How To Dress for Your Body Shape and Body Type
Do you often wonder, How do I know what clothes suit me? You may have experienced that certain clothing styles look and feel better on you than others. Or you might know, more or less, what absolutely does not suit you.
But do you know what clothes suit you best and why? Ever experienced seeing some amazing clothes online that look so good on others but look like a complete a disaster on you?
You are not the only one.
Everybody is different, even those with the same height and weight. You still have different body shapes, different body types, and different body proportions. When you don’t know what to look out for, it can be frustrating to shop — you spend forever trying clothes on or have lots of returns to ship or bring back to the store.
- If you are someone who hates shopping, thinking it’s a waste of time, but you still want to look good, then consider hiring an image consultant who can also be your personal shopper. If you are interested in such a service, stop scrolling and contact me here.
- If you feel like you know more or less what works for you and what doesn’t but would like to bring your style to another level, then check out my 1-on-1 consultation here.
- If you love shopping for yourself, but just want to know a little bit more information on how to shop smarter, keep scrolling down.
So how can you shop smarter? How can you know what clothes to look for?
The first step is to figure out your body type and your body shape. Then, you will learn about how to dress for your body shape and type. Finally, you will learn what to look for and what to avoid.
Your Body Type and How To Dress for It
Let’s start with your body type. Not many people know this nor pay attention to it, yet knowing your body type would help you to know the best fabrics for you. It can be your aha moment. It will help you identify what structural designs to look for in your garments that will bring you harmony and make you feel most comfortable.
To define your body type, look at the contour or outline of your body. You can see whether you have predominately straight lines and angles, or you are more curvy and round. In the image, you see the three basic body types, and on top of these three types, there are also combination body types.
The Skeletal Type
The skeletal type has an overall a bony appearance: typically angular shoulders, bony upper chest, and visibly bony knees.
In general, if you have the skeletal body type, dressing your body in taut to medium-taut fabrics would best suit you.
The Moulded Type
The moulded type has an overall a fleshy appearance, curved lines and roundedness throughout the body.
If you have the moulded body type, you might want to look for medium-drape to fluid fabrics.
The Muscular Type
The muscular type has an overall a muscular appearance — a tautly curved body with firm skin, typically visible around shoulders, upper arms, thighs and calves.
If you have the muscular body type, your body would be most comfortable with medium-taut to medium-drape fabrics, and also spandex fabrics would be an excellent choice for you.
If you are unsure, you are very welcome to join a style (body signature) workshop or book a 1-on-1 consultation with me. You can get your body type and shape professionally analysed by me, and you will get all the advice to dress yourself with confidence. In a consultation, we not only look at your body type and shape, but also your body proportion, the way you move, the way you talk, and your personality and goal.
Your body Shape
I’m sure you all know something about body shape, e.g. apple shape, pear shape, etc. Possibly, you also know your body shape already.
Knowing your body shape will help you choose the right silhouette in clothing. It is not about categorising yourself into one group. Instead, the key is to understand how to dress in a way that is most suitable and flattering for you, because, when you do it right, any body shape can appear so beautiful.
Remember, no one is better than another person, but everybody is unique. It’s about dressing for who you are. It’s about harmony, comfort and appropriateness.
Here is an overview of the 6 most common body shapes. Sometimes your shape might look different from the front versus the back. Also, the name of the shapes can vary. For example, you often hear people refer to “apple” shape and “pear” shape. They would be corresponding to oval shape and triangle shape here. The geometric drawing in the picture should give you an idea.
If you don’t know your shape, you can check one of the links below.
- This explanation is short but to the point: Click here.
- This one gives a very detailed, step-by-step explanation with a video on how to measure: Click here.
- If you prefer reading with visuals, this one might be best: Click here.
I know there are lots of quizzes out there that aim to determine shape, but personally I didn’t find a quiz that’s very well-developed for this purpose. I tried them myself, and all lead to different or wrong answers.
The most natural way to dress yourself is to find the cutting and design of the clothes that match your body shape. Remember, knowing this is not to have limitations, but rather to be focused and look for the best. It can save lots of time, and you will be less frustrated and save money too.
Tips on How To Dress Your Body Type
The carousel images below meant to give you some guidance on how to dress your body shape. Do read the text about what to do or to avoid, and get some inspiration on styling or shopping.
Note the follow:
‑ Suggestions are based on what would naturally work the best for a particular bodyshape. It doesn’t mean you can only dress in one body shape. So it’s rather a guide to avoiding big mistakes than a rule.
‑ I’m suggesting on clothing silhouette and cut of the item, so the bodyshape of the person in the pictures does not matter. The tests in the post are the key, the pictures are some examples with those clothing characteristics I described in the text.
Rectangle Body Shape
Inverted Triangle Body Shape
Triangle Body Shape
Oval Body Shape
Hourglass Body Shape
Certain body shapes might be easier to buy clothes for than others. For example, the rectangle shape — it’s the easiest type to find clothes for, mostly because it’s the easiest one for manufacturers to mass produce. You have probably also noticed lots of models in this shape, as they can simply and easily fit most of the outfits, without a need for much tailoring.
Knowing what’s special about your body would really help you understand what clothing fits best. You would start to understand what’s the most natural for your body and how to choose the silhouette and fabrics that fit you the best. And, of course, you can always dress in what’s recommended for different body shapes if you wish to.
Not sure how to apply all of this for yourself?
No worries, I’m here to help.
Your image and style consist of many details that come together in harmony. If this is not your strength, consider hiring a professional image consultant who can help you boost your style. This will enable you to focus on doing what you do best and what matters most in your life. Just like some people are extremely good with numbers, others are extremely good in expressing through their words, and image consultants like me can help you express yourself through your image.
With a consultation, you can learn how to dress with confidence. You can also have me manage your wardrobe completely. Just imagine having an outfit catalogue that is only designed for you, with clothes for you. All the mix-and-match ideas that display in a way that you know exactly what to wear on different days.
Thank you so much for reading through this blog, hope you find above infomation useful. If you would like to know more about me and how I work, click here. It will be my pleasure to help you.
