The Complete Guide to Dressing for Your Body Shape

As fashion editors, we likely know what looks good on you. Perhaps there’s a wrap dress that consistently makes you feel confident or you tend to gravitate towards wide-leg pants. However, we’re taking a more in-depth look at dressing for your body type, as it’s never a bad idea to look your best.

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(Image credit: @emmabreschi)

From deciding if you’re an hourglass shape, pear, banana, or apple (yes, fruits are very helpful here), there are plenty of different physiques that with just a little knowledge can look even better. That could be balancing out your proportions with a pair of flared jeans, or highlighting the most flattering part of your body with a cutout dress, there are some incredible ideas you might have never even thought of. One thing’s for sure, though: This guide will help you feel and look your best. Scroll down to see the specific styles that make your body type look its absolute best, from coats and tops to skirts and dresses.

Hourglass

If you’re curvy with a tiny waist, then you’ve got an hourglass shape. Your goal is to highlight your curves, not hide them, by emphasising your waist.

Key Buy: A Belted Jumper

Key Buy: A Crop Top

Key Buy: A Pencil Skirt

Key Buy: A Wrap Dress

Apple

If you have a slim lower body and carry weight around your middle, you’ve got an apple shape. Your goal is to minimise your midsection by highlighting your shoulders and legs.

Key Buy: A High-Waisted Skirt

Key Buy: A Shift Dress

Key Buy: Straight-Leg Tailored Pants

Banana

If you’re not very curvy and your hips are around the same size as your waist, you’ve got a banana shape. Your goal is to highlight the thinnest part of your waist so your hips and bust appear larger and more proportional.

Key Buy: Wrap Top

Key Buy: Cropped Jacket

Key Buy: Side Cutout Dress

Key Buy: Tapered Trousers

Pear

If the widest part of your body is around your hips, you’ve got a pear shape. Your goal is to elongate and balance your figure by accentuating your top half.

Key Buy: An Off-the-Shoulder Dress

Key Buy: Structured Jacket

Key Buy: An A-Line Skirt

Key Buy: Flared Jeans

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Editor in Chief

Kat Collings has over 15 years of experience in the editorial fashion space, largely in digital publishing. She currently leads the vision for editorial content at WhoWhatWear.com as the site's editor in chief, having risen through the editorial ranks after joining the company in 2012. Collings is a Digiday Future Leader Awards nominee, was named Buzzfeed's best fashion Instagram accounts of the year, and is a member of the CFDA Awards Fashion Guild. Prior to Who What Wear, Collings worked on styling projects for brands such as Vogue, Teen Vogue, Lucky, and Oliver Peoples. She graduated from UCLA with a BA in communications and calls Los Angeles home.