STYLEWATCH: Dressing To Suit Your Body Shape...HOURGLASS

Last time on Stylewatch we talked about choosing necklines that suit your face shape, body type and bust size . This week we  are going to look at the various body shapes and how to dress to flatter your shape, knowing the clothes that will highlight your assets and minimise your flaws. Today we'll talk about the hourglass shape.

Not sure of your shape?

Celebrity style gurus Trinny Woodall and Susannah Constantine in their brilliant new book, The Body Shape Bible, have identified 12 body shapes - not just the classic Pear, Apple and Hourglass.

 HOURGLASS SHAPE:

 

Trinny and Susannah’s the Hourglass is described as big tits, small waist, short waist, big hips and generous thighs.
An hourglass, in Trinny and Susannah’s array of shapes, is curvy and has a tiny waist. Of course so does the Vase but the difference between a Vase and an Hourglass is the waist. Both have a narrow waist but in an Hourglass the waist is short creating the illusion that the waist is narrower. You have an actual Hourglass shape.
An Hourglass’s waist is tiny in comparison with breasts and hips. This is the main difference between an Hourglass and a Cello. A Cello has similar proportions but with a wider waist and rounder bottom.

Dressing the hourglass
For an Hourglass the biggest issue is likely to be breasts. They’re there, they’re big and they attract attention. It’s a bit of a conundrum, particularly if you don’t want that kind of attention, but the best strategy for an Hourglass is to work the figure that you have. The key is to work with your curves in a way that feels comfortable and sexy without overemphasising them or throwing off your balanced frame.
Do – get a good supportive bra and lift and separate your breasts. Get fitted. Without proper undergarments nothing will look right.
Don’t – try and cover up as all that happens is you throw off your propoprtion and end up looking and feeling frumpy.
Do – embrace your femininity and take advantage of your curves; make peace with your shape and strut your stuff.
Don’t – avoid all volume and bulk in your clothes, like chunky knits, frilly shirts or big bows.
Do – go for simple classic lines. The Hourglass should be the most formally dressed person in the room. Casual is harder because you have a more formal shape and it just looks out of place.
Don’t – wear high necklines ever. Ever, ever. It makes your breasts look large and cumbersome rather than feminine and beautiful.

Clothes – what to avoid
Baggy clothes – baggy clothes are never a good idea for anyone but where a Column or Pear might be able to pull it off you will not. You must work with your shape for best results and that means fitted clothes.
Tops with extras – avoid an flounces, frills, bows or other decorations on your tops. Also be aware of printed t-shirts. What looks great on the rack may take on a life of it’s own when introduced to your breasts.
Big belts – you have a short waist so putting a big belt in it will make it entirely disappear.
Pointy shoes – a pointed shoe will contrast with your curves and make you look curvier, something you don’t need any help with.
Clothes – what shapes to look for
Deep v neck fitted cardigan – the v-neck will open up your breasts giving you definition on your top half whilst the clinging material of the knit will highlight your waist. Wear it buttoned if you can as a great alternative to a jacket. It’s a very retro look that, despite it’s casualness can be very elegant, and an Hourglass can pull off with the greatest of ease.
Drapey trousers – finding pants that fit can be quite the challenge for the hourglass as your waist is smaller than your hips and thighs. Opt for a soft flexible fabric that fits and flows over your bottom half rather than one that fits your middle. Wear the waist band covered with a good top that ends just at the bottom of your crotch to cover.


Fitted blouse – a big issue for hourglasses is finding a shirt that will fit over your breasts without ballooning around your narrow waist. Look for a shirt that’s fitted under your bust for best effect but make sure the fitting actually starts under your bust. Even then you may need to get it tailored to fit.
Fitted dress that elongates the waist – as is always the case with an Hourglass choose an open neckline to open up your chest and minimize your bust. From there look for a dress that fits your shape, nipping in at the waist at a lower point. It works with your shape whilst making your waist look longer and consequently the whole shape thinner.
Two button jacket – choose a open necked jacket that’s nipped in at the waist. A two button fitted jacket works perfectly as the buttons contain and elongate your waist, again giving the illusion that your waist is longer and making your look slimmer.


Pencil skirt – a pencil skirt is made for an hourglass. The way it moulds itself around your curves is perfect to show off your feminine shape and you have the shape to carry it off. Wear it with a fitted top to show off your tiny waist and full top half and maintain balance.
Scoop neck t-shirt – a scoop neck or a deep v-neck are the Hourglass’s ideal t-shirts. The neckline opens up your chest, and though you have quite a bit of cleavage on show it’s actually much more slimming and comfortable than a higher necked shirt that highlight’s the breasts. Select a fitted shirt that will mould itself to your shape so you work that tiny waist. On this shirt the cropped sleeve finishes at the waist drawing further attention.

Curvy shoes – an Hourglass is all curves so the best shoes will be ones that echo those curves. Avoid pointed stiletto’s – they will be a jarring item in an otherwise pulled together look. Opt for a heel that’s in keeping with your frame. Look for rounded toes or peep toes.

 

 

 bodyshapestyle.com

 

 

 

Owerri: 4 Suspected Child Traffickers Nabbed

The police in Owerri, Nigeria have arrested one Eze Okoro of Gerald Obawuchi Street, Okigwe, and his son, Chika, for allegedly kidnapping and selling a five-month old baby boy.
The Public Relations Officer of the Imo police command, Mr Vitalis Onugu, while briefing newsmen in Owerri on Friday alleged that the suspects sold the baby to one Clement Okorie and and his wife, Emelda, for N150,000.

Onugwu said the couple was also helping the police with their investigation.

He said the identity of the parents of the baby was yet to be determined, adding that the police was still investigating the matter.


NAN

Mob Kills 2 Robbery Suspects In Owerri

The police in Owerri on Friday said a mob killed two suspected members of a four-man robbery gang, believed to have been terrorising residents of Spibat area of Akwakuma, Owerri.
The Public Relations Officer of the state Police Command, Mr Vitalis Onugu, told reporters that the suspects were arrested by members of the Special Anti-Robbery squad at the state Criminal Investigation Department (CID) who responded to a distress call.

He said the two suspects were first arrested by the local vigilance group operating in Spibat area in Akwakuma and about to be lynched by the mob when the police arrived at the scene and rescued them.

“Responding to the call, the anti robbery squad got there and found the suspects already tied down with tyres around their necks and were about to be burned alive.

“They were rescued but at the point of death as a result of machete cuts dealt on them by the angry mob. They died before we could get them to the hospital.

“However, one of the suspects, Buchi, from Akpodim in Mbaise, Imo, managed to describe to the policemen the location of their hideout before he died,” he said.

Onugu said the police immediately swung into action and arrested two other suspects in a thick bush behind Orji Mechanic Village in an uncompleted building.

The suspects were alleged to have dispossessed people of their laptops, cell phones, plasma television sets and ATM cards, Onugu said.

He said that items recovered from the suspects included Indian hemp, charms and magical instruments, assorted SIM cards, cell phones and white candles with an inscription “white confusion”.

The police spokesman also said that loaded double barrel shotguns and other dangerous weapons were recovered from the suspects.
He said a full investigation into the incident had begun.


Vanguard

Woman cuts off rapist’s penis and takes it to police as evidence!

Victim, Monju Begum

Monju Begum, a 40-year-old Bangladesh woman stopped an alleged rapist in his tracks when she reportedly cut off his penis and then took it to police as evidence.
According to police, Begam’s neighbour, Mozammel Haq Mazi, forced his way into her shanty and began sexually assaulting her.
Investigators say Begum stopped the attack by cutting off his penis She then placed the evidence into a polythene bag and took it into police as proof that Mazi had attempted to rape her.

Begum, a married mother of three, told police that Mazi had been harassing her for the past six months. Mazi is reportedly also married and has five children.

“It is quite an unusual incident. As far as I am aware, this is the first time that a woman has brought a severed penis to the police station as evidence,” said police spokesperson Abul Khaer.

“We will arrest him once his condition gets better,” said Khaer.

Mazi denied the allegations telling investigators that the two were having an affair.

“Recently she suggested that both of us can go settle down in Dhaka,” said Mazi. “I refused and told her that I cannot leave my wife and children, so she took revenge on me.”
Doctors say the man’s pénis will not be re-attached


dailypost.com.ng

Jose Mujica: The world’s ‘poorest’ president • Donates 90% salary to poor • Shuns presidential mansion • Rides 1987 Volkswagen

Uruguay President Jose Mujica

It’s a common grumble that politicians’ lifestyles are far removed from those of their electorate. Not so in Uruguay. Meet the president – who lives on a ramshackle farm and gives away most of his pay.

Laundry is strung outside the house. The water comes from a well in a yard, overgrown with weeds. Only two police officers and Manuela, a three-legged dog, keep watch outside.

This is the residence of the president of Uruguay, Jose Mujica, whose lifestyle clearly differs sharply from that of most other world leaders.

President Mujica has shunned the luxurious house that the Uruguayan state provides for its leaders and opted to stay at his wife’s farmhouse, off a dirt road outside the capital, Montevideo.

The president and his wife work the land themselves, growing flowers.

This austere lifestyle – and the fact that Mujica donates about 90% of his monthly salary, equivalent to $12,000 (£7,500), to charity – has led him to be labelled the poorest president in the world.

“I may appear to be an eccentric old man … But this is a free choice.”

“I’ve lived like this most of my life,” he says, sitting on an old chair in his garden, using a cushion favoured by Manuela the dog.

“I can live well with what I have.”

His charitable donations – which benefit poor people and small entrepreneurs – mean his salary is roughly in line with the average Uruguayan income of $775 (£485) a month.

All the president’s wealth is a 1987 VW Beetle.

In 2010, his annual personal wealth declaration – mandatory for officials in Uruguay – was $1,800 (£1,100), the value of his 1987 Volkswagen Beetle.

This year, he added half of his wife’s assets – land, tractors and a house – reaching $215,000 (£135,000).

That’s still only about two-thirds of Vice-President Danilo Astori’s declared wealth, and a third of the figure declared by Mujica’s predecessor as president, Tabare Vasquez.

Elected in 2009, Mujica spent the 1960s and 1970s as part of the Uruguayan guerrilla Tupamaros, a leftist armed group inspired by the Cuban revolution.

He was shot six times and spent 14 years in jail. Most of his detention was spent in harsh conditions and isolation, until he was freed in 1985 when Uruguay returned to democracy.

Those years in jail, Mujica says, helped shape his outlook on life.

“I’m called ‘the poorest president’, but I don’t feel poor. Poor people are those who only work to try to keep an expensive lifestyle, and always want more and more,” he says.

“This is a matter of freedom. If you don’t have many possessions then you don’t need to work all your life like a slave to sustain them, and therefore you have more time for yourself,” he says.

“I may appear to be an eccentric old man. But this is a free choice.”

The Uruguayan leader made a similar point when he addressed the Rio+20 summit in June this year: “We’ve been talking all afternoon about sustainable development. To get the masses out of poverty.

“But what are we thinking? Do we want the model of development and consumption of the rich countries? I ask you now: what would happen to this planet if Indians would have the same proportion of cars per household than Germans? How much oxygen would we have left?

“Does this planet have enough resources so seven or eight billion can have the same level of consumption and waste that today is seen in rich societies? It is this level of hyper-consumption that is harming our planet.”

Wow! What a guy! It's certainly a big sacrifice giving up all the comfort out of one's freewill. What do you think? Let us know your views!


news.bbc.co.uk