Illusion Dressing

Many people ask me about the "perfect" shape and allude to the perception that celebrities have the "perfect" body. Well, I'm going to let you in on a little secret, no one has the perfect body or perfect shape, it's all an illusion. What I mean by that is that they have a stylist that has identified their body shape e.g. pear, triangle, inverted triangle, rectangle or hour glass and adorn them with clothes that accentuate, hide, bolster certain body parts to give the illusion of a perfect body. You too can have that illusion.

The first step is knowing your body shape, and then secondly dressing accordingly. What shape you are depends on the correlation between the width of your shoulders, waist & hips. Whoever came out with that size "one size fits all" was well intended, however, sadly mistaken. Even if we are all 36, 24, 36 (what a winning hand), one may have a longer torso, or longer legs. We all have assets, most of us don't realize what they are because we focus on what we don't have or what we would like to change. Look at yourself in the mirror, from head to toe, list five of your assets. Go on, even if you're at work and you have to take a bathroom break....I'll wait. :o)

Now, I'm 100% certain that everyone has come up with at least five assets on your body. What we sometimes do is hide them. For example, men and women alike have told me that I have nice, shapely legs, what do I do? Cover them up 5 out of 7 days a week with slacks, because I absolutely love pant suits. So it's not that you don't have assets, it's more likely that you're covering them up. Become familiar with your body image and start dressing for your shape. Similar to snow flakes, no one is "exactly" alike another. Even if I'm a rectangle and you're a rectangle, there will still be subtle or obvious differences.

After you've learned your body shape and your assets, next is learning your style. All of this is a process, but these are some tips to get your started, since this is one of the main questions that I'm asked. Style is about personal preferences as well as what looks good on you. How many times have you seen something on someone and it looks adorable on them, but when you go to the store and try it on you look like an eggplant or squash? If I have learned anything over the years, it's "what not to wear". Because I'm petite and curvy, I cannot, I repeat, I cannot wear pleated skirts, it doesn't flatter, at all. I also have a client who is similarly shaped who cannot wear A-line skirts. So it depends on height, weight, shape and style.

Now, I'm going to add another element, S.H.E., (and this is not just for women). S.H.E. stands for Skin, Hair & Eye color. Another thing that helps develop your personal style is your skin, hair and eye color. With the understanding that two of those three things can be changed at the drop of some dye or the plop of a contact, know to take them all into consideration when selecting a garment. There is a science to color. To find out what shades and hues look best on you, of course you would have to have your personal color analysis done or as some folks say, have "your colors done".

There's so much we can talk about with respect to, illusion dressing, body shape, personal style, color analysis, fabric selection, and more to help make you look your personal best. Just remember, it's an individualized process, it is not wise to select everything on the mannequin and think it will look exactly the same on you, even if you think it's the "perfect" outfit. However, for starters, select a few pieces that compliment you body shape and skin, hair & eye color. Here are some examples, to conceal the tummy - choose an empire, baby doll or trapeze dress. You may want to stay away from knit or jersey fabrics. To create curves - wear belted dresses or a line skirts with fabric that clings. To hide your hips - halter style dresses work well. Wear a top top and flowing bottom. What you're doing is creating balance with your clothes if the top is larger than the bottom or vice versa. You can also, "adjust your bust", smaller busted women, look better with scooped or rounded necklines. Larger busted women look great in wrap tops or dresses and vertical lines instead of horizontal.

I have a plus-size client who always look magnificent, you know why? Because she wears what fits her and what looks best on her body shape and size. She doesn't wear things that are too tight, nor does she wear big boxy clothes that hides her assets. She compliments her bust and her curves and creates an illusion of the perfect body. Remember, if it doesn't fit, it doesn't flatter, and that's if it's too big or too small.

We're embarking on a change of season, so this is the perfect time to embark on a new or updated image. You can shop at a discount store or go couture, the designer doesn't matter (albeit some designers design for certain body types and their garments may work for you), the key is knowing your body shape and size along with the other things we discussed and "do you".