Fashion Vests

"How to Disguise Problem Areas With Fashion Vests"

Long Shirt Vest from Lulu's

Fashion vests are one of many pieces that can transform your clothes into multiple outfit combinations.

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Womens vests range from trendy denim vests, preppy sweater vests to casual cotton vests. What you should choose is entirely up to your body shape and the way you wear it. Because the fact is that some body shapes look fantastic in a vest, others, if done the wrong way... well... look frumpy. But don't worry! You can easily make it work for you no matter shape, by doing a few adjustments.

So before jumping into the vest-department, take a note of your problem-areas around your upper half -- from hips and up.

But first, let's take a minute to determine your body shape. This will give you clearer idea on what to look for when purchasing a vest.

Are you a pear, hourglass, inverted triangle, rectangle or apple shape?

Now let's take a closer look at the common problem-areas below and discover how to modify the vest look accordingly:

Minimizing Wide Or Full Bust

The trick here is to choose a solid dark colored sweater vest, preferably in black, brown or dark navy. Because of the color it will simply make you look slimmer on top. A v-neck is preferred as it draws the eye up and down, instead of right to left (with a scoop neck) which visually widens your upper half.

If you have a full bust steer away from fitted vests as they can create a uni-boob effect!

Minimizing a Full/Round/Wide Torso

You probably are an apple or rectangle body shape with little or no waist definition. You might also have given birth and gained extra pounds around the tummy.

You might want to button up the vest or perhaps go for something basic, without any flashy, contrasting buttons (gold or bright silver on black, navy blue etc.) because it sets the attention to your mid-riff. Instead let the vest flow freely. This will disguise the sides of your mid-section and trick people into thinking that there's a thin waist hiding in there! Avoid fitted vests as they will only highlight your mid-section. Stick to solid dark colors.

Create and/or Enhance a Waist

You probably have little waist to no definition or maybe you're an hourglass shape who wants to define your waist even more?

Then try an unbuttoned button-down vest with a wide-to medium sized black or dark brown belt, cinching around your waist.

More tips on buying womens vests:

Choose a flattering vest neckline. The best neckline is a low V or U-neck.
Choose neutral/earthy colors like black, gray, dark navy blue, brown and white/cream. These are basic colors that blend in with all other colors.
Make sure you pick a vest that doesn't have straps that sit far out on your shoulders. Showing off your bra straps looks funny. Not in a good way.