Lots to Love: Dressing for your body-type

A huge component of dressing well is knowing what looks good on you. And I'm not talking about colors here. I'm talking about styles. This is something that I have had to learn over the years as my fashion-sense has grown and matured.
Now, there are some fortunate women who look great in anything they put on. They have a body type that lends itself to any outfit. Such are the women we sigh over and wish we resembled. But if God created us and created our particular body-type, then I know that He wants us to do our best to dress that body-type in the clothes that suit it. I myself am what I've termed a "Robust Hourglass." I have a waist and hips and they are defined enough, but certainly not what you'd call willow-y. :)

So let's pretend to dress up a young woman with ample curves who could even possibly stand to lose some weight. (I am one of them, so this is a lesson from my personal experience. :)

Take Example A:

She is standing kinda funny anyway, but these skinny-jeans definitely accentuate the fact that Model A is a plump person. Plus, wide-stripes running across her middle aren't that flattering. She's going for the slim look of wearing dark-bottoms, but she forgot to take into account the style of pants she ought to wear. If you have toothpick legs, by all means, wear straight-leg jeans but if you've got some to spare, try taking notes from Example B:

Haha! Look--They're standing the same way too--bonus points! {Is that the same model? Nah..don't think so.}This model, like Model A is wearing horizontal stripes. But Model B did something neat and broke up the stripes with another garment, thus directing the eyes away from the side-to-side view. I love the combination of patterns and the colors. Model B chose a really good pair of jeans for her build too. Bell-bottom, boot-cut, and flare jeans are all the best choices for a robust hour-glass figure or a pear-shape because they balance the effect of the hips by flaring out at the bottoms themselves, resulting a slimmer, more proportionate look.

Now that we've covered jeans/slacks, let's move on to skirts and dresses! Quite frankly this...

...is just not real flattering. 

It's a sheath dress and sheath dresses are generally formatted for tall, slim girls. Not the hippies. (Pun intended. ;)

I don't like short dresses anyway, but especially not on a heftier frame. I mean, honestly. It just kinda points out all the places you aren't looking your best. (And goodness--I know I keep using the same model, but she's just got every example I'm looking for, so sorry. :P) Instead, if you've got curves you ought to stick to what actually looks good on your type:

A pretty, classy skirt and blouse with a belt. Definitely flattering.

 I mean, she looks beautiful in this dress!

Maxi dresses, peasant gowns, princess dresses, Greek-inspired gowns, like the one above, longer shirt-dresses...these are made for women with our body types! Stop trying to squeeze into the teeny-tiny things that only make you feel like a sausage in a casing, and start buying things that suit your figure! I promise you that wearing something that actually fits in the right places will automatically make you feel more confident and pretty.

There are so many beautiful pieces of clothing that you can wear and that will actually be flattering...not fattening. Here are just some of my favorites I've pinned onto my Fabulous Wearables Pinterest Board. :) Pairing items of clothing like a blouse with a sweater or belt is another trick to break up the figure and draw attention away from your "problem" areas like a not-so-thin waist or plumpish arms. ;)

I absolutely love the style of this gown, though I'd personally choose a brighter color!

So, dear girls, let's all try to learn our body type and think before we wear something that just wasn't made the way we were. Each and every style of body is a beautiful creation of God and it's a responsibility of ours to present ourselves beautifully each day. Whether you were blessed to be able to wear every single style or whether you're better off choosing carefully, pick things that fit you and your type--not that the world says you ought to wear.