. Colour should be used to open or close parts of a silouette. Dark shades and blacks are always slimming, while whites and light tones will draw more visual attention to any possible problem areas.

Acid wash jeans and lightly shaded trousers should be shunned by diamond-shaped, pear-shaped and rectangle-shaped women. Women with larger breasts or stomachs may want to avoid white blouses if they want to minimize the appearance of their torso.

Body types should never be hidden. Instead, they can be exalted in the proper clothing choices.

 ~~~~~

Author Bio

Louise Goldsmith works as a support personal stylist in London. Working under celebrity stylist Suzanne Bernie she has gain lots of knowledge and experience in the Fashion industry which she uses in her writing. 

I hope you enjoyed this post.

Thanks for reading and thank you again Emily,

~~

If you are interested in being a guest blogger on D.G.S.Beauty, all you need to do is email me at [email protected]