Grace had so much fun shopping for design lines with her friends: Sam, Monica, Alice and Veronica. Her journey to understand what design lines will help her tap into her confidence and personal power has been eye opening. She sees clothes and design lines in a whole different way now.
Grace wanted to look for pants that fit her body. She learned that she just needs to look for ones with a curvy fit label. She thought it would be great to have a few pairs of pants in her closet to give herself variety and because there are many times when pants are more appropriate.
Keep reading to learn what clothes Grace found.
Grace’s Body Elements
As a review, these are Grace’s Body Element clues:
- Body Shape — A (Body Shape — The Girls)
- Curved clothes silhouette
- Horizontal lines — Place them at her shoulders and waist, and avoid placing them at her hips
- Vertical lines — Place them between her waist and hips, and avoid placing them at her shoulders
- Face Shape — Rectangle (Face Shape — The Girls)
- Angular design lines, prints and accessories
- Color Skin, Hair, Eyes — Medium Color Contrast (Color Skin, Hair & Eyes — The Girls)
- Favorite Colors — Orange, Green
- Color Combinations (other colors) — Triadic and Analogous
- Color Combinations (relative lightness and darkness) — Medium contrast
- First Scale Clue — Medium
- Body Proportions — Short between bust/waist, long between waist/crotch, short between knees/floor (Body Proportions — The Girls)
- Horizontal lines — Place them between her waist/crotch but not at the hips, and don’t place them between her bust/waist and knees/floor
- Vertical lines — Place them between her bust/waist and knees/floor; limit them between her waist/crotch; however when she places them from her bust to below her crotch, the eye passes over this entire area and will make it appear thinner for her Body Shape
- Second Scale Clue — Decrease overall scale between bust/waist and knee/floor; increase it between waist/crotch
- Body Frame Size — Small (Body Frame Size — The Girls)
- Third scale clue — Small
- Scale Strategy — Small/Medium (Scale Strategy — The Girls)
- Decrease scale to small between her bust/waist and knees/floor
- Increase to medium between her waist/crotch
Shopping For Design Lines -- Pants & Shirt
At Macy’s, Grace found two brands that carry curvy fit pants: Alfani and JM Collection. When trying them on, she found that the Alfani pants fit her curves better. They aren’t 100% perfect at the waist but they’re the closest she’s ever found.
The color of the shirt caught her eye. She doesn’t normally seriously look at shirts because usually they’re too stiff for her. She was surprised she liked it when she tried it on; but wasn’t sure why.
Shopping For Design Lines -- Pants
On this shopping trip, Grace wanted to look for a pair of pants that fit her body better. She learned that she needs to look for tags with “curvy fit” on them. There are times when pants are more appropriate than skirts or dresses, which are typically her first choice. She went shopping with an open mind and she was pleasantly surprised.
Design Lines & Color
Grace did a great job picking this pair of pants. First of all, the silhouette is curvy, a perfect starting place for her A Body Shape. To get the pants to fit perfectly, she can have the waist altered.
This pair of pants is mid-rise meaning that the waistband hits her below her belly button. When she wears tops tucked in, the horizontal line it creates will lengthen the area between her bust and waist and shorten the area between her waist and crotch. As a result, her Body Proportions will appear in balance.
The bootcut pant legs help balance out her hips. Grace can also wear straight legged pants easily. Finally, the length of the pant legs is a little long. She tried on the short version but they were too short. When getting the waist taken in, she’ll also have the length shortened. She should make sure the length of the pants is roughly between a half inch to an inch off the floor. This way the hem of the pants will make her legs appear longer creating balance between her legs and torso.
Grace now knows the Alfani brand fits her well and can go back to this department to find other pants that might fit her. This particular style of pants often comes in different fashion colors.
Shopping For Design Lines -- Shirt
While in the Alfani department, she found this button shirt. The green is one of her favorite colors and she likes the silky feel of fabric. Grace looked around for another top and tried on several. In the end, the Alfani shirt looked the best. The tops that went into the “no” pile didn’t have design lines that matched her body’s clues. She’s starting to understand which design lines work for her.
Design Lines & Color
This is a great shirt for Grace. First, it’s not always easy finding your favorite color. That in itself is a great find. In addition, some of the other design lines are perfect for her.
All the shapes of the design lines: collar, cuffs and plaid print are angular matching her Rectangle Face Shape.
The fabric is soft which matches her personal style. Even though the overall shirt is structured the fabric softens it up.
The one problem area is the silhouette which can be easily remedied. The silhouette is angular and Grace has a curvy Body Shape. When she’s having the pants altered, she can also have her tailor/seamstress create front and back darts. By adding the darts, the shirt’s angular silhouette will be transformed into a curved one.
Summary
Pants
Grace has learned that some pants have a curvy fit, which fit her body so much better. At this moment in time, Alfani pants fit her curves the best. She should keep her eye out for other manufacturers/designers who design for curvy fit. Unfortunately, they’re always playing with the fit and at any moment the fit might not work for her.
Bootcut and straight legs work best for Grace for two reasons. First, the shape of the pant legs brings balance to the width of her hips. Second, she can easily wear these types of legs long, which brings length to her legs creating balance between her torso and legs.
Shirt
Grace stepped outside her comfort zone and picked a shirt she might not have picked before. She found the design line shapes were perfect for her, which is something she’s struggled with in the past. To make the shirt perfect, she can take it into her tailor/seamstress to sew in darts transforming the silhouette.
This is something she can do with other tops/shirts in her closet. She might be able to transform them from okay to perfect. It’s amazing how one small alteration can transform an outfit.
Final Thoughts
Grace needs to remember that the reason to look for design lines that match her body’s clues is to help her feel like she can conquer her day. Spending a little extra money to make sure the design lines are perfect for her is well worth it in the end. As a result, one by one, she can create a closet full of clothes she loves to wear, allowing her to pursue her passion to create impact and make this world a better place to live. This is where her inner joy lies.
Finally, it’s Veronica’s turn to share her findings when shopping for design lines. She was surprised by the results. The post is called, Shopping For Design Lines — Veronica.
Wear Your Greatness!!
