I recently got a call from the Huffington Post Live to talk about women’s body shapes in a live panel. I didn’t end up agreeing to be on the segment because there wasn’t enough notice to get my look on.
As a stylist, of course I’m really careful about how I appear in the media. One not-so-attractive appearance can ruin even the best reputation – yes, media, we need more than an hour’s notice to prepare!
They wanted my angle to be pro-body shapes. I would have made that work, but here’s the real deal behind body shapes – pear, rectangle, inverted triangle, etc. The premise behind them is that the optimal shape for a woman is hourglass, but only 8% of the population is hourglass. So shape analysis teaches all of the other shapes how to trick the viewer’s eye into thinking you are an hourglass. It’s a type of visual re-balancing by playing with proportions.
Here’s the problem I see with media’s depiction body shapes in today’s fashion industry. For one, designers do not seem to take national average body shape into account (most women are a version of pear shaped). Designers continue to design dresses that only look good on a few women – mostly tall skinny model types. Second, the current shape analysis depicted by the media only includes 4–6 body types, but that only accounts for ¼ of the equation by ignoring weight and height.
For example, a 5-foot, 100-pound, pear-shaped woman has different needs than a 6-foot, 180-pound pear would. To look their best, each one has different style needs despite having the same body type. As a personal style strategist, I would dress them completely differently. The only book/system which I have found to be an accurate way to dress yourself is Bradley Bayou’s Science of Sexy which illustrates a more precise 48 different body ‘types’.
The recent Huffington Post Live piece brought up the issue that women may not like being labeled. And I agree. None of us fit in a box, and that’s the approach I take in my work. Body shapes are a general way of categorizing that doesn’t capture the whole story: you, your style, and what you need to wear to feel like you’re dressing for success.
What do you think about body shapes and the panel’s take? Helpful or harmful?
She helped me create not just outfits but a style statement for how I go out in the world in the morning. She’s given me a new sense of confidence, especially when I go to professional meetings