WHAT'S YOUR BODY SHAPE

Match Your Shape
By Bradley Bayou
Original Content | July 14, 2010

Measure Yourself

To dress your body right, you have to know your body. Don't just guess. (Believe me, mirrors can be deceiving!) So, grab a measuring tape and a friend to help you, because it's very difficult to measure some parts of yourself and get it right. The more accurate you are now, the better you'll look later.

Your Shoulders: This is the hardest measurement to do by yourself, so you really should ask someone to help. Place the measuring tape at the tip of one shoulder and wrap it all the way around you like a shawl until it meets back at the same shoulder. The tape should skim the top of your shoulders so closely, it almost slips off. This is the widest circumference of your shoulders.

Your Bust: Stand up straight and wrap the measuring tape around your back and across the fullest part of your breasts, usually the middle of them. Pull the measuring tape as taut as you can without changing the shape of your breasts. If things start to squish, you've gone too far.

Your Waist: Wrap the measuring tape around your torso, at the smallest part of your natural waist. It should wrap flat around your back without buckling and meet just above your belly button.

Your Hips: Hold the measuring tape at one hip, below your hip bone, at the fullest part of your hip. Then, keeping the tape flat, wrap it around the largest part of your butt (no cheating!), your other hip, and bring it back to the meeting point.

Now that you've measured yourself (shoulders, bust, waist and hips), use those numbers to help determine your silhouette shape.

Inverted Triangle

Your shoulders or bust are larger than your hips.

Just to be sure, check the numbers:

Your shoulder or bust measurements are more than 5 percent bigger than your hip measurement. For example, if your shoulders measure 36 inches, your hips will be 34 1/4 inches or smaller.

Rectangle

Your shoulders, bust and hips are around the same size, with no defined waistline.

Just to be sure, check the numbers:

Your shoulder, bust and hip measurements are within 5 percent of each other. Your waist is less than 25 percent smaller than your shoulder or bust measurements. For example, if your shoulders measure 36 inches, your waist will be 27 inches or more.

Triangle

Your hips are wider than your shoulders.

Just to be sure, check the numbers:

Your hip measurement is more than 5 percent bigger than your shoulder or bust measurements. For example, if your shoulders measure 36 inches, your hips are 37 3/4 inches or larger

Hourglass

Your shoulders and hips are around the same size, with a very defined waistline.

Just to be sure, check the numbers:

Your shoulder and hip measurements are within 5 percent of each other.

Your waist is at least 25 percent smaller than your shoulder, hip and bust measurements. For example, if your shoulders and hips measure 36 inches, your waist is 27 inches or smaller.

Now that you know your body shape, find:
Dresses that flatter your figure
Pants that fit perfectly
Tops that look great on your shape

MY THOUGHTS

it'll be nice to have that hourglass figure. but since some of us are not that lucky, being more aware of our body shape can help us choose clothes that would flatter.