How you dress your curvy body is vital to feeling confident in your clothes! So what are the best style tips for plus size women? This topic has been requested many times by Style Fix Studio clients, many wanting more specific personal styling tips for dressing plus size women.
Beauty and Stereotypes
From a very young age, women are raised to live up to beauty standards put upon them by society.
Social media, television, magazines and newspapers tend to promote these stereotypes of beauty that are unhealthy, narrow and unrealistic. They’re typically only reflective of white standards and lack diversity of all sizes, ages, skin shades, hair types and body shapes.
But the fact is that we are all different! And every body is different. And that’s ok.
As a personal stylist in MA, after years of working with women of all shapes and sizes to help them look and feel their best in their clothes, I decided to share the best style tips and recommendations for plus size women.
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Easy Style Tips for Plus Size Women
Whether you need outfit inspiration or a full wardrobe refresh, these easy style tips will help you build your dream wardrobe and look your best every day.
Style Tip for Plus Size Women #1:
Dress your body as it is today with what fits NOW
Accept your body as it is today. Stop thinking of your current body as work in progress or “temporary”. Focus on what works for you now instead of wearing clothes that don’t fit and don’t make you look good. Stop worrying about losing weight and delaying buying the right size clothes till next year when you finally achieve (or don’t achieve) your weight loss goal.
You may or may not lose weight in the next 6 months. Don’t think about the size tag on the clothes, this number on the size tag doesn’t mean much. Dress your current body type with what fits you now. This will help you look great and feel confident!
Shop through any weight changes and invest in essential pieces, even if you gain or lose a few pounds. Wear clothes that fit you. The most important thing is to feel you look your very best at every size.
Style Tip for Plus Size Women #2:
Know Your Body Shape
Body shape is the foundation for finding flattering clothes. There are different shapes for plus size women too. The five main body type shapes are rectangle, inverted triangle, hourglass, pear, and apple.
There is science behind WHY certain shaped clothes flatter different body silhouettes. Wearing the right clothes based on your specific body type is a great way to emphasize your best features and to play down places you want to hide.
For example, empire line dresses look great on pear-shaped women with smaller waists and bigger thighs. But empire lines should be avoided if you’re apple shaped because the fit around the waist can make you look bigger than you are and create a maternity look.
Style Tip for Plus Size Women #3:
Strike the right balance between fitted and too tight.
No one (not even very slim women!) looks good in super tight clothing.
There is a difference between being squeezed up in a dress and a dress that fits your body nicely.
If you see lines of underwear through the clothes – that’s when you know the clothes are too tight.
Style Tip for Plus Size Women #4:
Invest in great shapewear and underwear
Starting with the right undergarments is very important. Undergarments literally create a foundation for the rest of your outfit.
Every woman sometimes needs a little bit of smoothing, cinching, and support.
It is especially important for plus size women.
Smoothing in the tummy area and hips can make a woman look more polished in her clothes.
Make sure you are using the right size underwear and bras. Get fitted for a great bra at any specialty undergarment shops in your area.
Style Tip for Plus Size Women #5:
Wear whatever makes you feel confident
How you dress your curvy body is integral to feeling confident in your clothes.
Even if it’s beautiful, high quality, trendy, or expensive, if you don’t feel like you are your best self in that piece of clothing, don’t wear it!
Nothing is worth sacrificing how you feel about yourself. Wear whatever makes you feel comfortable and confident.
Style Tip for Plus Size Women #6:
Invest in Highest-quality Basic Pieces
If you plan to spend the money on clothes, get quality basic pieces.
Don’t buy lower quality trendy clothes that you won’t want to wear for more than a year or two. Quality clothes are made from better material and are sewn more professionally. They won’t shrink or wear funny, and will last longer than cheap clothes.
Buying quality means it’s worth the money.
Style Tip for Plus Size Women #7:
Partner with a professional plus size stylist and get your personalized plus size fashion advice
Many people think that only celebrities can work with a personal stylist/wardrobe consultant. And that is not true! Personal stylists nowadays assist clients of varying budgets, genders, and ages.
Many women hire a stylist or a wardrobe consultant for plus size women to help them build a wardrobe that would allow them to look their best and feel confident in their clothes.
A wardrobe consultant wears multiple hats: advisor, coach, cheerleader, and confidante. A personal stylist can also figure out which looks work best for you after life-changing events like weight gain, weight loss, new job, pregnancy, or divorce.
Working with a plus size fashion stylist can be very helpful, especially for plus size women. A plus size wardrobe consultant can help their clients project a better image of themselves by enhancing their physical attributes and minimizing weaknesses.
A personal stylist understands how one’s overall appearance is the focus. They can make suggestions regarding outfit arrangements, cut and fit, hairstyle, color choices, and makeup application to create the total look that makes sense.
Love Your Bodies!
Many women are struggling to love their bodies (regardless of their size), but it’s really a matter of perception and confidence.
Don’t let how you feel about your body rule your life, affect your relationships and your happiness!
Be proud of who you are now and what your body has given you. Stop hiding, and celebrate in the light!
Style Fix Studio offers a range of personal styling services for men and women from Closet Audit, to Personal Styling Service with a Try-on Session, to Total Image Makeovers Services for all ages. Contact Style Fix Studio today to schedule a consultation with a personal stylist. Transform your look, transform your life!
