Trompe l'oeil: Midsection

This article is 1 of 3 in a series describing the best attire for various body styles.

The French phrase "trompe l'oeil" loosely translates to "deceive the eye". That is the purpose of knowing your body shape and how to improve your figure using the proper styles for it. The best way to minimize a fuller midsection is by drawing attention to the center of the body or accentuating both shoulders and hips. The body shapes that will likely have the most issues with a wider midsection are: Oval & Diamond.

You don't want to look shapeless so steer clear of anything overly baggy. You may not realize it but you get to dress in some of the most fun fashion: open shoulder tops and A-line skirts! You're also not limited by color blocking - lucky you! Your ideal shape solution would be either a boat neck or open shoulder with a peplum detail on the bottom. There are many peplum fashioned tops at this time (Fall 2018). Hi-low tops would also help pull the eye away from the midsection, for those who can pull off a higher front!

Visual Guide for Oval & Diamond:

A quick google search will provide plenty of brand options. Tops with accents at the bust area that taper out at the hip would be a great style for you.  Pair either of those top styles with a tailored blazer and you'll be the definition of Haute! Steer clear of tops that taper in toward the neck or taper at the bottom; this styling will emphasize your midsection.  Leggings and skinny jeans will emphasize your midsection if not paired with the right top; use these as needed. A straight leg trouser or jean will help lengthen and equalize your lower half.

Ideal Wardrobe to Minimize a Midsection:

First Published: 10/24/18

Cowl Neck Refashion

I had this grey cowl sweatshirt that I loved, but I felt it was just a bit warm for wearing it sooner, per my preference, in the subtropical autumn environment. Autumn weather in the subtropics doesn't roll around until late November, and even then it's more like a rainy season.

I picked up the floral raglan shirt for $1 at a second hand store. I had the grey cowl shirt already and due to its raglan structure I decided to try to add the floral back from the $1 shirt to this much loved grey cowl sweatshirt.

Although the raglan was a medium and the cowl was a large, I only lost a little bit of room in the back and the back of the cowl had to be taken in by 2 inches.

Living in a super humid environment has made me look for ways to lighten the structure of several of my favorite shirts.

Shape, Type, Physique

If you've read my post on Shape & Minimalism, you've identified your body shape. Congratulations! Now you're ready to learn something else that will make your fashion choices easier: body type.

If you've never seen a Dress Form, the best ones have adjustments for various body measurements. The best ones I've seen account for these areas:

Neck

Bust

Torso height

Waist

Hip

Height

All these measurements will provide an overview of your physique. The definition of physique is: the form, size, and development of a person's body. The definitions of shape (form) and type (size and develoment) provided here can be used to find your overall physique.

Now what are the different body types, as defined by the general physiological community?

Ectomorph

Lean and long, with difficulty building muscle.

Endomorph

Big, high body fat, often pear-shaped, with a high tendency to store body fat. 

Mesomorph

Muscular and well-built, with a high metabolism and responsive muscle cells.

If you're curious about in depth details, navigate to this site: Muscle and Strength

There are certain body shapes that will fall into the strict definition of each type, but there are several shapes that can be combined with any of the types. It all depends on your body structure. 

When looking at clothing for yourself, you need to take both body shape and body type into account. What will work for an hourglass ectomorph body may not work well for an hourglass mesomorph body. No matter what the fashion industry tries to tell you!

People have lots of obstacles about accepting their bodies. Be it weight, height, shape, skin tone...the list goes on. Just like a healthcare regimen, you need to understand some things about yourself. Especially your own physique. You're the one living in your skin, you should know a few things about it. 

Please take the time to understand your shape, you owe it to yourself, your family, and especially any children that are watching you. Be aware of what you say, not just about yourself, but others also. Remember your words get internalized in young minds. When you teach yourself self-love, it can only spread to others.

If your dream is to have an hourglass figure, but it's really a pear shape figure, no matter what gains you make your mind will tell you you're still not good enough, and that could set you back on all the progress you have made if you've been working toward body goals!

The biggest culprits to closet clutter are the following wishful thoughts:

1. Size-oriented

2. Weather-oriented

As other articles have stated, many people are guilty of creating a fantasy wardrobe. One that consists of clothing that doesn't fit their bodies or lifestyle! I'm certainly guilty of this myself. My closet was full of long sleeve shirts, and I live in a subtropical climate!

Remember, as you peruse clothing racks and even evaluate your existing wardrobe, you need to ask yourself these questions:

1. Does it work for my physique

2. Do I love it

3. How often can I wear it - seasonal and transitional use

Knowing your physique will allow you to better purge what you have to get down to the things that you really love. You'll soon be loving your closet, and body again!

Climate & Minimalism

As I purged my closet of approximately two large trash bags of clothing I realized my wardrobe had not been properly tailored for the climate I live in. I've always been in love with the Autumn season. I have a deep love of fall colors, warm sweaters, knee high boots, and a hot drink in hand at all times. However, I live in a humid subtropic climate and therefore I eliminated several long sleeve shirts, scarves, and cardigans that I otherwise would have held onto.

I still have more clothes than I like to admit. My office wardrobe has been purged down to 41 items for all seasons. All items in it are ideal for where I live. I'm stumped how I could have, over time, collected the quantity of clothing I have along with the wrong fashions for where I live. I think ignorance of my closet, and the lure of trendy fashions are to blame. The clothing industry operates on a highly generalized seasonal schedule. Remembering the climate you live in will help provide additional guidance for what you need to keep versus what should go away.

I've drawn up a climate guide based on several different maps I've found across the web. Mountainous regions, due to altitude will have different seasonal rules. The seasonal bars, I've guess-timated based on other regions I've lived in or visited.

Click here for larger image.

I have cataloged 90% of my wardrobe in an Android App called "Your Closet". For iPhone users, Stylebook & Cladwell have come highly recommended from GradSchoolStyle. I hope the diagram above proves to be positive reinforcement for purging your wardrobe of items not regionally appropriate.

Asymmetric Modification

I saw this beautifully asymmetric cotton tee at a beach boutique. I loved its design, just not its price. It did inspire me to try this one sleeve modification to a shirt I had set aside for some kind of refashion. I've been waiting for cooler weather to wear it, I'm so looking forward to it! This is 1 of 3 white tops in my closet.

I used the original cuff as the neckline attachment and made a new bodice edge from the detached sleeve material. My cuts were done free hand; the front cut and back cuts were made separately. They were married to the new neckline piece. I added a ribbon hanger loop.

As you can see based on these 2 pictures, just taking off the sleeve and adding a neckline attachment was not sufficient for a proper fit. I had to take in the side also due to the roomier design of the original sleeve.

First Fitting

Final Fitting

Shape and Minimalism

I had tried out the Polyvore application some time back and it lead me down the path of body shape styling. Before encountering this concept I never realized I, along with most people of the female persuasion, was being  manipulated by the fashion and trend industry. As a teenager I was comfortable enough with my body to run around in tight tank tops, and midriff style tops. I was still very subconscious of my shape, however. The reason for this, I've realized, is because I wasn't the wafer thin, hour glass figures that I saw portrayed out of Hollywood's teen films. 

If Jennifer Lawrence had been acting at that time maybe I would've figured out how great I looked. Alas, like every other teen girl out there, I thought I was fat. And someone summed this up beautifully in this GIF:

Now I've learned a few things since my teen years, and I know that the stick figure mannequins and photo shopped images in magazines is someone else's pipe dream of beauty. I've had to struggle and accept my own shape. For most of my life, I had no idea what that was! I'm betting many girls and women out there don't either.

I'm going to run through a primer of the common body shapes here for you. Over time I'll be creating posts around each body shape, the best styling and minimalist wardrobe that you can create for yourself.

Let's begin...

First, you'll need to determine your measurements which will identify your shape. To do this, take measurements at these locations - these are all flat measurements, not the usual sewing measurements which is around the body.

1. Shoulders - straight across, shoulder to shoulder
2. Bust/Chest - measure across the upper most portion of your rib cage, across the bust area
3. Waist - measure from side to side
4. Hips - widest part of your hip area, this could be either at the natural hip or your upper thighs, target whichever is widest
5. Measure the distance from each point: Shoulder to Bust, Bust to Waist, Waist to Hips
6. Take all those measurements and divide by 10. You can then draw out in inches on a piece of paper the corresponding line lengths to determine your body shape.

I was NOT happy about the shape I identified for myself. This is where fantasy and reality collide. For some, it could take a few days to accept your shape. To accept that you're not the Marilyn Monroe hour glass figure everyone fantasizes about having is a large mental and emotional hurdle to overcome. Trust me, once you let go of your fantasy shape, you'll find yourself much happier in the body you're living in!

The different shapes can be grouped into 4 categories, each defined by the widest part of the body. My lists have the most common name for each body type and each indented item is a synonymous name. I'm not sure why there are so many names to similar shapes, it may be that people are trying to capture body type as well as shape. It all gets very confusing, You can use the various names to look for boards and images that are readily available out there to get an idea of the clothing styles and fashioning that would look best on you!

I hope these lists help you identify your shape, improve your body outlook, and of course, open doors to the proper styles for yourself!

Equal Bust/Hip

• Rectangle : chest, waist, hips are equal
• Hourglass: chest and hips are equal, waist is thinnest area

Wider Top

• Inverted Triangle: Bust and waist are equal, hips are thinnest area
• Lollipop: Waist and hips are equal, larger bust area, wide shoulders
• Apple: Bust is larger than hips and waist is well defined

Wider Midsection

• Oval: Large bust, full midsection, narrow hips
• Diamond: Waist is wider than bust and hips

Wider Hip

• Triangle: Hips are wider than bust and waist
• Pear
• Spoon

By identifying my body shape it's been much easier to purge my closet and pass on those trendy pieces in malls. If it's not likely to make me happy, I just say No! I'll discuss more in depth in later posts, or share great articles, about buying quality over trendy. If anyone has the background to do this, it's certainly me!

This is step one in shifting to a more minimalist and streamlined closet. I won't claim it will streamline your whole life, but I know it's helped me be happier with the things I've identified look great for my body, my closet, and my wallet!

P.S. The Polyvore application has been shut down after SSense, a Montreal company acquired it for the user base - which it surreptitiously lost. What can I say, they're French.

New Century WHAT?

You may be wondering what New Century has to do with crafting. It's a play on words describing my personal aesthetic. New Century  is a twist on the old reliable "mid century modern" design of the 50s and 60s. The crafty is a play on another architectural style: Craftsman, and my love of crafting.

I love the decor and artistic styles that involve mixed media, textures and mashes up traditional style. My crafting addictions are sewing/fashion, scrapbooking, foliage and miscellaneous crafts that embellish all the above.

I adore seasonal crafts that bring on the spirit of each season's holidays. They add to the memory making of each holiday and family event which of course gets added to a scrapbook, as at least a notable mention on a page.

In this blog you'll see my various crafting attempts. They dont always come out perfect, but there's always a new skill that is being tried. I hope you find enjoyment through my shared experiences, learn from my mistakes and find inspiration all around.