Body Shape Guide

The Apple Body Shape,styled with confidence

Fuller through the middle with a bust to match and slimmer legs? You are an apple. The whole approach is to draw the eye up to your neckline and down to your legs — two of your best assets — while letting fabric float past the waist rather than cling to it.

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How to Know You Are an Apple

Fuller bust and midsection with little waist definition, and slim hips and legs.

  • Weight carries through your bust and midsection
  • Waist is undefined — roughly as wide as or wider than your bust
  • Hips are narrow relative to your upper body
  • Legs and arms tend to stay slim
  • Shoulders can be broad; bust is often full

Where you gain weight

You gain weight around your torso and tummy first, while your legs and hips stay slim — which is exactly why they become your styling anchors.

Woman with an apple body shape in an empire-waist dress

Your Styling Goal: Lengthen and Redirect

The apple shape is dressed by moving the eye away from the middle and toward your strengths: a great neckline, a full bust, and slim legs. You are creating long vertical lines and letting fabric skim — never cling — over the waist. Show some leg, open up the neck, and everything falls into place.

1

Draw the eye up and down

A low neckline pulls attention to your face and bust; showing your legs pulls it downward. Together they bracket the midsection instead of highlighting it.

2

Skim, never cling

Fabric that flows past the waist — empire, A-line, wrap — glides over your middle. Tight, clingy fits do the opposite.

3

Create vertical lines

Open jackets, long necklaces, and column shapes draw a long line down the body and slim the silhouette.

Apple body shape wearing a V-neck top with an open long-line jacket

Tops, Necklines & Jackets for an Apple

Necklines

Wear: Deep V-necks, low scoops, and open collars that lengthen the neck and draw the eye upward.

Skip: High, closed, or crew necklines that shorten your torso and add visual weight up top.

Tops

Wear: Tops that flare gently from under the bust and end below the hipline; empire and A-line cuts; interesting sleeves to widen the shoulder frame.

Skip: Crop tops, clingy fitted tops, tucked-in styles, and anything belted tightly at the natural waist.

Jackets

Wear: Open long-line jackets and cardigans worn unbuttoned to create a slimming vertical column.

Skip: Short, boxy jackets that end at the waist and cut you at the widest point.

Prints & detail

Wear: Detail, ruffles, and prints concentrated on the upper chest and shoulders, above the midsection.

Skip: Horizontal stripes and busy patterns across the stomach, which widen the middle.

Trousers, Jeans, Skirts & Dresses for an Apple

Trousers & jeans

Wear: Straight-leg, wide-leg, and bootcut styles that balance a fuller top — you have the legs to carry them. A mid rise sits comfortably below the tummy.

Skip: Skinny and very tapered legs that emphasize the top-heavy contrast, and stiff high waistbands that dig in.

Skirts

Wear: A-line and gently flared skirts that show your legs and skim the middle; hemlines at or above the knee.

Skip: Tight pencil skirts that cling to the midsection and long, heavy skirts that shorten you.

Dresses

Wear: Empire, A-line, wrap, and bias-cut dresses that release from under the bust and glide over the waist. Belt loosely above the natural waist if you belt at all.

Skip: Bodycon and tightly fitted sheath dresses that cling through the middle.

Wear this

Deep V-necklinesEmpire & A-line shapesOpen long-line jacketsStraight & wide-leg jeansSkirts that show legWrap dresses

Skip this

Crop & clingy topsTight belts at the waistSkinny tapered jeansHigh closed necklinesBodycon dressesStomach-level stripes

Your shape is only half the styling picture

Knowing you are a apple tells you which silhouettes flatter you. Your color season tells you which colors do. Put them together and you have a complete styling profile — see your best colors previewed on your own face in seconds.

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Apple Body Shape: Common Questions

What is an apple body shape?
An apple (or round) shape carries weight through the bust and midsection with little waist definition, while the hips and legs stay relatively slim. The waist is roughly as wide as, or wider than, the bust. Broad shoulders and a full bust are common.
What should an apple body shape avoid wearing?
Avoid crop tops, clingy or tucked-in tops, tight belts at the natural waist, bodycon dresses, high closed necklines, and horizontal stripes across the stomach. These all draw attention to or cling around the midsection.
What jeans are best for an apple shape?
Straight-leg, wide-leg, and bootcut jeans are ideal because they balance a fuller upper body and show off slim legs. Choose a mid rise that sits comfortably below the tummy rather than a stiff high waistband that digs in.
What dresses flatter an apple body?
Empire, A-line, wrap, and bias-cut dresses are the most flattering. They release from under the bust and glide over the midsection while showing your legs. Avoid bodycon and tight sheath dresses that cling through the middle.
How can an apple shape look slimmer?
Create long vertical lines with open long-line jackets and column shapes, open up the neckline with a deep V, and show your legs with hemlines at or above the knee. Skimming fabric over the waist — never clinging — is the core move.

Not a Apple? Explore the other shapes

Most people are a blend of two. Read the guide that fits you best.

HourglassRectangleInverted TrianglePear

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