Help With Proportions
Hi, I'd love some help with understanding both proportions in general (what's a more flattering proportion, objectively) and for me personally (how I can apply the general rules given my body type)
---
Objectively, what's the best upper:lower body proportion?
Looking at the first two references, the length of the lower body is almost exactly twice that of the upper body. This seems to be consistent across most lookbooks and fashion photography I've seen online. I think these proportions look great.
Question: Is this an "objective" rule that is generally applicable?
I think these models are wearing their pants an inch or two below the belly button (see 3rd reference on the first image of the shirtless man).
Personal Q
The second image attached (clearly the non professional one) is of me. Note how the dividing line lands almost exactly on the belly button. Also, I have a considerable amount of belly fat.
I have two main questions here for how to apply the above to me personally:
1. Will this look transfer well to my body type?
2. Do I have a short torso (I think I do), and if yes, do I need to just wear the pants higher to achieve this "ideal" proportion I like?
---
In an attempt to be proactive, I tried seeing how these rules work IRL for me. In the last image, I've tried on a pair of pants and t-shirt 3 different ways:
1) Untucked t-shirt -- this just feels wrong to me. The proportions just don't look good
2) Folded, untucked t-shirt -- this feels much better. I like wearing the t-shirt untucked as it feels more casual and also makes me less conscious of my figure. I'm considering getting the t-shirt hemmed to this length
3) Tucked t-shirt -- makes me feel like too much attention is drawn to the belly, which is the exact opposite of what I want (it's more pronounced IRL and with diff clothes than in this pic). Also, is it too much?
---
Thanks again for taking the time to read this, appreciate it!! 😄
7 Replies
There is no objective best proportion :) though I'm also a fan of high-rise pants and tucked shirts, and they're having a bit of a moment fashion-wise currently
I think you have a normally proportioned torso. As your last pictures show, the pants-top proportion is something you can play with independently of your body type through the fit of your clothes.
I think what might help with the tuck is having a looser tshirt, or pulling it out a big so you get a big of sag/billowing. It will look more relaxed, and more intentional
The untucked t shirt photo of you looks completely normal
I feel like you're really overthinking this
There is no objective best proportion like others have said, learning to identify when proportions are working for the outfit or not is something you get good at over time from looking at and trying many outfits
Moving the line between top and bottom is one of the most core ways of changing the look of an outfit, you should do more experimenting and have some fun thinking about how different proportions give different feelings
You can also look through #waywt-highlights and see how many different proportions are shown
Basic things to start is that it’s normally not preferable to have multiple top layers end at the exact same point, even a inch or two difference looks better most of the time, and I rarely go for 50:50 proportions personally
In the end it’s “what looks good” but it may take some training of your eye to be able to tell quickly
Different proportions are going to look better depending on the look you are going for and combination of garments so it will take some experimenting to see what works best. I personally like going for that 2/3 proportion when wearing a jacket or overshirt and higher waisted trousers but there are cases where a 50/50 works just as well
Also i think you look fine in the tucked in shirt pics i dont see your belly as being a focus, i have a similar body type to you and often worry about if my belly is too pronounced but i’ve come to realize its in my head and i’m the only one who notices
Here are a couple of examples where i’ve used a 50/50 split on proportion and 2/3 split and you can see they both work fine it just kind of depends on the look you are trying to achieve
Thanks guys, a lot of really good advice here! I think I was probably overthinking it a bit, and reading your comments puts the mind at ease
You're right. I saw this on #waywt and thought it looked pretty great, the outfit totally works
I ended up trying out the french tuck (only just learnt the term) and I think it's the perfect middle ground I was looking for