Dealing with a changing body

Weight gain, weight loss can all cause changes in your body type. A pear can appear to be an apple, and an hourglass might become a triangle. Confusing right? Check out my post on body types to figure all that out. Find them Here and Here.

The moral of the story is: depending on where you retain/lose weight, excerise, and even that time of the month, can have an effect on your body shape. This can be very frustrating after spending a lot of time tailoring a wardrobe to fit your current body shape, only to transform into another. Weight gain or loss is the primary reason for a change in body shape. Sometimes these changes are temporary (water weight during your menstrual), and sometimes they are more permanent (surgery, change in diet). If you experience a permanent change in body shape, you will have to learn the guidelines associated with dressing for your new shape. However, if the change is temporary, or even if you are in transition to your new shape – I have a few tips to help make the transition smooth.

Find your current body type, and then read the bullet points below to figure out what you are transitioning into, and tips to make it easy.

If you are a:

Hourglass,

Transitioning to:

• Triangle - You are loosing weight up top or gaining weight below. Create fullness with shoulder pads, loose fitting tops and light colors. Conversely if your are becoming a triangle due to gaining weight below, minimize your lower half with dark colors, vertical lines and tailored pants.
• Rectangle – Your waist is loosing definition. Use a belt or choose garments that taper inwards to cinch your waist in at its smallest point. You could also create balance by adding equal increments of volume to your top and bottom halves simultaneously.
• Inverted Triangle- Either you are gaining weight up top, or loosing weight below. Maintain your hourglass figure by creating fullness in lower half of your body while narrowing your shoulders. A great way to do this is with vertical cuts/lines and dark colors on the upper half of your body with light colors and horizontal cuts/lines on the bottom
• Apple or Diamond – You are gaining weight in your stomach area. Use a belt in a darker contrasting color to cinch your waist and add depth and definition. See rectangle rules above.

Inverted Triangle

transitioning to:

• Hourglass – You are gaining weight in your hips and thighs. Since this is the ideal body shape, create fullness with light colors and horizontal lines until your hip/waist has filled out to the desired hourglass shape.
• Rectangle – Your waist is loosing definition while becoming wider with your hips/thighs. Use a belt to retain definition in your waist. Since you already have broad shoulders create fullness on your lower half to match, with horizontal lines and lighter colors.
• Apple or Diamond – your body is making the same changes as the rectangle, only your stomach is also getting larger along with your waist loosing definition. Patterns that have lighter colors near the shoulders and hips with dark colors in the center, cinched with a belt – create the illusion of an hourglass figure.

Triangle

transitioning to:

• Hourglass - Your shoulder/chest areas is getting wider faster than your waist.(Frequently caused by upper body strength training) Since this is the ideal body shape, create fullness with shoulder pads, light colors and horizontal lines in your shoulder, chest area until they are balanced with your hips. Frequently while gaining weight in the upper portion of our bodies, we loose some definition in the waist, if this is the case, choose clothing that taper in at the waist and/or are belted.
• Rectangle – you waist and upper body is widening. Follow the same suggestions as the hourglass, with a focus on cinching in your waist, to create hourglass like curves.
• Apple or Diamond – your body is making the same changes as the rectangle, only your stomach is also getting larger. Patterns that have lighter colors near the shoulders and hips with dark colors in the center, cinched with a belt – create the illusion of an hourglass figure. Shape wear will smooth out your silhouette.

Rectangle

transitioning to:

• Hourglass – Your shoulder and hips are getting wider, your waist is gaining definition, or both. Exaggerate your shoulders and hips in equal increments by creating fullness. Do this with shoulder pads, horizontal lines, and lighter colors. Cinch your waist with a belt, or clothing that tapers in at the waist and flares out at the shoulder and hip lines.
• Inverted Triangle – Your shoulders/chest is getting wider and/or  your hips are getting smaller. Create volume on your lower half with horizontal lines, lighter colors and loose fitted skirts or pants. Cinch your waist with a belt or clothing that tapers in at the waist and flares out in the hip area
• Triangle – your shoulders are narrowing or your hips and waist are widening. Create the illusion of equal fullness in your shoulders and upper body with shoulder pads, horizontal lines, and lighter colors. Cinch your waist with a belt or clothing that tapers in at the waist and flares out in the shoulder area.
• Apple or Diamond – you are likely gaining weight that is distributed equally throughout your body, with your stomach getting larger. Minimize the roundness of your tummy with vertical lines and clothing that tapers or have patterns that taper in towards your waist. Avoid light colors in the areas you want to minimize.

Apple or Diamond

transitioning to:

• Hourglass – Your stomach is getting smaller and your waist is becoming more defined. You could also be gaining weight in your shoulder and hip simultaneously, but your will still be defined if you are transitioning into an hourglass. Exaggerate this definition by cinching your waist with a belt, or clothing that tapers in.
• Inverted Triangle – You are losing weight in the lower half of your body and your waist is shrinking. Your upper body may or may not be getting smaller. Take advantage of your shrinking waist line, by creating fullness below the waist.
• Triangle – Your shoulders are getting narrow or your hips are getting proportionately wider. Create fullness with shoulder pads or puff sleeves. Horizontal lines are OK as long as they do not cross your stomach area, as it will make your waist/stomach appear wider. Cinch your waist.
• Rectangle – You are likely losing weight, or creating definition through muscle creation. Create or exaggerate fullness in your upper and lower body, to give the appearance of a smaller waist. Patterns that have lighter colors near the shoulders and hips with dark colors in the center, cinched with a belt – create the illusion of an hourglass figure. Shape wear will smooth out your silhouette.

 

* Please note that I did not include transition instruction from Inverted Triangle to Triangle and vice versa, because these are complete opposite body types. It is not impossible to change from one to the other, however you will likely transition into another body shape such as a rectangle or apple before doing so.

** Also, the celebrities shown above are not necessarily the body shape they are listed under. They either have the appearance of being that body shape in the photos, or are wearing something that category can benefit from.

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