The pear body shape is one that many women find difficult to balance with their clothing. Weight seems to gather in all the wrong places, and it seems impossible to hide those “problem areas”.
A pear shaped body will normally have narrower shoulders, a smaller bust, wide hips and bigger buttocks. This imbalance in the body makes many women self-conscious and needing help to find the right flattering clothing style.
As such, we’ve come up with this guide to give fashion tips for women with a pear shaped body.
Click on the images below to view the product detail. Do note that these are affiliate links – we get a small commission if you purchase a product. It helps pay the bills!
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Tops
The best tops for a pear body shape will need to draw the eye up and away from the hips. Adding movement and a little more width to the bust will help distract from the hips but also balance out the difference between the top and bottom parts of the body.
Choose halter, v-neck, cowl, or one-shoulder top styles. Anything with a decorative detail at the neckline or bust is also a good option. Ruffles, layers, ruching and brooches that hold gathered necklines can all achieve a balanced look for a smaller bust.
Try to keep tops shorter or longer than the widest part of the hips. This will help draw the eye away from the hips. Also, avoid any decorative details near the waist or hips since they will only add bulk to the lower half of the body.
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Bottoms
To balance out a heavy bottom, pants and skirts should be quite simple in style. Tailored styles with a flat front will help minimize the hip and buttock area. Bootcut and flared pant styles work best for a pear body since they add shape without creating a heavy look.
Avoid tapered and capri pant styles because they will shorten and widen legs. As for skirts, knee-length styles like flared and a-line work best to move with the body without drawing attention to the hips.
Stay away from pleated and balloon skirts since they will only add weight to the hips and buttocks.
As for pants, choose styles that have seamless pockets in front and back. Avoid flap pockets on the buttocks since they will only draw attention to your lower half.
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Dresses
Dresses should always highlight the slender shoulders and smaller upper body of a pear shaped woman. Choose open necklines like v-necks, scoop necks and low cowl necks to draw the eyes up to the bust.
Choose dresses with interesting details at the upper body, but no lower than just above the waist. Empire waist styles or dresses that taper in to a smaller waist are a great choice to show off curves while minimizing the width of the hips.
Always look for styles that are comfortable at the hips, anything too tight will emphasize the hips and create an imbalanced look.
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Hi!
Can you list the retailers to buy these dresses?
Thanks
Hi Tamara
We’ve linked each image to where you can purchase the dresses. Enjoy shopping!
Thank you. This is the first site that makes sense to me.
If i have a big bust, should I aim for a colorful top, darker bottoms or vice versa?
A colorful top can definitely draw attention from a large bust, but if you’re smaller on bottom, a dark color there can make you look bigger on top, so wear lighter colored bottoms. If you wear a dark/solid top, make sure it has some flair: buttons, pockets, ruffles, ribbons… so you have something besides a broad expanse of bust to look at.
Where can I buy the last dress in this post? I LOVE it!
Hi Karla
It is nice isn’t it?! It the Patricia Plus Size Maxi Dress from Igigi. Hope that helps!
Jess
EDIT: The last image is no longer the same, as Igigi discontinued the product. As such, it’s been replaced by something that still is in stock. We’ve left these comments in for posterity.