Pull off color blocking & defining your waist

I'd like to thank everyone for participating and discussing the blog posts I had about finding your right body shape. I'm also very happy with the feedback I got from ladies who found it inspiring and helpful and have tried out some of the tips I gave, it makes me feels great that I touched at least one person out there.

 Well for this blog I will be teaming up with Josie from a fanpage on facebook called OMF- Open Mind Fashion. Give her a like and tell her I sent you http://Facebook.com/openmindfashion (copy and paste if needed)

OMF is a fanpage all about fashion talk. A place for us girls to see what's new, what's in and learn something from one another. Well I'm teaming up with her to give you ladies more ways to work with color blocking and defining your waist line. This was the topic in the apple shape blog, wearing clothing that separates your body by either color blocking or wearing a waist belt not only gives you a defined waist line that the apple shape does not naturally show but it will make you look more slim and in some cases taller.

Josie took the time to get some great dresses from Piperlime that I agree, would be great to color block your waist and give you that slimming look. 

This dress is my top favorite simply because it defines the waist in a great way while color blocking. The two green color blocks makes the human eye go inward and then it makes the eye to look up and down. This is great because if the eye goes side to side the outfit will most likely make you appear bigger. The placement of the color is great, the blue is on the bottom to cover your tummy and hips if that's a big area for you and the green is slightly lighter and points at your natural waistline in which you want to emphasize. The white is the lightest because as in every body shape you want your bust to not be hidden and white brings the entire dress together.

Stripes are normally said to be a no no on well most of women but this dress actually can do some good mainly because of the stripes, how they are placed and the color of them. Black and white are two great colors to color block with because the black can disguise the parts of your body that need to be slim and the white will bring attention to the parts that need be. I like how the main point is the center, waist line, of this dress.As you can see as the dress gets to the center the black lines get thicker and that effect is what gives you the defined waistline in this dress because then as the lines go all the way up then down the white lines get bigger drawing the eye to your legs and to your face and away from people looking at your side to side but again up and down which could make you look slimmer and taller. So a good plus about lines they need to be thicker around the waist and smaller towards the legs and bust and darker color stripes with a lighter color will give you that defined waist line and lose that fear of stripes.

 

This dress color blocks with a waist line color of black to show where the natural waistline is and the black on the sides will hide the hips. The accent red on the bottom of the dress will give you a long look. Now the V neck cut of the neckline is great to accent with an embelished necklace that will bring the human eye to look up at you because it's better to have someone looking up and down your silhouette compared to sideways which will mak you look bigger. A knee length dress or skirt is perfect because its more complimentary to any body shape.

Give a big thanks to Josie at Open Mind Fashion (OMP) and be sure to check out their fanpage on everything fashion. http://Facebook.com/openmindfashion

These are some pointers for defining your waistline and looks that will make you look long and slim.

Krista

Keaton Row online stylist

Http://keatonrow.com/stylist/kristareese 

Fanpage

Http://Facebook.com/stylistkristareese 

Rectangle shape: the straight and narrow

The second most common body shape is the rectangle body type. There is no definition in curves from shoulder to hip. Most women will have little to no bust hence why many call it the boyish shape. It's common for the rectangle group to gain weight in the midsection, arms and upper thighs but their best asset are their lower legs.

                                                             

 

Being a straight shape you can really play with many textures, prints and colors; as long as you don't over due it. This is so because you'll be adding an appearance of curves, a waistline and volume. To define your waist line tips with a wind v-neck, u-neck or off the shoulder are great. Then you can add a wide dark colored waist belt at your natural waistline. To determine your natural waistline bend sidewise with your hands on your hips,where your torso creases is where your natural waistline will be. You don't have to always wear a waist belt though. find tops that have an empire waistline or anything that nips at the waistline.

                                                    

    

For curve appeal even wearing the right bra can help you out. Even if you don't think you need one, get fitted for the right one. You can break up your body by wearing a print on the top and dark colored bottoms. Like I said before you can play around with texture such as ruffles or a shirt that has gathers, things like this will add volume to your body shape along with jewelry. Also the color possibilities and prints are endless. Usually if another body shape wears prints on the tops or bottoms it will make them look too big, but for you, you're of course trying to add that volume so try the brights and try the flowers and animal prints. Simply find what works for you and skin tons can play in what colors and prints look best on you as well.

Your pants and skirts are along the same lines; bubble skirts, flare leg hem, wide leg hem, mid low rise waist etc. the list goes on. When getting anything from shorts, pants to skirts try and find them with details. The one bottoms you want to stray from are the low rise pants and trouser these will elongate your torso and just might make you look smaller with less curves.

Any questions please feel free to ask I will answer the best I can. I am no expert all my information has come from what I learned from modeling, school, designing clothing myself, and styling clothes for clients I have. It's fully up to you if you agree with what I have to say or want to take all my information and use it as a base to start learning what shape you are. Even if you know more or you are a rectangle shape and you found something that works for you I encourage you to share, I take as much input and advice as the next person. 

Feel free to join in on discussions on my fanpage 

If you need a personal stylist contact me through my online stylist page 100% free to get your looks for any occasion.

Krista 

Keaton Row stylist

Http://keatonrow.com/stylist/kristareese

Fanpage

Http://Facebook.com/stylistkristareese

Time for the hourglass

36-24-36 is the size that many woman want to be, it's considered to be the ideal shape in our society.

If you're an hourglass shape your upper body will measure closely to your hips and your waist will be about ten inches smaller creating that hour glass look.

                                                         

    It can be difficult for a woman to keep her ideal shape of an hourglass. Through age and having children most women will loose it and usual go more towards an apple. But eating right and exercise can keep you there as well as if you want to get the shape it is possible but, my advice, do it for you and no one else completely love you for you. : )

When you have an hour glass shape you would want to bring more attention to you waist. The tops should nip at the waist without adding bulk to your bust. A tailored look is the key here, which some, who can afford it, get their clothing custom made or get to a tailor to take in clothing to fit their specific shape and this can go for any shape. Jackets are great for layers looks but the short jackets that stop just above the hip will define the waist even more without hiding it and making the eye go to the hips. 

The best complimenting neckline for an hour glass shape would be v-neck or a scooped narrow neckline. V-necks do great when slimming down the bust then continued accented with a nice necklace. You will want to try and stay more toward solid colors or color block. This simply means two things,  if you are wearing say a blue shirt, add a red waist belt or add a different color of blue waist belt. This will break up your midsection and bring out your waist line and the body will appear more slim. You can also color block with different color shirts as layers, having a green shirt with an orange blazer. Or shall I say three things, you color block as well when you wear a color on your shirt then a different  on your pants, they should compliment each other as well.

                                                  

                                                    

Dresses and skirts are pretty much a wide range. Pencil skirts/dresses look good on hourglass shapes. It comes in at the waist and fits great around your curves. Still stay at the knee length with your dresses and skirts its really more flattering compared to going shorter. Wrap dresses and blouses pull the fabric in at the skinniest part of your body frame. But this does not work well with petite hour glass shapes. Ruffles and bows can be cute but try not to over do it or stay away from them in the wrong places. They can add volume and will take away from your curves. 

                                               

   Jeans and pants again look great on your shape when tailored. 3 of the four shapes are common with the pants. Your hips are something we want to pull the eye from. Wide leg hem pants, flares, are great and paired with heels bring the eyes up and down and will give you a leaner look. Skinny jeans can be worn with caution; they will make you look shirt and stout, mainly in the one with short legs. Then again long legs added with a pair of heels and skinny jeans will add the extra length. 

Any questions please feel free to ask I will answer the best I can. I am no expert all my information has come from what I learned from modeling, school, designing clothing myself, and styling clothes for clients I have. It's fully up to you if you agree with what I have to say or want to take all my information and use it as a base to start learning what shape you are. Even if you know more or you are an hour glass shape and you found something that works for you I encourage you to share, I take as much input and advice as the next person. 

Feel free to join in on discussions on my fanpage 

If you need a personal stylist contact me through my online stylist page 100% free to get your looks for any occasion.

Krista 

Keaton Row stylist

Http://keatonrow.com/stylist/kristareese

Fanpage

Http://Facebook.com/stylistkristareese

The apple shape in women.

The next topic of sizes in women is the apple body shape. Having the apple shape means that your body appears to be top heavy, you will have a full chest and upper back with little to no waist definition. If there's more weight around the torso you'll fall into this category. Most apples have fabulous legs and an attention grabber bust.

                                                       

    

When you're an apple you want to wear clothing that will define your waistline since your body doesn't really show it. When you pick the right clothing they can hide all of the extra weight and you appear to be much thinner. 

A color scheme for apples can start with wearing back or white or wear them together. When you mix the two just right the black will downplay certain areas while the white will bring emphasis. Also try and color block, for example if you wear a yellow shirt take a belt at the empire waist and add a black belt, this breaks up your waist to appear slimmer. To accomplish your waistline lean more toward tops that will skim past your midsection but make sure that that it nips right below your bust. They should have an empire line, long tops and tunic shirts and add a belt, a dark wide waist belt, if you are very full in your midsection go for a belt that has some stretch. You don't want something too tight because this will not flatter your shape at all. A long shirt and/or a blouse that flows that stops at the hip line is perfect. 

 You will defiantly won't to stay away from tops with details. These will widen and highlight your non existent waistline and will bring the eye straight to your midsection. Let's get down to the cut of your neckline on your shirts. Go for a low v-neck, yes apples are bustier but don't go so low it brings the eye straight to your bust. The v-neck will flatten your body and will make your torso look slimmer. This will bring the human eye to look down and not side by side.

We all love jeans but on an apple body shape you want your jeans to balance your top heavy body figure. The cut of the hem should be wide either at the thighs or the knee. The best are flare pants and boot cut. I know skinny jeans are popular but not so much on apple shapes, they will make you look bigger. If you do wear skinny jeans the next alternative are straight cut balance with eye catching shoes of knees high boots. The knee highs will ad balance.

As said before apples have great legs and of course you should want to show them. The types of skirt cuts you'd lean towards are asymmetrical, at the knee flare and right below the knee to name a few. Try and stick with longer skirts because short skirts will highlight your midsection and make you look blocky.

Any questions please feel free to ask I will answer the best I can. I am no expert all my information has come from what I learned from modeling, school, designing clothing myself, and styling clothes for clients I have. It's fully up to you if you agree with what I have to say or want to take all my information and use it as a base to start learning what shape you are. Even if you know more or you are a apple shape and you found something that works for you I encourage you to share, I take as much input and advice as the next person. 

Feel free to join in on discussions on my fanpage 

If you need a personal stylist contact me through my online stylist page 100%free to get your looks for any occasion.

Krista 

Keaton Row stylist

Http://keatonrow.com/stylist/kristareese

Http://Facebook.com/stylistkristareese

Find your pear shape.

This week we will be talking about the shapes of women. Now we know no two women are the same but there are categories of shapes the female body does fall under. Depending on who you talk to or where you get your information there could be a lot of shapes for a woman; some go by triangle, inverted triangle, rectangle, hour glass, diamond or rounded... Well now I'm not taking you to algebra so we will focus on 4 and I don't want it to be too over whelming so the 4 basic body shapes are the hour glass, pear, straight and apple. Now the sound of fruit sounds a lot more fun ; )

 This post will be on the pear shape, the pear is the most common shape among women. No matter if you are tall, short, heavy weight or skinny, anyone can can be a pear shape. In a nutshell common pears are bottom heavy. How to determine the pear shape it's common for the hips and backside to be wider than the shoulders and they typically have a smaller bustline. But if you seem to have the right proportions of a pear but a bigger bust you could be put in the hour glass body shape.
                                                         

                                                          

  
                                                                                  

Some celebs that are pear shapes are: Beyoncé, Tyra Banks, and Rihanna just to name a few.

There are certain places on every shape of body you want to put your most focus on to take away from looking oblong or wider. A woman of a pear shape should place attention to the upper half of her body. You can take embellishment around your neckline to naturally draw the human eye up toward the slimmest part of your pear shaped body. If you love big necklaces this should suit you well, you can also find embellished shirts and dresses; this helps out your shape and it can appear as a necklace as well, two birds with one stone. If you are not into a lot of bling, scarves do great as well to catch the eye.

   

                                 

                                                Sabine Vintage Multi Pendant Necklace 

Layers aren't something you have to wear only for the winter to keep warm. For the pear body shape layers balance the body by adding a visual and flattering interest to the top half of the body. The color matters as well, try and go for more bright colors and prints and the shirts shouldn't stop at you hips, this will draw much unwanted attention. For bottoms go for darker, solid colors. Now not always black but try and stay darker. Just as long as the pants are darker than your shirts. The big no-no are prints on your bottoms, they will make you look more bottom heavy.

Now lets talk about certain cuts of tops and bottoms, because too baggy or the wrong neckline can make or well smash your pear. You can play around with necklines on tops and dresses. Try out a deeper, more plunging neckline; this will elongate your upper body. Test out a tunic dress or top but you need to make sure it fits properly, tunics will bring out your arms and it will make your body appear taller and leaner. When I say make, sure it fits right, you don't want a tunic dress or top to be clingy, especially around the belly and/or hips. You will know they fit properly because it will cover everything underneath, you will look clean and have an elongating line.

                 

                                               

                                                MILLY, Milly Catalina Beaded Tunic 

The pears pant, skirt and dress should have a wide hem. Again this will elongate you and the taller your appear you look more slim. Just like the more you stand up straight you appear to be more slim and taller. A-line skirts are a big plus and stay away from pleats and side pockets.

For the jean lovers flares look great on a pear. They are fitted at the hips and wider at the bottom taking the eye going down away from your hips.

A lot to take in but it's a start to get all you pears a base to go from. Being a pear isn't the end of the world, any round shape woman seem to get upset. What is important is that you love you for who you are and you're comfortable with yourself and your body. Don't let the clothes wear you, you wear the clothes and walk like the sidewalk is your runway.

Keep in touch and in the discussions on my Facebook page and I'm creating a look book so you can have a visual of full outfits for the pear shape body.  Any questions please feel free to ask I will answer the best I can. I am no expert all my information has come from what I learned from modeling, school, designing clothing myself, and styling clothes for clients I have. It's fully up to you if you agree with what I have to say or want to take all my information and use it as a base to start learning what shape you are. Even if you know more or you are a pear shape and you found something that works for you I encourage you to share, I take as much input and advice as the next person. 

Thanks for reading and the apple, hourglass and straight will be up later in the week.

Clothing pictures posted from products offered from Keaton Row, available for purchase when I'm your stylist.

Krista

Keaton Row-personal stylist

Facebook- http://Facebook.com/stylistkristareese

Stylist page- http://keatonrow.com/stylist/kristareese