The Closet Coach

Hourglass. Pear. Apple.

You’ve heard these terms before, right? They’re the slightly awkward, and not always flattering, ways we try to describe a woman’s body shape.

Perhaps more accurately, they are an attempt to describe a set of body proportions: the relationship of widths across various points in the body.

Fruit metaphors aside, what’s the point of knowing this information?

It’s to properly dress your body.

And by “properly,” I mean in a way that fits and flatters you.

This is not about looking thinner. Not really. It’s about looking balanced. (Skinny girls can have hips wider than their shoulders, too.)

But before you can read any article or book or blog post about dressing for the “x” body shape, you first need to know what yours is. It starts with a measuring tape.

How to figure out your body shape

Get out that measuring tape, and take and fill in these measurements: bust, waist, hips and shoulders.

(If you need help with this, just Google “how to measure ____” and look for any one of a number of videos demonstrating how to.)

Then translate your measurements into body shape. Here are the most commonly used shapes and their formulas:

Triangle: You’re wider on top than you are below; that is, your shoulder measurement is more than 5 percent larger than your hip measurement. Also called the apple shape.

Pear: Or dewdrop, or inverted triangle—this is the opposite of the triangle, so the proportions are flipped: your hips are more than 5 percent larger than your shoulders.

Rectangle: Aka, the flute. Your shoulder and hips are the same or nearly so, but your waist isn’t much smaller; it’s 25% less at the most.

Hourglass: This one’s easy—your shoulders and hips are the same or very close, and your waist is more than 25% narrower, usually about 10 inches smaller.

Not as tricky as you thought, I hope?

Now when I talk about how to buy and dress the x shape (such as this guide on buying blazers for the pear shape), you’ll know which advice is best for you.

Your turn

• Did you have the body shape you thought you did?
• Which body shape metaphors do you prefer (triangle or apple, inverted triangle or pear, etc.)?
• Or should we come up with less silly names entirely?

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Picture Perfect T-shirts by closetcoach

If you’re not sure which of these options work best for you? Try them all on! Let your mirror be your guide.

Get a scoop-neck T and a crew neck T, ideally both in the same fabric and color, and try them on. Your eye will tell you which one works best.

Still not sure? Ask a friend. (The one who’s honest, but gentle!)

What to buy

French Connection striped t shirt
$50 - usa.frenchconnection.com

All Saints boyfriend t shirt
$50 - allsaints.com

Slubby triped t shirt
$40 - topshop.com

J Crew boatneck tee
$20 - jcrew.com

Gap dolman sleeve jersey tee
$20 - gap.com

What’s the Scoopneck top
$13 - modcloth.com

Essential v-neck tee
$9.99 - tillys.com

 

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Thanks for reading. Did you like this post? Please leave a comment or share it with someone else; just use the handy sharing widget below.

(Want to get more shopping tips and fun insider stuff? Join The Style List. It’s like a secret club in your email inbox! And when you join, you’ll get my free email series, 7 Days to Better Shopping. It’s my gift to you!)

A reader writes to ask where she can find a good, all-purpose black blazer. You know the kind: you can wear it with jeans, to work, or on a date night.

My reader has a silhouette with narrow shoulders, so she especially needs a blazer that will balance out the widest part of her body, through the hips.

Blazer silhouettes that flatter the pear shape

So let’s start with that garment shape. First we want to add definition to the shoulders. The easiest way is with shoulder pads. Really. (Don’t worry, we’re not going to get all Alexis Carrington here–we’re talking light padding.)

And make sure the jacket fits here perfectly. The end of the shoulder seam should align with the end of your shoulder bone. In fact, a wardrobe staple like this one is worth tailoring to fit if needed.

Draw the eye upward with detailing around the collar. Or try a statement necklace or sassy scarf!

The jacket should also taper in at the waist, to emphasize your narrowest area and further create an hourglass shape balancing top and bottom. A boxy cut will just make you look bigger.

And watch out for pockets on the hips; square ones can add bulk while angled ones can be more flattering.

Finally, make sure the length is right: you don’t want the bottom of the jacket to end at the widest part of your body, which is most likely your bottom or your thighs. Look for one of two lengths: at or just above your hipbones (best if you are petite), or fingertip length.

7 black blazers for the pear shape

Here are 7 options for an all-purpose black blazer, in price points from Target to Platinum Card.

• Target Mossimo Women’s Fitted Blazer. A good, basic blazer in cotton. At this price, it’s good as a starter item or a backup. (Target.com, $30)
• LOFT Cetta Jacket. A better quality item, with peplum gathering in the back hem for a little more definition in the waist. (LOFT, $89.50, on sale for $59.99)
• The Limited Seam Pocket Jacket. In a polyester blend, this jacket should drape nicely and the front pockets are tucked into a seam. (The Limited, $138)
• Alice + Olivia Structured Leather Panel Blazer. I love the leather detailing and the unusual hemline. This is not your mama’s black blazer. (Alice + Olivia at Neiman Marcus Last Call, $173, marked down from $495)
• Ann Taylor Tropical Wool Stand Collar Jacket. Here’s a sleek equestrian-inspired silhouette with flattering seaming and a stand collar in wool. (Ann Taylor, $228)
• Ralph Lauren Devinne Wool Jacket. I like the subtle pinstriping in this jacket; it’s as versatile as a solid black blazer but with a little more visual interest. With a 30” hem length, this is best for taller women. (Ralph Lauren, $270)
• Reiss Ameris Jacket. This military-inspired jacket draws the eye upward with epaulets at the shoulder. It does have hip pockets, so you’ll want to try it on to see if it works on your body. (Reiss, $325, on sale for $162)

[Disclosure: Some links are affiliate links.]

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Thanks for reading. Did you like this post? Please leave a comment or share it with someone else; just use the handy sharing widget below.

(Want to get more shopping tips and fun insider stuff? Join The Style List. It’s like a secret club in your email inbox! And when you join, you’ll get my free email series, 7 Days to Better Shopping. It’s my gift to you!)

Your body is a set of shapes that form a unique silhouette

I have something to tell you that you probably won’t believe. In fact, I know you won’t believe it. Because (unless you are Heidi Klum), you don’t believe it.

This is what I want to tell you: There is nothing wrong with your body.

You don’t believe it, do you? I can practically hear you rolling your eyes. You’re already dialing up the mental list you carry around with you of your faults and flaws, the myriad ways you don’t live up to your perceived idea of perfection. Your hips are too (wide/narrow). Your hair is too (curly/straight). Your bust is too (big/small). You need to lose (5/15/25) pounds.

If you could only wave your magic wand and make these changes, then your body would be perfect and then you would be beautiful and then your clothes would look good on you.

Perfect doesn’t exist (and it’s not required anyway)

My (possibly) radical message is this: there is nothing wrong with your body as it is. You don’t need a perfect body to look good in clothes. You only need to select clothes that flatter the body that you have.

It almost sounds too simple, doesn’t it? But your body is nothing more than a series of shapes–think how obvious it is to say that we come “in all shapes and sizes.” Dressing to flatter your body means selecting clothes that work with your particular silhouette and your particular proportions, whatever they may be.

You’re not trying to cover up your shape or change your shape; your goal is to work in harmony with it.

Your silhouette, yourself

Think of it this way: when you go to choose makeup, you look for shades that work best with your skin tone or eye color, right? If you have green eyes, you choose flattering and complementary colors. You don’t spend a lot of time wishing your eyes were blue or brown or gray.

So it is with clothing. If you have wide shoulders, you can wish they were narrower and complain about having such a flaw–or you can choose tops that look better on wide shoulders.

The first step is to take a step back. Be clear-eyed and honest with yourself. Don’t judge. It doesn’t matter whether you could lose weight, or you’ve always wished you had longer legs, or you have Aunt Betty’s hips. You are who you are right now, the way you are right now, and it’s OK.

So what is that shape? Do you have a long torso or short? Wider on top or wider on the bottom? Tall? Petite? Big busted or small chested? Marilyn curvaceous or Twiggy narrow? Note the unique aspects of your figure; these are the building blocks of your silhouette that will guide the clothing choices you make. [This book will help you get started.]

(Slipping into the negative anyway? Pause for a moment and note all of your best features. What nice things would your best friend say about you?]

I know it’s not easy

It’s amazing how difficult this can be. I won’t pretend it’s easy. I won’t pretend I’m successful at it all the time, myself.

I have slender legs, but I focus on the little broken veins that have come with age. I am small around the torso, but I wish I had a bigger bust. I have spent far too much time obsessing over the soft belly that is a proven badge of motherhood.

So I look for shorts that are a little longer to cover the imperfections, yet also show off my calves. I look for detailing in my tops, but take pride in wearing belts to highlight where I’m narrowest. And I’m perfectly happy in the realization that I will not be sporting a bikini at the beach.

Look, I’m not a self-help guru. I can’t change your body image in a single post. (And if you’re really, truly overweight, then your health is far more important than what you look like, and your guidance should come from health professionals, not style bloggers.)

But I can want for you what I want for myself: to honor the body we have, to flatter it with appropriate clothing, and enjoy who we are, where we are now in all our beautiful imperfection.

[Photo credit: Misteraitch, Flickr Creative Commons]