Well, maybe it does a little (wink, wink), but not when it comes to fashion!

Joking aside, let’s address the myth that you must be a certain size to be stylish. I am disheartened by this myth…and by the number of women who believe this to be true.

The truth is that dressing your best is based on your shape, not on your measurements, or some false belief that you must be a size 0 to wear stylish clothes…because size doesn’t matter!

I get it, though. As women, we are inundated with images and messages that suggest we must be photoshop thin to look good and wear fashionable clothes.  I see it every day as I develop style mood boards for my clients. 

But it starts with feeling good. 

Feeling confident in your clothes is number one. You can own a room when you feel self-assured and are comfortable with what you’re wearing. And the best way to achieve this is to develop your style, love your body and dress for your shape — not your desired shape, but the shape you are NOW. 

Why You Should Love Your Body

Um, because it’s your body and you have to walk around with it every day. If you are uncomfortable in your own skin, you will be uncomfortable in your clothes, too. And changing your body shape won’t change this…it starts with mindset.

Love your body, as it is, now.

Now I’m thinking of super awkward Mark Darcy in Bridget Jones’ Diary when he approaches Bridget and says “I like you. Just as you are.”

Okay, that was cute and brought out all the feel goods. But I digress…

…if you have a goal to lose weight — maybe you’ve recently had a baby — gain weight, increase muscle mass or work on general fitness…kudos to you. Goals are great, and we all need something to work towards. BUT, loving your body now, as it is, is crucial to loving yourself. 

You are gorgeous, just as you are. (Thank you, Mark Darcy.)

Changing how you look won’t change how you feel if you don’t love and accept your body as it is. Once you lose or gain weight, you’ll probably find something else that isn’t quite right and needs to change.

Accepting how you look is the first step to wearing clothes that you love and feel great in!

You deserve to feel amazing!!

Why Size Doesn’t Matter

Because body shaming doesn’t help anyone — including you! 

If you think: if only my thighs were smaller, my boobs were a bit bigger, or my ankles were thinner (let’s be honest, we ALL have, or have had, thoughts like this) then I could wear what I want, you’ll NEVER wear that cute skirt you love. 

Choosing clothes based on how they fit rather than the size is the key to buying the right clothes for you  — based on where you shop, your size will change anyway! 

Positive-body blogger, Michelle Elman passionately expresses this in a viral post of her wearing the same dress, five years apart, and several dress sizes larger. In her post she is clear about why you should ignore the size on the tag and how it does not reflect your actual size:

“AND it doesn’t even mean you have a bigger body. You could go up a dress size by simply changing stores…(or countries). You can change dress sizes because of the time of the day or simply due to whether you are on your period or not.”  Hear, hear!

This is so true — it’s a mental hurdle to ignore what the tag says! But it’s a big part of learning to accept your shape and purchasing clothes based on YOUR body, not what some designer in a far-off land says. 

Leave the designer and the label out of it. They have no say in whether you’re a size 2 or 22. If your clothes fit, you can breathe, and you feel good…then awesome.

And you might miss out on a better fitting pair of jeans because the 10 is more flattering than the 8 {the size you normally grab}.

One shopper discovered this truth when she decided, just for fun, to try on a different size of a dress she was planning to purchase. She was surprised to learn the dress two sizes up was more flattering!

“I don’t normally grab things in another size unless I literally don’t fit into what I’m currently wearing,” Valdes tells SELF. “However, I’ve been submitting my workwear looks to the FFA (Female Fashion Advice) thread on Reddit for constructive criticism, so I’ve been slowly gaining more awareness about how things are supposed to fit.”

This also proves that you can’t dismiss a style because you believe you are too big or too small. Remember, it’s all about HOW your clothes fit.

If you don’t believe you can pull off skinny jeans you might be surprised with how good they look simply by wearing the right fit and finding a brand that works well for you.

How To Dress Your Best

Dressing your best isn’t about following specific trends. It’s more about finding your personal style and dressing to reflect it — the right clothes enhance your personality by communicating who you are to the world!

And show off your best assets! 

In my experience as a personal stylist, women have a tendency to hide their best assets, rather than show them off.

Please don’t hide under baggy, ill-fitting clothes! With the right use of patterns + solids, color blocking, and hemlines, you can achieve the hourglass figure you desire.

But first! Dressing your best starts with your undergarments. If you haven’t already…please go out and purchase a few well-fitting bras and a variety of underwear styles. Once you have this dialed, your clothes will lay properly and you can avoid bumps and bulges in all the wrong places.

Stacy London — of TV fame — knows that women come in all shapes and sizes. And that putting together an outfit using styling tricks is the key to creating the look you want.

“After all,” Stacy says, “just 8 percent of women are symmetrical on the top and bottom. For the rest of us, that means we can use styling tricks to help create the appearance of having a proportional, balanced shape. Remember, the hourglass shape is always the goal!”

With this goal in mind, your clothes should follow the natural contours of your body.

Here are some helpful tips:

• • The shoulder of any jacket, blouse or tee should land on your shoulder — right above your armpit…not further down your arm.

• • There should never be any gaps on the front of a shirt — you need to leave something to the imagination! If this happens, and your shirt seems to fit, you can add a hidden button.

• • If there is any pulling between your shoulder blades, you need a bigger size.

• • Any sagging material between your shoulder blades could indicate you need a smaller size or a camisole.

• • If you see any sagging in the crotch of your pants, it most likely means the rise of that style isn’t right for you.

• • Check your jeans + pants for any smiling or frowning across your hips (aka whiskering). See either of these? This indicates they are either too tight or too loose. Try a size up or down.

• • A pencil skirt should have no crinkling at the hips.

• • And if the hemline of your dress isn’t even all the way around, you may need the help of a tailor.

• Tailored pants and jeans should fall to the ground. This means they may actually skim the ground. If they are too short, they’ll look awkward.

Do you aspire to have a wardrobe filled with clothes that fit you perfectly and make you feel kick-ass and fierce?

If the answer is yes, you’ll want to click the button below:

>>>>Teach me how I can buy and wear clothes I love and feel amazing in!<<<<

You’ll be happy you did!

Stylishly Yours,

Roxanne

P.S. If you have any questions about this blog or the information in the link, my inbox is always open!

Roxanne Carne is a recognized Personal Stylist & Personal Shopper styling women in Dallas, TX and virtually!  Visit www.roxannecarne.com to discover how she can help transform your wardrobe and transform your life!