SHOULDERS ...... One of the main problems that many girls have is in the shoulders of the garment. If the shoulder is a poor fit it is going to pull the fabric up in the front, skewing the entire line of the style. I can not emphasize enough, how important it is to learn your measurements, and I would include the shoulders in the overall measurement of a garment, especially if it is a fitted piece.The shoulders are generally measured on the back from each seam where the sleeve meets the garment. Many Girls avoid this issue, by buying stretchy tops and dresses, but are depriving themselves of some fashionable and feminine items by doing so.
Even if a garment fits through the shoulder, there is no guarantee it is going to look perfect, especially if your build is large through the shoulder area. There are some simple rules of thumb you can use to slenderize the look of your shoulders. You will need to assess where the problem in the shoulders lies...... Do you have broad or wide shoulders or are your shoulders built up through the neck muscle area ? Usually the latter is from working with free weights or from a job that requires plenty of heavy lifting.
BROAD SHOULDERS ...... Believe it or not, one way to slim the look of shoulders is to show them. A Halter or cutaway top (of a dress or top) will draw attention to the fabric and neck area and draw the eye away from the shoulder area. A low V neck with a great necklace will also have the same effect. You want to draw the viewer's eye away from trouble spots! Another way to minimize the broad shoulder is to wear shoulder pads. This may seem like a contradiction but you are going to wear the shoulder pads in conjunction with a tight cinched in waist. This give an hourglass illusion and the eye is drawn to the waist. The idea is to balance the top and bottom of your body using the waist as the pivotal point. Don't ever wear shoulder pads in a free flowing dress as you will look very top heavy! You can also use Color to minimize large shoulders. Try wearing a dark top with a light skirt .... keep the top simple and stay away from large patterns, ruffles etc. A Low V neck will draw the eye but if you wear a low rounded neckline, it will just flatten out and widen the whole torso, and not help at all with the width problem. Take a few minutes to read the section about necklines
MUSCULAR SHOULDERS AND NECK ...... When you are built up through the shoulder and neck, you must avoid dresses with tiny spaghetti straps or strapless dresses. No Matter how feminine these dresses may look, they are going to draw attention to the shoulder and neck. The shoulder pad theory works very well with this type of shoulder, as it gives height to the outside shoulder, thus smoothing the whole shoulder area making the muscles less visible. All the above rules of shoulder pads would apply. You may also consider a full, longer wig that falls on that portion of the neck & shoulder.... actually using the hair to hide the muscles. The key word to getting the shape you want is the appearance of balance. You want to detract from your bad points and draw attention to your best assets!
Check the pictures below, and notice how the treatment of the shoulders can affect the feminine image.
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