- Spoon Body Shape - October 29, 2023
- Bottom Hourglass - October 29, 2023
- Top Hourglass - October 28, 2023
At Body Calculate, we believe that everyone’s fashion goals are unique and go beyond simply appearing slimmer, or as it is often referred to in the industry, “more flattering”. Our aim is to guide you in styling your distinctive body shape to meet your specific fashion desires for your body shape.
These guides are just that – guides. They are not rigid rules or laws, and they certainly should not define anyone’s personal style or worth.
To discover and explore your body shape online, try this body shape calculator.
What are Body Shapes?
Body shape refers to the general silhouette, contour or outline a person’s body that closely represents various shapes the most common being hourglass, rectangle, apple, pear and inverted triangle.
Body shapes help organize styling suggestions based on the many diverse body types. They provide an initial framework to understand how different styles might complement your unique shape. But, since everyone’s body is unique, and not everyone will fit neatly into one specific shape category. You may find that your own body shape borders on several categories or doesn’t seem to fit into any of them perfectly.
Dress in a way that makes you feel comfortable, confident, and authentically you, no matter your body shape. Use our specific body shape guides and borrow different rules from other similar body shapes to help you achieve the look or style you are after.
Body Shapes
We have compiled a body shape list below:
Hourglass
The bust and hips are approximately the same width, with a narrower waist. Smaller waist is generally well defined against lower body and upper body. Also known as x shape, figure eight, double curve, balanced, curvy, proportional, symmetrical, sand timer, dual arc, equal, even, bilateral. Read more about hourglass here.
Rectangle
The bust, waist, and hips are about the same width. Body areas are mostly balanced. Also known as straight, banana, column, h shape, tube, tubular, athletic, ruler, boyish, and square. Read more about rectangle here.
Apple
The waist is wider than the bust and hips. Larger mid-section. Also known as round, oval, circle, sphere, ball, circular, bulbous and apple-like. Read more about apple here.
Pear/Triangle
The hips are wider than the bust, and the waist gradually slopes out to the hips. Larger lower body. Also known as triangle, bell, spoon, gourd, bottom-heavy, lower body dominant, pyramid. Read more about pear/triangle here.
Inverted Triangle
The bust is wider than the hips. Upper body is generally larger than lower body. Also known as v shape, cone, funnel, carrot, top-heavy, upper body dominant, wedge, pyramid (upside-down). Read more about pear here.
More Body Shapes:
- Hourglass-like shapes:
- Top Hourglass
- Bottom Hourglass
- 8 Shape
- Vase
- Cello
- Guitar
- Dome
- Wine Glass
- Butterfly
- Serpentine
- Rectangle-like shapes:
- Athletic
- Lean Column
- Column
- I Shape
- Tubular
- Balanced
- Pencil
- Cylinder
- Capsule
- Apple-like shapes:
- Oval
- Diamond
- Lollipop
- Goblet
- Balloon
- Sculpted
- Lantern
- Jug
- Gourd
- Bulb
- Pear-like shapes:
- Spoon or Bell
- Skittle
- Teardrop
- Kite
- Pyramid
- Spoon
- Inverted Triangle-like shapes:
- Flute
- Cornet
- Brick
- Carrot
- Cone
- Obelisk
- Chisel
- Other shapes (those that don’t fit neatly into the main categories or are too specific/unique):
- Champagne
- Saucer
How to Find your Body Shape
The easiest way to check what your body shape is to measure your bust, waist and hips and compare the proportions.
How and What to Measure:
- Bust: Measure around the widest part of your chest, the tape measure needs to be level fully around your bust and back.
- Waist: Measure around the smallest part of your natural waistline, typically 1- 3 inches above your belly button. Keep you mid section relaxed and no sucking in or pushing out.
- Hips: Measure around the widest part of your hips and buttocks.
Identify Your Body Shape:
Now you are ready to move onto comparing you measurements:
- Hourglass: If your bust and hips measurements are about equal, and your waist is noticeably smaller, you likely have an hourglass shape.
- Bottom Hourglass: Your bust and hips can be smaller than each other as with a smaller bust and bigger hips with a smaller waist you would be a bottom hourglass.
- Top Hourglass: And same applies with bigger bust and smaller hips, you would be a top hourglass, noting the smaller waist.
- Rectangle: If your bust, waist, and hips measurements are about the same, you may have a rectangle shape.
- Apple: If your waist measurement is wider than your bust or hips, you might have an apple shape.
- Pear: If your hip measurement is wider than your bust, and your waist is not as defined or bigger than your bust or your hips, you likely have a pear or triangle shape.
- Spoon: If your hip measurement is wider than your bust, your waist is not as defined or bigger your hips and your bust and waist are a similar size, you may have a spoon body shape.
- Inverted Triangle: If your bust is wider than your hips and your waist is not wider than your hips, you might have an inverted triangle or V shape.
You may also refine your shape into the some of the smaller lesser known body shapes that fall under you main body shape category. See above list.
Online calculators
An online body shape calculator analyzes your body measurements to determine what shape your body resembles most. Most body shape calculators typically use bust, waist and hip measurements. But some also include and are not limited to, shoulders and high hip.
Working out your body shape relies on measurement rules or standards established by designers and fashion experts. We have developed our online calculator to also show you the various other body shapes you are closely related to. We call in a body shape score test. This test provides insights into other body shapes that your figure may have similarities with. Our aim is to offer you better understanding of your body’s unique proportions, going beyond the standard categories and diving into other categories where you may find additional styling and fashion advice.
Using Body Shapes
It’s important to keep in mind that just because you identify with a certain body shape, it does not necessarily mean you have to strictly class yourself as that particular body shape, you may share similarities with other shapes. Keep an open mind when narrowing down you rbody shape as you will no doubt share traits with other shapes.
The body shape system is a tool. A tool to better understand your proportions so you can make clothing and style choices that make you feel your best or help you on what ever fashion goal or quest you are trying to achieve. Body diversity and positivity is becoming so widely accepted now, and just because we are a certain body shape does not mean we have to limit ourselves because of the shapes associated rules or “norms”. Now has never been a more perfect time to be YOU.
