Is it just me or is it harder to be fashionable when you're pearshaped?

[mistressploppy]

I'm trying to look like less of a frump but it's really hard

Hmm, I work with a woman who is late 40s, short, overweight and very pear-shaped. She is hands-down the most stylish person I've ever met. Can make any trend work for herself. I'm in awe.

Agreed clothes are all cut for apples.
It's so annoying.
They work if you want to look hyper sexy and show off bum and hips but most of us don't.

Errrr apple shape over here, and definitely don't think clothes are cut for us! I really really struggle to find clothes that fit ( size 12/14 depending what shop I'm in).
OP - you need to find what suits your body shape and then stick to it!

I'm an apple and I find too many clothes are cut for pears!

I'm also 5.3 which is hardly short and yet trousers etc are all about a foot too long...

Bottom line is women's fashion doesn't really seem to be cut for many women - or at least it doesn't take into account even the range of quite standard heights and shapes.

i hate clothes shopping

I'm NOT stylish and need all the help I can get! Wrap dresses, defined waists etc suit me (I think). It just seems that all the trendy Hush stuff I apparently should be buying now I'm 40 is made for people with less hip/arse

Do you get the "jodphur effect" sinead? Tight round the waist and then really baggy round the thighs...

OP - My advice is to find shops which do cut more for your body type / size and stick to them, that's the best I can offer, sorry. And blame the clothes not yourself (a mantra hard to stick to after a session in a fitting room with a pile of rejected clothes!).

What is hush? Will have a look as I am 44 andan apple

Wear what you like and feel confident and comfy in, that will make you feel and therefore look fab, and fuck the labels and what you "should" be wearing at 40

I was just thinking this today - so many clothes I saw in shop windows and thought - that would look great on an apple.... but not me :-(

My best friend is short and a pear, and she says she can never find anything that looks good!
Where is good for short pears and what suits you?! She keeps asking me to find her stuff, but I’m a tall boobs and arse type !

Yes OP! Dresses hardly ever hang right due to lack of boobage, though I'm finally learning what to look for. Some shops better than others e.g. Phase Eight seems to be good. Separates are the way forwards though.

Clothes were much easier pre-dc when I was skinnier all over. Oasis size 8 jeans fit like a glove. I'm on a never-ending uphill quest to slim my hips down again!

I hear ya! I love it when the 70s come back in as that was a pear friendly decade, can’t beat a wrap dress. Shifts, jumper dresses and boxy clothes are my worst enemy- I don’t think anything in hush would suit me.
I mainly wear skirts and dresses and I shop redominantly in warehouse (lots of a-line dresses and fitted knits, tend to be small on the bust and shoulders), boden (jersey ftw!), closet (again, lots of a-line). Whistles (on ebay- the skater dresses are fab). French connection, although as I get older they’re a bit short. Skirts from next, boden, jigsaw (ebay bargains), gap.

Best Buy last year was a 70s style denim pinafore dress with a proper skirt on it (rather than a closely fitting a-line) from closet.

Sosandar has a lot of fit and flare but they’re a bit bigger on the bust.

I

Yes! I’m 5 foot 3, size 8, and always think I should have been around in the 1950s. Love the fitted waists and full skirts of that decade. Clothes nowadays only look good on women who are built like skinny teenage boys (tall, thin, long legs, no hips or bottom).

Am hoping the nice clothes I bought 10 years ago last until fashion changes again...

The irritating thing is that the companies selling 50s style, retro clothes tend to be massive on the bust

I am a pear shape and I think I dress pretty well. I steer clear of things that are belted and wear A-line cut dresses which skim. I have a lot of hush clothes - infact 90% of them are. Its just a case of choosing selectively and having an eye for where things like blouses and tops should end to flatter your figure. I am pear shaped but I don't have ridiculously wide hips so maybe I get away with more? I don't have a problem.
However I do think things are cut generally for those that are straight up and down - boy figure. If only.

Yeah, I am very narrow on the shoulders, two sizes bigger (maybe 3, post kids!) on the hips. Hush is not made for me, their styles swamp me up top.

I can’t wear skinny jeans. Ive tried so many pairs and they just don’t look right at all. If I buy dresses, I look for A line. Same with skirts. I’m enjoying reading the suggestions on this thread.

Karen Millen and Whistles are good for pears but £££. Mint Velvet and Hush good for apples.

Some good ideas, thanks all - glad it's not just me!

I wear skinny jeans but I need to be careful where my tops end. If they are too short, the balance isn't good. So if its a tee or a jumper, I wear a hush longline vest under it and it makes the look much better - problem solved.

The longline vest adds length.

The answer for me is often to buy a size up to fit the hips and then have the waist taken up to fit me.

I’m also pear shaped and it’s only when trinny and Suzanne came along that I learnt what suited my body.

Basically, us pears can’t wear v shaped tops and are better with higher necklines, bardot, etc. We should have all the colour and pattern on out top half, and gomfor plainer colours for trousers and skirts. Although not fashionable by mn standards, bootcut styles suit us.

what to wear

I think I follow all those rules without realising it, petal. Love a crew neck or a roll neck. I can wear a small v though, if it’s fitted. Have found by experience that pattern on my bottom half is not a good look 😬 Or black- makes my arse look like a black hole Neutral colours on my bottom half work best for me- navy, grey, khaki etc.

I loved it when proper flares were in- again, the 70s were a hip friendly decade!

I'm a short pear - why can't we wear v necks?! I look awful in high neck tops - boobs are too big!