Life’s A Garden…

Dig it in figure flattering clothes!

(I promise there is body image stuff if you scroll down past me blabbering about my garden.)

If you read my personal posts, too, you know that I’ve been doing some gardening. I’ve started to transform my front yard from this:

to this:

I’ve since weeded that rose bush to the left of the porch and found another rose bush hiding in some tall grass nearby that has also been weeded. The dirt is cleared up now, as well, but I’ve been too lazy to go back out and take another picture. Oh damn it. Fine, Liz. Do it now.

I just walked outside to take the last picture. Obviously, the hubs needs to get a weed eater out there around the bushes and we are waiting for the bushes to grow, but they only have a medium growth rate. And we want to paint the stupid cable cords to match the color of the house so they aren’t so disturbing. The next step for the front yard is deciding which flowering ground cover to go under the tree. Any suggestions? We also plan on building a pergola in my back yard. And I’ve recently decorated my nails to match my determination.

But this blog post isn’t just about me. It’s about you and how you can dress in a practical way for gardening while also dressing in a figure-flattering way.

Life’s A Garden by lizkzook featuring embroidered t shirts

Hourglass: A simple top with flattering jeans go a long way on an hourglass shape. Be careful not to wear cap sleeve tops that can make you look top-heavy.

Column: I like a flowy top on a column as long as you’re sure to tuck it in to accentuate your smaller waist. The bell-bottom shape of these jeans give the illusion of a curvier hip to balance out your top-heavy proportions. The close neckline of the shirt also helps.

Apple: These wide-leg jeans are going to help minimize the appearance of your tummy. They also have a higher rise, which acts the same way. This top is loose around the midsection, but accentuates your bust with knitting detail. It’s subtle, but it works. The cap sleeves also help to make the top half of your torso appear wide, which in turn minimizes the appearance of a larger stomach.

Boy: Normally I don’t recommend capris, however, the cut and shape of this denim can create the look of curves in the hips. This top is great for accentuating a smaller bust with the baby pleats and the wider set straps on the shoulders.

Pear: This simple cap sleeve tee is going to help to balance out your hips by giving you a wider shoulder. These wide leg jeans also help to minimize the hips by bringing the line straight down from widest part of your body.

Follow my How To Wear board on Pinterest for more info on dressing for your body type!

White Party

It’s MAY, y’all!!!! And white is back!

So I’ve decided to pick out a few dresses for every body type! And for an added challenge, I’m going to try to keep them all under $50!

White Party by lizkzook featuring a capped sleeve dress

Okay, I did it. One white party dress for each body type; all under $50. Plus, shoes to match! Also, all under $50!

Next will be gardening looks! Mainly because I love to garden.

Follow my How To Wear board on Pinterest!!!

Boys of Summer

There are two great things about being a boy shape in the summer. 1. You really get to play around with your options. 2. You can wear bikinis without looking slutty or vampish because you’re not too curvy.

Tips for Boy Shapes while swimsuit shopping:

• Look for pieces that create curves. Look for lines that are literally an hourglass shape.
• Ruffles! If you don’t like ruffles you can also use sequins, stripes, or patterns to create a curvier look.
• A twisted bandeau top is going to give your boobs a bustier look without extra padding.
• Tankinis are a good look for you because of the flesh that is visible across your hips where the top and bottom meet. Just be sure to balance that line out with extra embellishments or patterns on the bust.
• Vertical lines on the hip, ties on the hip, buttons on the hip, ruffles/bunching/ruching on the hip, those are all good things that are going to make you look a little hippier.

Boys of Summer by lizkzook featuring poko pano

Look for more summer dressing tips coming when I finish swimwear for all of the body types!

If you have more specific body typing questions, I’m always willing to answer them. In fact, that’s my favorite thing. So just leave your question in the comments!

Summer Is Coming!

And in Tennessee it comes a lot faster!

I’m getting very excited for flip-flops, strappy dresses, sunblock, braided hair, and a trip to Tybee Island!!!

Two of my favorite things about this time of year: I get to make more dresses for my little Zo to wear, and I get to jog more.

It was just last June that I started my fitness adventure. (There is a small explanation on the Dream page of my website.)
I am in better shape now than I have ever been and the thought of more improvement excites me. I’m still a pear shape. The more I work out the more pear-shaped I get! My husband claims that it’s my hip bones that are large. I think he’s right. Plus, working out makes some parts smaller and other parts bigger, if you know what I mean.

Anyway, my point is that I’m excited. I’m so excited that I’ve already started thinking about all of the summer clothes I can wear. I’ve started thinking about all of the summer clothes that you can wear, too!

This week, I’m going to start working on posts for dressing for summer for different body types.

In the meantime you can check out my other summer wear posts here:

• 90′s Summer Concert
• Don’t Hide This Summer (my article in B.Real Magazine – link to article is at the bottom)
• Summer Looks For Less
• How To Mix and Match for Easy Summer Looks
• Picnic and a Barbecue
• How To Wear A Romper
• How To Dress for Bonnaroo

Have a great week!

Boys with Shoulders

I had someone comment on the troubles of finding jean looks for boy shapes with broad shoulders.

As a boy shape it is already hard to create a perfectly balanced hourglass shape. If you wear something that flares at the hips you could end up looking like a pair, but if you wear something that brings too much attention to wider shoulders you’ll look like you can’t carry your own weight.

I put some cute jeans looks together just for this specific problem.

I do not recommend boyfriend jeans for boy shapes, because they tend to create a boxy look on their own. Boyfriend jeans will not do you any favors.

Bootcut jeans are great for every body type. Bootcut jeans are great for boys specifically because they elongate the legs like elephant leg pants(also known as wide leg), but they aren’t as outdated. (But I put an outfit together with elephant leg pants, too.)

If you do have wider shoulders and no hips I would recommend a button up that is cut to flatter curves. You can tell if it’s cut right by laying it down flat. If it’s flat and it’s shaped like a box it is no good. But if you lay it flat and it has its own hourglass shape then it will be very flattering on a boy shape. (This also works for all body types) Of course, I’m always tempted to put ruched sleeves on a boy shape, but that won’t work if you have wider shoulders. A sleeveless button-up might sound like a good alternative, but it will pull more attention to your wide shoulders because of the straight shoulder lines that are typically on a button-up shirt.

I paired the elephant pants with a very simple shirt, because the wide leg jeans do most of the work for you. All you have to do is make sure you’re not pulling unneeded attention to your shoulders.

If you’re going to wear skinny jeans at all I’d recommend a mid-rise cigarette pant, because they aren’t as tight as skinny jeans. They’ll still give you a proper balance.

I paired these cigarette pants with a deep, wide, v-neck. Normally, if you’re trying to balance out wide shoulders you wouldn’t want that neckline. However, this shirt has its own waist and balances out the wide neck with a slightly a-line flare from the waist.

Bell bottoms can make your legs look shorter, but they make your hips look wider. So if you can pair them with pointed toe shoes and a shirt that still pulls in at the waist then those two things will balance out wider shoulders.

I paired the bell bottoms with a cardigan that has contrast piping around the neck and down the front. This will do two things: it will create an hourglass shape against the bell-bottom jeans; and it will pull the attention from the neckline down to your hips – and away from your shoulders.

For the fifth look I paired high-waisted skinny jeans with a nice blouse to show you how a high-waist can break up your torso to create shape.

jeans boy shape wide shoulders by lizkzook featuring stretchy jeans

If you want to see more on dressing for a boy shape check out this article. It has all of my dressing tips for boy shapes in one place. It also links to all other dressing tips and examples of them.