The knowledge of your vertical proportions will help you not only balance yourself visually but also come up with attractive OOTDs.
We all know that vertical stripes make us look tall, but what about your vertical proportion? After the traditional body shapes and finding out about Kibbe body types, this was the next thing I stumbled upon in my style quest. As any of the trends go these days, I got an insight into the theory of vertical proportion through TikTok via Kristine Fernandez.
So, does figuring out your vertical proportions help? If you were ever experimental about your pants and their lengths, you might be able to find a positive answer there. Calf-length pants made me look shorter and oversized ones made my proportions out of balance. I realized that the oversized aspect did not sit well with me because of my body shape. However, the calf length did not look good because of my vertical proportions.
How do you know your vertical proportions? As the first measurement, you should measure from the top of your head to the break of your legs (the point where your legs naturally lifts). For the second, you measure from the break of the legs to your toes. The two measurements will tell you your vertical proportions. Equal dimensions mean you have a balanced proportion. If the first measurement is more than the other, you have a long torso and short legs. If it's the other way around, you have a short torso and long legs. In her videos, Kristine also mentions checking the length between your last rib and hipbone. This dimension can also hint if you have a short or a long torso.
We all want to look taller, don't we? But it needs to be done in the right way to look aesthetically pleasing. The knowledge of your vertical proportions will help you balance visually. It helps with choosing the hemline or outfit length and making it work for you. If you are balanced, you don't want the hem length to make you look out of proportion. We would think people with long legs are lucky, but even they need to balance their proportions to come up with attractive outfit solutions. People with short legs look for elongating their proportions through outfit length and higher waistlines.
Going through all the methods (traditional body shapes, Kibbe method & vertical proportions), I have realized that no one solution fits all people. So, you have to customize the style for yourself. You'll have to break some fashion rules in the process. That's why you should know the rules to break them and make them work just right for you. Hopefully, this information is also the start of your style exploration. Let me know in the comments below what you think about it.
Love,
Rashmi B.
Comments