With all the stress involved in planning the entire wedding process, you can imagine how difficult it is to find the perfect wedding dress that fits you perfectly and makes you look gorgeous, while you’re smiling in all your awesomeness, soaking up the rays of the sun, and being pampered with love by your loved ones. If you really want to look your best on your big day, you need to find a wedding dress that truly compliments your figure.
No Generalisation Here
With all the different body types that we are blessed with, it’s impossible to generalise based on what’s trending at the moment. You’ll need to think about wedding dress styles for different body types and your body type, before you pick up that dress and make sure it hides all your imperfections and highlights the best parts of your body shape.
But before you fall in love with that dress you’ve been dreaming of, you need to understand your body type and know how to make the most of it.
You’ll find the advice below helpful in determining your ideal body shape and how to select the ideal wedding dress.
1. The Precious Petite One
If you are constantly searching for the label ‘S’ or ‘XS’ while shopping for your wedding dress, you can rest assured that among the various wedding dress styles by body type, you have a petite body with a slim waist and slightly curvy body. To accentuate your willow frame, you should avoid wedding dresses that are overly embellished with frills and details, but opt for simple and elegant wedding dresses that have a soft cut and a perfectly fitted silhouette. You should keep the ruffle and frills to a minimum, as the excess fabric will overpower you and make you look like an afterthought. You can choose a design like trumpet styles, an empire waistline or a column dress that will also create an illusion of height when you wear it with your favorite heels.
2. The Plus Size Wonder
If you are on the heavier side of your body type, you can also easily choose a wedding dress that is tailored to that body frame. For such a figure, you can choose two wedding dress styles for body types, depending on yourself when choosing a dress. You can either make your curves shine by emphasizing them with a fitting dress or choose a wedding dress that creates a graceful and slimming effect. With a fuller body, you can easily transfer styles like asymmetric pleats, compressions and narrow waists. You can also choose a flat or V-neckline if you want to highlight some cleavage..
3. Heavier At The Top
If you look heavy at the top with a voluptuous and impressive bustline, the key to choosing the right wedding dress is picking the right neckline that will work best for you. Don’t go for a deep neckline and opt for modest necklines that won’t spill or scoop your bosom. You can also try your hand at an off-shoulder dress, sweetheart neckline or even a boat neck shape to add elegance to your attire. Avoid deep plunging necklines and spaghetti or noodle strap wedding dresses and opt for broad strapped gowns that will provide more support for your bustline. You can choose modesty lace or a lace overlay with your wedding dress to distract attention from heavy bosom.
4. One With The Small Bust
If you are more broad-built and have a modest bust, you have a lot of options among the wedding dress styles for different body types. For example, you can easily go for a plunging neckline or even a jewel neckline. Dresses with bosom padding can work wonders on your bust area. You can also experiment with noodle or thin straps to flatter your beautiful-bone and draw attention away from your bust. However, try not to wear a tube dress or a sweetheart neckline. The small bust will not give them the support they need and you will feel the dress slipping off from time to time, which can be very uncomfortable.
5. The Pear Shaped Beauty
If you’re heavier below the waist, you have a pear-shaped body type. There are many ways to look amazing in this gorgeous body type, as long as you choose the right cut and neckline. When selecting a dress for this type of body type, opt for A-line dresses and cuts that accentuate this type of figure. You can also play off the curves a little by choosing cuts and silhouettes like the draped Greek gowns. The type of wedding dress styles other than your body type that you should avoid are mermaid cuts or tiered gowns which accentuate the bottom portion further, which is something you absolutely want to avoid.
6. The Apple Shaped Delight
If you have a top heavy body with unique features like a wide torso, full framed and wide shoulders, a full bust, a waist and an upper back then you can be the apple-shaped body type.
You may notice that your arms are thinner, your legs are slimmer and your hips are gaining weight mostly at and around your waistline.
If you want to highlight your best features for this body type then you can choose a wedding dress that is made of strong fabric like satin or taffeta or even raw silk.
An empire waistline will accentuate your upper half and hide the problem areas.
7. An Hourglass Figure
If you have a top heavy body with unique features like a wide torso, well defined and wide shoulders, a full bust, a full waist and an upper back then you can definitely be the one with the apple shaped body type. You might notice that your arms are thinner, your legs are slimmer and your hips are slimmer and the gaining of weight mostly happens at and around your waistline. To highlight your best features for this body type you can choose a wedding dress that is made of strong fabric like satin or taffeta or even raw silk. Choose a style like an empire waistline that accentuates your upper half and hides the problem areas.
8. The Athletic Type
If you are very slim and straight with very few curves, then you are an athlete body type. On the other hand, if you are on the slim side, there are many wedding dress styles for all body types that will work for you.
You can create the illusion of curves on your wedding day by choosing a voluminous gown and a ball dress with fitted bodice and flared, full skirt. Layering of silk and satin with lace and net will add the body to the areas where it isn’t there.
Other designs that look good on your body type include a sheath dress, a gown with contouring cuts and dresses that have strategic embroidery that will add volume to the wrong places and perfectly distract from the problem areas.
Styling Tips For That Perfect Wedding Dress
1. The Right Shapewears
The invention of these amazing shapewear has revolutionised the way we shape our bodies. The right shapewear will instantly shave inches off your problem areas, tone that bulging stomach or thighs, and reduce your size by several inches.
2. Highlight Your Best Features
There is no such thing as a perfect body, but it does matter how you show off your best attributes and put your best face forward. Choose dresses that show off your best features, such as a slender waist, well-toned thighs or well-cut arms.
3. Choose A Dress That Suits You
Just because you’ve seen that killer dress on the runways and fell in love with it doesn’t mean you should jump at it just because it’s on the rack. Wedding dress styles by body type make a huge difference. Choose the dress that best suits your body type instead of following the trend blindly. Choose a dress carefully only after you’ve carefully gone through your body’s shape and size to make sure you’re choosing the best dress for you.
4. Size Changes From Brand To Brand
There is no guarantee that a size 4 from one brand will fit you perfectly, and the same size from another brand will fit you equally. Sizes differ from brand to brand, and you need to keep this in mind before you make a purchase, especially if it’s an online purchase. If you can, go for a trial first to select a dress regardless of the brand.