The Art to Good Proportion
Thursday, April 15th, 2010
Good Proportion Begins with the Head
Good proportion begins with good head; length that is.
Occasionally, I get strange looks from my clients when I pull out my tape measurement to measure their heads. Once I explain that the essence of pleasing proportion begins with relating the head length to the rest of the body, well, they still give me a side-eye roll; that is until they see the technique in action.
Color, fit and proportion differentiates a good look from a fabulous one. The synergism among these elements solves the fashion equation and, like math, if you don’t insert the right variables, you end up with a wrong answer. Real talk:
Placing the wrong color next to your face will age you. Tightly fitted clothes say “I’m easy” if you’re a woman or “I’m cheap” if you’re a man; slovenly fitted clothes communicate sloppiness. Bad proportions make you appear insignificant, unimportant and imbalanced. Get all three correct and not only do you get 100 percent but you may even make the fashion Dean’s List.
Take a look at this picture of actress Taraji P. Henson. The blue hue works amazingly well against her skin. The dress skims her body magnificently for the perfect fit. I love the fact that she shows an ample amount of upper body skin to offset her high waist. However, there’s something still a bit off with this look.
Actress Taraji P Henson (Click Image to Enlarge)
This next picture shows where I’ve charted Taraji’s head lengths. Notice the point of her ideal dress length. There isn’t a significant difference in terms of inches BUT to shorten her dress just these few inches would do wonders in creating better proportion.
Taraji P Henson Showing Head Lengths (Click image to enlarge)
Now take a look at actress Elise Neal’s dress. Great color and the proportions are dead on. Elise, like Taraji, has a high waist. In fact, Elise’s waist is short by nearly a half-head length. Consequently, she should always show a lot of upper body skin for good proportion as this dress does. Also, note the actress’ side-sweeping bangs. Excellent technique as it works to visually shorten her long face, again promoting good proportion. Regrettably, the fit of the dress is less than perfect, as evidenced by the pulled fabric seen at her hips. It’s really unfortunate because wearing the proper underpinning would have easily alleviated this problem.
Color is good; proportions are good; fit, not quite.
Yes, both women look beautiful and, on a scale of 1 to 10, I’d give them 8.5s. But 8.5s aren’t what you pay image consultants big bucks to obtain and they sure as heck won’t get you on the Best Dress List, unless, of course, you’re First Lady Michelle Obama.
So, if you ever decide to hire me, be warned. I’m all about good head; length that is.
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4 Responses to The Art to Good Proportion
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Nice post. I used to be checking constantly this blog and I’m inspired! Very helpful information specially the last part
I deal with such information much. I was looking for this particular information for a long time. Thanks and best of luck.
Hello, I am looking for a personal stylist consultant.
I would like to know how to dress for my body proportion.
In this site I was looking for more detai.
I have a long head, and I think I have long waist and short
legs.
I hope you may help me.
Thank you,
Cecilia
@Lukeither, Thank you so much! I’ll be waiting for you!
This is an incredibly well written article, not to mention informative and shows you’ve got style and taste.
When I get in the market for an image consultant, you’re on my list.
Best of luck!!!