Fashion tips for huge broad shoulders??

by Mary
(Washington)

I would like to know what kind of styles would match my body type. I have REALLY broad shoulders, and the rest is all skinny. Im 5'7. Which styles wouldn't be good for me, or in this case accentuate my horrible shoulders?? The first thing I notice when I look at my body is how huge my shoulders are. Thank you!!

Jane's answer... Hi Mary. The answer partly depends on what your horizontal body shape is, how large your bust is and how long and broad your neck is.

Shoulders have 2 attributes: how wide or narrow they are in relation to your hips; and how square or tapered your shoulder line is.

Since you feel your shoulders are your most dominant feature you may well have broad, square shoulders and an inverted triangle horizontal shape. Although your horizontal shape could also be hourglass or rectangle. Your height is medium.

Some general recommendations for minimizing the size of your shoulders include...

• Avoid any design detail that adds a horizontal line on or around your shoulders, since this will make your shoulders appear broader. This includes avoiding a yoked shoulder (where the seam line is infront of your shoulder line), off-the-shoulder styles and rolled shoulder styles


• Avoid wide necklines for the same reason. This includes wide square necklines, wide Vs and wide scooped necklines


• Avoid wide collars and lapels


• Avoid short, angled sleeve styles such as capped sleeves


• Avoid padded or puffed sleeves. The exception to this is in tailored jackets, where small shoulder pads will be fine


• Do wear set-in sleeves


• Do wear medium width straps


• Do wear split necklines (making sure they are not too wide) such as the classic V, a deep oval scoop and keyhole styles

If you have an inverted triangle body shape your aim will be to create a more hourglass-like shape. Some ways to achieve this include wearing...

• A-line shaped skirts and dresses


• Bright colored skirts


• Skirts with borders


• Patch pockets on your hips or lower

>> For more recommendations for an inverted triangle body type click here

>> Find out exactly which styles suit your body shape taking all your proportions into account