Body shapes - which one?

In my last post I mentioned the desirable "S" shape in women and that few really have the so called perfect shape.  Many of us dress in a way to create an illusion and show ourselves off to good effect.  Does this matter - well to many it is a matter of self esteem, vanity, love of clothes, getting a job, getting a partner, being credible, being taken seriously…..whatever is the underlying motive you can't get away from the fact that the way we look and dress sends a message to others - so what are we trying to convey?….and have we achieved in sending this message?

It has been an interesting week in politics. I noticed that Cameron, Osbourne and Gove have all been on diets - maybe this was for health reasons but more probably down to to image too. When you have to deliver a special presentation you need to feel right, feel confident, dress appropriately.  Before I retired I would often have to give presentations and understood that I would come under scrutiny so the preparation for these events was important.


So getting back to our shapes…….

Apple,  Pear,     Hourglass,    Rectangle,    Inverted Triangle,    Diamond

If you are

an "apple" you tend to have a larger waist compared to your hip and bust measurement

a "pear" usually have bust and waist measurements which are very similar - however the hip measurement  will be much higher.  Some people describe the snap as a "spoon"

an "hourglass" is a desirable shape and more closely aligned with the S effect. Here the bust and hips are roughly the same and the waist is relatively small in contrast and well defined.  It is often associated with voluptuous women like Sofia Vergara but it doesn't always follow.  In the mirror look at your shoulder width and hips do they look similar?  Do you have a definite waist.

a "rectangle"is far more common these days - bust, waist and hips have similar measurements.  Sometimes described as a trunk. 

an "inverted triangle" - shoulder width and bust are wide graduating down to quite small waist and hips

a "diamond" - here we had narrow shoulders and hips and the waist is wider in relative terms. Often confused with an apple - however the apple is much more rounded a shape whereas the diamond has a sharper angular line.

As I have mentioned previously there are many more descriptions of shape but I tend to stick with these.  Once you have identified which one more closely fits your shape you can then think about your choice of clothes, what is in your wardrobe and what will stay and which will go!!

We have all made the mistake of buying whats in fashion or just buying something because you like it…only to find that sadly it does absolutely nothing for you.  If you understand your body more you will make less mistakes and start to feel confident about your selection.

So next time we will take into consideration other factors which also play a part in looking good such as height, legs, arms.  We will look at enhancing the good points and disguising the less good!  So part of the preparation is working on this bit.

Talk soon……..