Your measurements lie!

When I was trying to figure out my body shape, I noticed that many people believed that they could find an accurate answer looking at body measurements alone. I'm talking about this (in)famous body shape survey:


You might not notice that something is terribly wrong. Especially if you fit into one of the four categories. I don't.

Let us look closer. I'm not a rectangle and not a triangle - that much is obvious even without knowing my exact measurements. Here they are:


102-69-105 in centimetres (40.2-27.2-41.3 in inches, more or less)


The difference between my bust and hips is 3 cm (about 1.2"). The first category, "hourglass", is not for me, then. But then again, the difference between my bust and my waist is 33 cm (about 13"). I clearly do not fit the "pear" category, then.

This was just an example.


Anyway, what do my measurements tell you about my body? My waist is defined, yes. On the other hand, a woman with small ribcage and big bust can have exactly the same chest circumference as a woman with big ribcage and smaller bust. You don't know which one is me. I can have very wide hips and a flat bum - or not that wide hips and a very prominent rear. Last but not least, there are two factors that determine your shape, but are not covered by your body measurements - shoulders and thighs. You can have two women with identical measurements - the first with broad shoulders and slim thighs, the second with narrow shoulders and big thighs with saddlebags. The first one would look more top-heavy, while the other one would be bottom-heavy.

Do you understand me? Your measurements are not really relevant. I've seen many desperate girls asking online questions like "im 86-63-89 (34-25-35) am i a pear or a hourglass???!!!11". I bet they all want to hear that they're hourglasses. But honestly, does it change anything? If you thought that you were a hourglass, and then someone told you that you were a pear, would you really morph from Salma Hayek into Alicia Keys?

It doesn't matter, my dear. It's just the beginning. Let me tell you something: despite my measurements, I'm not as proportionate as you might have thought. My ribcage is quite small, my shoulders are narrow - but then, my hips are the widest part of my body and my thighs are definitely not skinny. All these factors make me bottom-heavy (or pear-shaped, if you like).

My main goal is to add volume to my shoulders (but not to my boobs, which can be tricky) and to disguise my large bottom half. Even if my bust grew up to 110 cm (43.3"), my shape wouldn't change much. And yes, I believe that pears don't have to be flat-chested.

This is how it looks:



(the font is called "An Ode To Noone" and is free for non-commercial use)

If you're unsure of your body shape... visit YouLookFab and Inside Out Style. Both Angie and Imogen are extremely nice and helpful. If you're curious, I'm a busty pear according to YLF and an 8 with small shoulders according to IOS.

Have fun!