Help determining Bodyshape please :) - YouLookFab Forum

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Help determining Bodyshape please :)

epiphany

Member

Hi guys, I really have a difficult time finding clothes that are flattering; and of course everything I seem to love on the rack looks horrible on me Especially anything belted at the waist; that just seems to look really bad to me since my body looks so weird.
Looked at various sites & I have to admit I am at a complete loss as to what my bodyshape is. I thought I may be an 8? I do have an hourglassy type shape, but I have broad shoulders, and I can't really say I have much of a waist.. my hips are rather high as you can see in the following pictures.

http://img841.imageshack.us/i/bodyshape1.png/
and one that shows what I mean by high hips and not really a true waist:
http://img211.imageshack.us/i/torso1.png/

Any insight and help would be so appreciated! I really dreaded taking these pictures in a bikini, and I'm honestly embarrassed to be posting them; but I don't really have anything tight clothes that would work. Well on the plus side, at least ooking at the photos is motivating me to get back into shape!

Body Type

16 replies

Latest reply was from CocoLion

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

There's nothing to be embarrassed about at all- you have a lovely figure. You look like a inverted triangle with a defined waist or an hourglass with defined shoulders to me.

Joy

Veteran

You have a lovely figure and many would kill for. I'd say you are an inverted triangle with hourglass tendancies (defined waist) and suspect your biggest fashion challenge is balancing the width of your shoulders in the lower part of your outfits. The wide legged pants, bell bottoms and A-line skirts should be great for lucky you.

epiphany

Member

Wow thank you so much for some quick replies. I re-read my post and realized how horrible my grammar was, wow I'm so sorry!
I actually love my broad shoulders I never would have thought that I fell into the inverted triangle category in a million years, especially since I always thought my hips were large; now I have more reading up to do!
Luckily I've always worn Bootcut or Flared Pants, so at least I did one thing right so far! Dresses and shirts are the hardest things for me to find. To this day I haven't found a dress that looks good on me I have a rather large ribcage so things that may fit me on the top are way too big looking on the bottom,(babydoll type dresses look really bad on me) and I do not like wearing tight dresses since I really don't like the way my torso looks. Is there anyway to make my torso look longer? I really do not like the way my hips seem to start just below my ribcage.
Also, for inverted triangles it suggests "add volume and width around your hips and down" I think my hips are already large, would I just skip that, or am I really not 'seeing' myself properly?
I sincerely apologize again for all the questions, I have body dysmorphia so I don't really trust my eyes anymore. Again, thank you all so much, this is such an amazing community

rute

Veteran

you have a lovely shaped I see no big hips and a defined waist! I bet everything can look perfect on you!
You hips are in fact narrow. You seem an inverted triangle to me and that is great! You have a strong shoulder line, like all models!

Kate

Veteran

You look great!

I would say you're more hourglass with IT tendencies than the other way around. You do have a defined waist, and so you should show that off (with dresses, fitted tops, and belting at the waist), and I think you can showcase your strong shoulders (with skinny pants, pencil skirts, etc) rather than trying to compensate for them with more voluminous bottoms. I'm an hourglass with IT tendencies too, so I tend to follow hourglass guidelines and just stay away from tops that emphasize my shoulders too much (cap sleeves, ruffle sleeves, and some halter tops).

Laura

(website)

Veteran

You do have a lovely figure! I wonder if you've ever measured your shoulder circumference vs. your hip circumference? Eyeballing it, it looks like your shoulders are wider than your hips, thus the inverted triangle assessment from many. But it's close - which would make you more of an hourglass. It would be interesting to know the actual measurements. Either way, as Angie would say, Bob's your uncle

DanaLynn

I'm not very good with body types- so I am not much help there. My instinct is to say an 8 as well. If you dropped a string from your shoulders ( not your outer arm) down, it would hit right at your out hips. I can see the inverted triangle though as well. Again- I've read like 2 articles on this. I am definitely no expert.

I think you are struggling with your own perceptions in the hip area.
Perhaps you see your hips as being larger than they are because you have such a defined waist- they certainly do go out from your waist. If you look at them in proportion to your shoulders though they are rather narrow. I know that I have a tendency to focus in on specific areas of my body and that often leads to distortion for me. When I step back and look at the whole me- that's when I think I see my self more accurately.

I applaud you on your bravery! Putting up bikini clad images probably isn't fun for anyone- even if your figure is as lovely as yours is.

epiphany

Member

Wow I know where to come if I ever need a self-esteem boost! You all are so very kind, thank you so much

@Laura: I hope I took these right. I don't really trust my measurements, anytime I have tried ordering clothing online it would say I'm a size 6 or 8... but those are too big for me, and I actually wear 4; which is still a tad loose on me.
hips : 32 1/2"
shoulders circumference: 38"
shoulders: 16 1/2 - 17" from shoulder to shoulder
waist: just under 27"
bust: 36"
underbust: 30"
waist to floor: approx 40.5"
waist to head: approx 23 - 23 1/2"

I guess an IT & 8 is probably correct I don't think I can fall into hourglass because I think have a high hip, and anything belted at the waist looks awful on me, so I'm leaning more towards 8 (hourglass with high hip). Does that sound about right?

Thank you all again so much

Kate

Veteran

bumping for Angie!

Sveta

(website)

Veteran

I just echo everybody on how lovely your bod is! To my eye you are an IT with a defined but short waist

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

You have a fab bod! Very Inverted Triangle, with a small waistline and waist.

Welcome to the forum

Laura (rhubarbgirl)

(website)

Veteran

I know what you mean re the high hip and the prominent ribcage, as I have those features too (though I am definitely 'fluffy' and not slim like you). It does occasionally mean that form-fitting dresses can be too tight in the mid-torso for me, and the short waist-to-hip thing usually means that I have better luck with separates than dresses. I would guess that maybe you are belting at the wrong place? I am not a big belter but the ladies here have helped me a lot with suggestions when I have posted pics.

Welcome to YLF.

Ljubica

You have such a fabulous body that I can't believe you have any real issues with clothes.
Try wearing woven dresses, not too snug, but still form fitting, and some sort of low slung belt, below your natural waist.
When I was younger, and still very much insecure, it was the body type I was most envious of. So enjoy it!

epiphany

Member

@rhubarbgirl:
Love your username, it makes me crave strawberry rhubarb crumble! lol. I am so glad there is someone else out there who understands the large ribcage & short waist-to-hip issue! I also find that separates work better, although I seem to be rather inept in pairing things. As for the belting: I don't wear any belts, every time I have tried something on that is belted at the waist, I look like a stuffed sausage and it really emphasizes the fact that my hips start almost immediately below my ribcage. I don't think it looks very flattering since it isn't a gradual change from waist to hip.
@Ljubica: I will have to give woven dresses a try; although I am leery wearing anything form fitting, in my previous experience it usually tends to cling in all the wrong places (saddlebags, belly).
I have a hard time finding the right tops to wear, should I follow the IT guidelines, or more of the short-waisted or the 8 guidelines? When it comes to combining from the bodyshape guidelines I really seem to get confused. Unfortunately I find it easier to do shopping online since it is so easy to find a wider variety of things, the problem is that I think i'm buying what 'should' look good, but it ends up looking bad on me. If y'all have any tips on what things I should look for in a top, I would so greatly appreciate it. Thank you all again so much! I love clothes/fashion, but I can never seem to apply it to myself & I'm desperately trying to learn

thank you again

epiphany

Member

Sorry to bother again Would dolman sleeve tops that are banded at the bottom be unflattering, since they seem to hug your hips?
example :(have to click the zoom to get them to pop up) http://fashionflo.cafe24.com/fashionflo/487/p1.jpg or http://fashionflo.cafe24.com/fashionflo/290/p1.jpg

CocoLion

(website)

Veteran

I think this style would look fine on you although the black blocking does draw the eye to the shoulder. With another softer pattern, this style would soften your shoulders and draw the eye to your slim hips. Sounds good to me! I would just choose a different patterned top.