There has much excellent discussion on Kibbe types in the past. I keep diving into it periodically, getting very confused, and not doing anything about it. But this time I found some very illuminating information that helped me put it in context. It started making more sense when I realized it's a lot more than just a body shape quiz.

Gaylene wrote on one of the more recent discussions, "I've become convinced Kibbe's intention has always been to liberate women from a conventional, narrow ideal of feminine beauty by providing them with a tool which offered multiple versions of feminine beauty--a way of celebrating our uniqueness instead of trying to camouflage and disguise our ‘imperfections’. His style cues revolve around line, shape, and proportion, not whatever is currently fashionable, and his guidelines are suggestions to be explored, not dictates about what we should, and shouldn't, wear.
"Taken out of context, the questionnaire, images, and categories are of limited value. But, when I used Kibbe's tools as a stepping off point for some serious personal reflection, I ended up with a real insight into why some looks "get" me, while others are a constant struggle."

The blog Style Syntax says very similar things. A Kibbe type, or "Image Identity," is not supposed to be a stereotype that you should try to fit in; it's just a set of tools best-chosen for who you are. "An Image ID is who you are... Your Image ID is a framework, and you place your own style on top of it. Kibbe’s Metamorphosis is about accepting your physicality and essence for what they are and stopping feeling like the grass is greener. Image IDs don’t place a limit on your self-expression."

But the flexibility of the style types is also what makes it so hard to DIY.
There are some quizzes out there, but ultimately they reduce it to a formula based on subjective body descriptors. That’s where it gets difficult.

And the whole reason I posted: Yes, I need help in figuring out what my type is! However, I'm NOT looking to this as a need to know my style, because I know what my style is. I'm the Duchess Next Door, and the adjectives I've chosen are Detailed, Retro, Colorful, Graceful, and Smart. Mostly, I'm curious! But also, if the Kibbe system provides some more tools, I would like to have them.

And now for my confusion. First, that quiz!
I end up with mostly D's, for which there is NO answer. The others are split between A’s and B’s, which also has no interpretation. So throw that out the window.

Reading about the types is not very helpful, either. I have some significant body modifiers, and they seem to point in contradictory directions, or none at all.

* I'm tall, about 5'9". Which, strictly speaking, excludes me from anything Gamine and Romantic, despite the fact that there are elements of both I identify with. But most of the tall types (Dramatic and Natural) also have broad shoulders. I can't tell if my shoulders are tapered, rounded, or even, but they're definitely not broad.

* I'm also very pear-shaped. As far as I can tell, that's not something that Kibbe recognizes. Maybe it's not a big factor for him... but really, do I consider myself slender, or curvy? My pants are 6 sizes bigger than my tops! Yet I don't think I'm large-boned... or am I?? I just don't know.

* My face has some pretty strong features. But are they strong, or sharp, or blunt, or wide, or narrow? I just can't tell. I think my face fits with the Soft Dramatic collage, but the written description doesn't seem to work for the rest of me. All I know is I'm not Classic.

* Kibbe strongly relied on actresses and celebrities from the 1980s and prior for describing his archetypes. They're widely photographed so there's a lot to study, and they also didn't have all the techniques we do now for re-shaping . But NO ONE looks like me. No one has my height, combined with my hips, shoulders, and bust. So I don't get any clues there.

In full disclosure, I'm resistant to the Natural type. The gut feeling I get from those descriptions doesn't feel like me at all. The other descriptions are analytically hard to identify with, but this is emotional.

Pictures! Face from various angles, smiling and not smiling, and profile. (FWIW, I've only ever seen two women who had a stronger Roman nose than I, and I am related to one of them!) Also, pictures in tights and leotard. I took these today. Measurements are 35-28-42, no joke.

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