Fashion 101: Proportions – How to Achieve the Appearance of a Well Proportioned Body

Posted on | April 5, 2009 | 22 Comments

In this first module of our Fashion 101 on Proportions, we will explore how we use clothing to change the appearance of the shape and proportion of our bodies. Each of us have aspects of our bodies that we just don’t like but, rather than obsessing about it we try to use clothes and accessories to visually alter our proportions. For us, doing so is an act of embracing the bodies that we have.

To help us understand our bodies better, we made these handy silhouettes that show our actual figures alongside a comparison of how we perceive our own bodies versus the shape we try to create with our clothes.

S. is most self-conscious about her mid-section: “This is the part of me that I am most acutely aware of. It’s the part of my body I think about when shopping for clothes or getting dressed, and likely the part I most distort in my mind. So I often dress to create the illusion of a more defined waist, a flatter stomach, and slimmer midsection.”

A. is most self-conscious about her hips and thighs: “When I look in the mirror the first thing I see are what appear to me as bulging hips and thighs. I feel I have a bit of pear bottom or that my legs often look like they have been stuck in a pencil sharpener. Particularly when dressing my bottom half, I try to create the appearance of long, straight lines (unsharpened pencils, if you will).”

E. is most self-conscious about her long torso: “Even though I’m on the taller side, my height comes from a very long torso on top of average length legs. I’ve always had a hard time finding tops that are long enough for me, but I rarely need extra length in my inseams. When I wear separates, I worry that my legs look stumpy or that I appear to be simply cut in half. I try to dress to make my legs appear longer and my torso seem shorter, creating a ratio more pleasing to my eyes.”

Homework:

This week, each of us will articulate the strategies that we’ve come to employ in order to visually alter our shapes. Each day, we’ll break down how and why an outfit works for us and helps us feel confident in our skin.

A: On Trouser Pants, On The ‘Upside Down Muffin’,

S: On Defining a Waist, On Belting, On Elongating A Short Torso, On The Empire Waist, On Reducing Muffinage,

E: On Lengthening Legs, On Using Seams To Your Advantage, On High-Waisted Bottoms, On Maternity Pants,

You can additionally dig through our Proportions Archives here.

Comments

22 Responses to “Fashion 101: Proportions – How to Achieve the Appearance of a Well Proportioned Body”

Rose
April 5th, 2009 @ 6:12 am

For a long time I didn’t know how to dress myself. Mainly because I didn’t identify with the fact that I also have a long torso, with average to short legs. It literally took me 34 years to figure this out.

I’m glad your doing this, you’ll be surprised how many people still don’t know how to dress because of proportion.
Shelley
April 5th, 2009 @ 10:05 am

Looking forward to seeing the results because I can relate to both E. and A.
Jozee
April 5th, 2009 @ 1:15 pm

I’ll be looking forward to both S & E’s strategies. Oh, why did I get Mom’s body genes? I really could have used the genes from Dad’s side of the family. Heehe
Angie
April 5th, 2009 @ 4:28 pm

I just saw one of you featured as a Best Dressed Reader on Glamour.com.

I was very intrigued by the description of your blog and I had to check it out. I’m very glad that I did! I can’t wait to keep up with what you have to say on Proportions.

I’m a total type S. It’s very frustrating having this body-type, almost as frustrating as people tell me how tiny I am when they assume tiny means can wear whatever she wants. I have no waist definition at all, so I look like I still have the body of a 12 year old, but with lower stomach pooch.

I’m 5ft. 1.5in, 118, but I’m proportioned as 35-33-32, with a thick, short waist, but very skinny arms and legs. Finding clothes is very difficult, but I hope to have successful shopping trips with your tips.
Jen
April 5th, 2009 @ 6:10 pm

Great post!!
6 April 2009 - Snow Day? : academichic
April 6th, 2009 @ 7:18 am

[...] I mentioned in our introduction yesterday, I have what I sometimes fondly refer to as a “never-ending torso.” It took a long time for me to realize that I have a long torso. In college, I never [...]
6 April 2009 - Proportions : academichic
April 6th, 2009 @ 10:42 am

[...] By a methodology called “trial and error”, I have realized that the skinny belt works best for me in creating a slimmer waist line. Because my torso is fairly short, a wider belt tends to stump it even more, but a skinny to medium width belt pulls in the garments I’m wearing to create the illusion of a more defined waist: See today’s outfit, as well as here, here, and here. I also belt fairly high, at the narrowest part of my body. [...]
Trish
April 6th, 2009 @ 10:51 am

Can’t wait for your posts! I’m exactly like A. only I’m 5’2. So I find it hard to create a taller and straighter silhouette. Again, can’t wait for your posts!
8 April 2009 - Citrusy : academichic
April 8th, 2009 @ 9:14 am

[...] most well-loved visual strategy for re-adjusting the proportional lengths of my torso and legs is wearing higher-waisted bottoms. Like S., I managed — through lots of trial and error [...]
Sal
April 8th, 2009 @ 9:56 am

OK, so glad I looked back a bit to find this. The silhouettes and analysis are just fantastic, ladies. What a smart, scientific way to tackle matters of proportionality!
8 April 2009 - Back in Town and Proportioning : academichic
April 8th, 2009 @ 10:21 am

[...] back at Academichic central and ready to begin our Fashion 101 on Proportions. I spent the very long plane ride thinking about what kind of body type I am. It’s not [...]
9 April 2009 - Elongating Lines : academichic
April 9th, 2009 @ 5:32 am

[...] today’s discussion on Proportions, I’d like to share one more muffinage-reducing, torso-elongating trick. I am 5′5 and [...]
10 April 2009 - Let Your Seams Do the Work : academichic
April 10th, 2009 @ 6:45 am

[...] whole week we’ve been thinking about our bodies’ proportions, particularly how we use our clothes to transform the areas of our bodies that we are the most self-conscious about. I’ve been on a quest to shorten my endlessly long torso, a task which, I have to admit, is [...]
Clare
April 10th, 2009 @ 3:57 pm

In which I attempt to tackle both my truncated torso and Lilliputian legs:

http://betweenlaundrydays.blogspot.com/2009/04/help-friend-day.html
Amelia
April 11th, 2009 @ 8:48 pm

A., you are not disproportional at all! In my opinion, you have the “perfect” figure– an hourglass! I’m jealous– I wish I could have such a lovely little waist.
AcademicUnChic
April 14th, 2009 @ 11:01 am

OK, so I think I am the poster child for the ill you wish to cure. I *am* the AcademicUnChic. Worse, I am the child of the AcademicUnChic. Raised on a campus surrounded by the AcademicUnChic.

Nonetheless, here I am today, in a mood for change. In fact, I went and made a silhouette image, in the hope of getting some feedback on what I could wear given my proportions.

Here it is: http://www.flickr.com/photos/37385016@N03/3442540942/

A fact that might not be clear clear from the silhouette itself — all that..um..goodness is packed into a mere 5 feet 1 inches.

Hoping to be enlightened,
AcademicUnChic
8 May 2009 : academichic
May 8th, 2009 @ 6:42 am

[...] that put out without one. Incidentally, a reader just asked me how I felt about this challenge (presumably because it was me who talked about wanting to create a waist in our Proportions unit), and you can read my very longwinded reply [...]
7 April 2009 - Finding a Great Fit : academichic
May 10th, 2009 @ 7:41 am

[...] this week’s Fashion 101 we’re discussing our own body issues and how we create proportions that appear more pleasing to each one of us. As I’ve noted, my [...]
20 October 2009 – Secrets Revealed : academichic
October 20th, 2009 @ 3:00 pm

[...] pencil skirt works well for me, anything that fits my lower body closely poses a problem. I have hips and thighs and they are NOT all muscle! My secret solution – SPANX! That’s right, I wear spanx [...]
16 March 2010 : academichic
March 16th, 2010 @ 2:15 am

[...] I noted in our series on Proportions, I have a high natural waist and am most aware of my midsection when dressing. Right now, I’m in a period of my life at which I’m [...]
14 June 2010 – Deep Thoughts on Fashion Blogging : academichic
June 14th, 2010 @ 7:53 am

[...] look works really well for me because I’m somewhat of a straight-up-and-down rectangle, so tunics, empire waist tops, and loose blouses work really well with my shape. Someone with more [...]
2 July 2010 – Bike Picnic : academichic
July 2nd, 2010 @ 5:07 am

[...] tucked in top can actually create that coveted silhouette of the small waisted even for those of us not blessed by nature in that [...]