It only took me a week but I am super excited to share with you the rest of the fashion tips I learned at the Full Figured Fashionista class at BellaNor Boutique. I already told you about the self esteem boost and how realized I need to become my Own Biggest Fan. Then I mentioned the unmentionable and discussed the foundation of good fashion, foundation garments, in part 1. Now, time for me to share the knowledge that BellaNor owner Chanae Davis was dropping.
So let me start by saying even though the target audience for the class was full figured women these tips work for all sizes. The tips are about body shape not body size. The class covered 5 body shapes:
- Apple a.k.a. Diamond or Oval
Banana a.k.a Rectangle - Pear a.k.a. Triangle
- Strawberry a.k.a. inverted Triangle
- Hourglass (I guess there is no fruit shaped like an hourglass)
So which one are you? If you are like me you may have some idea but are not entirely sure. I went into the class thinking I was a Pear shape. I stood up and my fellow Fashionista classmates looked me up and down, without any judgment, and came to a majority decision that pear is the fruit I closes resemble. LOL
Here is the breakdown:
- Apples have undefined waists and carry their weight in the middle. Famous Apples you may have heard of include, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Rosie O’Donnell, Tyra Banks, and Oprah Winfrey.
Bananas have bust and hips that are about the same width, undefined waist, with arms and legs that are proportionally slender. They may appear shorter and heavier than they are. Famous Bananas include Gabrielle Union, Cameron Diaz, Nicole Kidman, and Queen Latifah- Pears have fuller butt, hips, and thighs (Old school term would be bottom heavy) and have narrower bust than hips along with a defined waist. Popular Pears include Jennifer Lopez, Kim Kardashian, Michelle Obama, and Beyonce’. Lucky me to be in such good company with these ladies 🙂
- Strawberries have full bust, a well defined waist, with Narrow Hips and usually long legs (Old school term would be top heavy). Your Berries would be Demi Moore, Naomi Campbell, America Ferrera, and Jessica Simpson.
- Hourglasses have hips and bust that are the same width, a well defined waist and weight is gained evenly on the upper and lower body. We all know the most famous Hourglass that ever lived, Marilyn Monroe, but in her company is Kate Winslet, Mariah Carey, Salma Hayek, and Scarlett Johansson.
The great thing is beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. What an amazing fruit salad we all make. Have you identified yourself yet? Which fruit are you, or, are you an hourglass?
Now that you know which fruit you are, what your body shape is, you can apply the tips. Before I go into the specifics I will say that my favorite tip, which I already mentioned in Are You Your Own Biggest Fan, is to show off the parts of your body that you feel the best about. When you feel good about yourself you have a confidence that shows and radiates beauty whether you implement any other tips or not. But if you’re like me, you’re probably saying just get to the tips already. Fabulous Fashionista Fashion tips by body type:
- Apples – Use accessories (earrings & necklaces to draw the eye to your shoulders and face. Go for low necklines (woot! Show off them girls), untucked tops, dresses and tops that flow throw or skim the waistline, and straight or slightly flared skirts.
- Bananas – Go for belts and pieces that cinch in at the waist to give you more curves, wrap dresses, and semi-fitted clothes.
- Pears – (That’s Me) Pick Accessories and designs that draw attention to the upper body, Medium to high necklines ( I will stick with medium), A-line skirts and dresses, lower rise(but not necessarily “low rise”) pants with boot leg or leg that fall strait from the hip.
- Strawberries – Chose tops and dresses that show off the waist, A-line skirts, flowing fabrics, with low to medium necklines, and 3 quarter length sleeves.
- Hourglasses – Opt for low to medium low necklines, dresses and belts to emphasize the waist, and straight and slightly flared pants and shirts.
Thanks to Ms. Monroe the Hourglass figure has become the desired look or ideal body type, with full but not too full bust and hips with smaller waist. All of the tips above are designed to either show off the hourglass (if that’s you) or give the illusion of the hourglass (if you are one of the fruits like me 🙂
Whatever tips you take or don’t take I hope you I was successfully able to translate most of what I learned at the class. The biggest take away of all is looking and feeling your best offers a bit of personal confidence and Joy that is definitely worth Chasing.
So what do you think of these tips? Can you identify your body shape? Do you already follow any of the tips for your shape? If not do you think you will take any of the tips for your own?
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Thanks for the tips! I think I'm a pear too. I guess that explains why I like earrings to draw attention to my face. I'm really not good at picking out clothes or other jewelry, but earrings are definitely my thing. I make my little sister help me shop.
Wow you did learn a lot and thanks much for sharing with us! I want to say that I am a pear but would love to be an hourglass, I'm working on not being so bottom heavy 🙂
I always think I'm an hourglass, but post-babies, I think I'm more of a pear. Is that possible? These are great tips.
I like the fruit comparisons a lot. I'd heard of the pear, but none of the other fruits. I think I'm either an apple or a banana – still not sure! Definitely not busty, I know that much.
My favorite fruit is the blueberry, though, for what it's worth! ;p
~Tui, from #commenthour
I'm definitely the Pear; even with dieting I can't get away from it. Stopping by from the SITS Comment Hour. Thanks for taking the lead tonight!
I'm a pear and have always received compliments whenever I get my hands on the A-line cut skirts. These are great tips!!
this explains shapes SO well! I think I am banana…..I do have a waist, kinda. But I know for sure my hips and bust are the same. Thank you for compiling this – I'm pinning it!