Is it better to be an Apple or a Pear?

[Destinysdaughter]

I'm definitely an Apple shape, big boobs and a tummy but no bum or hips and slender arms and legs. Have been since I was a teenager. I find it hard to get clothes that look good on my shape and feel that most UK fashion is cut more for a Pear - smaller boobs, small waist and bigger hips and bum. I also think a Pear's 'imperfections' are easier to hide in clothes, if I try to hide my big boobs I look 2 sizes bigger than I really am. I've also had pp ( genuinely ) assume I am pregnant over the years, which is hugely embarrassing. I'm only a size 14, so not slim but not massive either!

Was wondering what other pp thought? There may be lots of things about being pear shaped I haven't considered, would love to hear all your thoughts!

[MangoMoon]

I'm an hourglass, with a flat tummy but hollow back & big ass.

I struggle to get trousers that fit nicely - to fit my ass & upper thighs, they then gape massively at the waist at the back.

Like a previous poster, trousers & jeans wear away quickly due to my chubby upper thighs; I'm currently quite overweight, but even when I'm a good size my thighs still join up.

It's a good shape to dress if you're dressing up for something (although tends towards a 'sexy' look), but a shit figure to dress casually.

[ElaeudanlaTeiteia]

I'm a pear (32-28-40) and wouldn't swap. I sometimes hate my hips and thighs, and clothes are hard to get right, but I look pretty great naked

On bad days, when no pair of jeans looks good, I sometimes console myself with the thought that it's healthier to have that fat down there rather than anywhere else. I've always had a slim waist and flat stomach (less so since children and hypothyroidism, but still more or less) and they do look good in jersey-type tops.

[MiaowJario]

Hmm, you'd think you could wear short skirts to show off your fabulous legs...

A-line mini skirts are your friend OP. Make you look like you have hips.

[EnquiringMingeWantsToKnow]

I'm a short pear and although buying trousers is a nightmare, I'm basically happy with it. The key for me is a) I have cultivated a cheap alteration tailor (at a dry claaner) who I get to take on waists as required b) most of the mirrors, and all the ones I'd ever see myself in naked, in my house stop at my waist so in my mind's eye I'm fabulously slim c) if all else fails I reassure myself with morbid diabetes statistics about the relative benefits of having a big arse.

[squoosh]

Aren't big arses all the rage now? People are having all kinds of arse cheek injections.

[MadameLeBean]

I am a pear and have thick legs and cankles despite being a size 6/8, URGH
I'd love to be an apple and show my legs! Tummies are easy to hide, and you can't often show them off, so I think it's way better to be an apple.

[MadameLeBean]

Oh and I don't mind my big bum and hips but unfortunately calves and ankles also are huge & totally out of proportion with my slim arms and waist

[Puppymouse]

I've never had too much difficulty dressing my apple shape. I used to wear a lot of boot cut or flare trousers with heels which make the most of my legs but with bubble hem or looser tops to hide my tummy. Dress-wise wrap dresses or skater style A-lines to create waist. When slim I can rock a pencil dress but can't be too tight because of tummy and I get back fat even when skinny.

Skinny trousers are my staple now. With tops that cover my tummy. I have loads of lovely dresses but need to lose a bit more weight to get into them. I am lucky with my legs and arms being so long as people tend to clock them and the big boobs and I get away with having a tummy

[GingerLDN]

I hate being an apple. I have to wear leggings/jeggings and all my tops have to be tunic length for this reason. Maternity wear is ideal for my shape. Which sucks.

[Fuzzypeggy]

Personal preference is pear, as I like the hip to waist ratio being significantly different. Swings and roundabouts probably though, we generally want what we haven't got don't we!

[claptomania]

I think fashion is extremely unkind to the big-boobed, whatever the build. Busty generally means matronly - and there is a real dearth of specialist shops to serve the need. Pepperberry - the closest there is - is just awful. Garish colours and random off trend styles.

[CoolToned]

I'm more of a rectangle, but I think pears look good and would be easier to dress.

[BuggersMuddle]

I was an hourglass, but due to steroids developed more apple characteristics that I can't shake. TBH I hate it. It doesn't make it any easier to find clothes with a FF / G cup, but just makes me look fatter in swimwear.

I am 42-31-39. I was 42-28-42 and was much happier at that shape even though I weighed pretty much (I wasn't paying too much attention) the same as I do now.

[the3amclub]

Pear here. Have ridiculous body shape with teeny upper half (size 8/30e boobs when not postpartum) and even tinier waist. Then it all goes a bit iggy azalea. No matter how much I slim down overall I still have humongous saddlebags & cankles.

As someone earlier said I find casual dressing a nightmare - since I was a girl I always wanted to chuck on jeans and a t shirt and look carefree cut jeans make my arse look flat and enormous and skinnies enhance the parsnip shape of my legs. So I tend to wear skirts/fit and flare dresses/tights and minis and focus on hiding and lengthening legs.

I also find for some reason that things that look great on Apples eg tunic and leggings look X-rated on me. People always say I look put together which is nice but I'd love to be able to do casual looks without worrying about my odd silouhette.

Someone said that the classic English girl is an apple with stick thin legs and a tummy. IIRC all the "English roses" I knew were this shape!

[Botanicbaby]

I thought pears were supposed to be the typical English shape?

I'm an apple and although I hate having no waist and envy the look of a pear, I wouldn't want to swap as I am used to being an apple now. I think pear-shaped is meant to be healthier for you.

It is a nightmare to find clothes for big boobs and tummy, anything too baggy and it makes you look pregnant. Bras and fitted shirts are expensive too. Finding shirts to fit is hell.

[camelfinger]

I'm a pear. I sit down all day at work and people think I am quite thin because of my upper half. I have quite a thin face, good arms, smallish but good shape boobs and my waist used to be thin before kids. Oh and I used to have a flat tummy too. Then it all goes wrong. I have a big bottom, flabby hips and giant thighs that wear out lots of trousers as others above have said. I have to have dieted significantly in order to feel comfortable in shorts, which is very rare. My calves always look on the chunky side. I prefer the style of clothes designed for pears but in recent years it seems that fashion is better for apples ie skinniest and floaty tops. Long cardigans look rubbish on me. I would like to be an apple in the summer and a pear in the winter. As it's generally more cold than warm in the UK I think that, on balance, it's better to be a pear.

[Youvegottobekidding]

I'm an apple & I hate my shape, I look like an upright bulldog/ frog. My legs are slender, I have a thigh gap, flat ass, then I have a round, big tummy, broad back (40 DD) skinny arms.

I would swap with a pear, I'd like to look not so round. I look absolutely awful on photos.

[SanityAssassin]

I am a size 8 bottom with 32F boobs - look like an upside down Dairylea Triangle. All my weight is carried on my upper chest (I hate it). If I was brave enough I would love a breast reduction.

I have thin limbs, a neat bum but absolutely no hips - which I like.

[itsbetterthanabox]

I'm a pear and I'm happy I'm a pear. Although sometimes it's annoying buying trousers that fit nicely but that's not my bodies fault! It's weird that clothes are designed to fit an apple, maybe it's easier to design.
I think pear celebrities look amazing- Rihanna, shakira, Rachel bilson.