Fashion Tips for a Slim Fit
Written by Kathy J. McFadden Tuesday, October 12 2010
How does math come into play with fashion? Simple. Your body is made of inches, patterns are based on inches, and the material is cut in inches. All fashion books deal with the body shape, but not the linear (vertical) proportion of the body.
This is where the bones come into play with fashion. Believe it or not, your bone structure has everything to do with how the garment is going to hang on your body. The clothing industry uses a standard perfectly proportioned body, which consists of eight perfect head lengths from the top of the head to the bottom of the foot for making clothes.
It does not take into consideration if you have a short waist or a long waist; if your torso is longer than your legs, or if your legs are longer than your torso; if the bone from the top of your leg to your knee is longer than the bone from your knee to your ankle; and, last but not least, if your arm bones are long or short.
As you can see there are numerous variables that have to be in place to make up the perfectly proportion body. We have measured over 10,000 women and have found only 22 perfectly proportion bodies, which represents about .01 percent of the population.
Every body is unique! This is why most of you wear only 20 percent to 30 percent of the clothes you purchase, creating “closet guilt.” Now you know why you feel frumpy in your clothes. Off the rack doesn’t mean ready to wear.
Tip for Looking Thinner
On a jacket, tuck the flap on the pocket inside the pocket. It will immediately make you look thinner in the hips. Also, three-quarter length sleeves that are to your perfect length will make your hips look thinner. They visually stop the eye at the inside of the arm instead of extending it to the outside of the arm.
It’s possible to look 15 to 20 pounds thinner, taller, and confident in all your clothes. It’s based on bone structure.
Kathy J. McFadden is president of Fashion Fit Formula, www.fashionfitformula.com, Annapolis, Md. She held positions as CEO of the Mechanical Contractors Association of Metropolitan Washington and the Mechanical Contractors Association of Kansas for a combined total of 18 years.
