The figurines – including the “Venus of Willendorf,” found in 1908 at Willendorf, Austria – portray round, pear-shaped women’s bodies, many with large breasts. Some of the earliest known representations of a woman’s body are the “ Venus figurines,” small statues from 23,000 to 25,000 years ago in Europe. Prehistory-1900s: A focus on full-figured silhouettes To mark International Women’s Day, we explore how this “ideal” is ever-changing, forming a complex history throughout art and fashion – with damaging impacts on women who try to conform in each era. Now, shapely backsides are celebrated with “likes” on social media. More recently, in the late 20th century, thin, waif-like models filled the pages of fashion magazines. Thousands of years ago, sculptures and artworks portrayed curvaceous, thickset silhouettes. This obsession fuels societal pressures to appear a certain way and to have a certain body type, particularly among young women, stemming from a cultural construct of the “ideal” body, which has in turn changed over time – as long ago as pre-history. It’s become connected to our identity as people.” “We as a culture, as a society, are obsessed with size. “Whether it’s contemporary or 19th century, they want to know what size it is or what size it would correlate to, or what measurement it is,” she said. “People come and always want to know what size something is,” said McClendon, who organized the exhibition “ The Body: Fashion and Physique,” about the history of the idealized body type in fashion, which is on display until May. Yet no matter how aesthetically unique or historically significant a particular piece of fashion may be, most visitors to the museum typically ask one question, said Emma McClendon, the museum’s associate curator of costume. Since clothing sizes vary so much from one brand to another, now you can look at the size charts of your favorite online stores and choose the best fitting clothes based on your body measurements.Hidden in the halls of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York are historic textiles and glamorous garments, many of which hold secrets from years past. Not only will you need them to figure out your body shape based on the details below, having them handy will also be helpful if you are shopping online. Now that you have your body measurements, be sure to hold onto them. For this, you’ll be measuring the widest part of your hips and booty which is just above the crotch. If you are in doubt where that is, just bend like you are doing “I’m a little teapot.” The bend is where your waist is! Measure that circumference and make note of it. It’s nearly right below the bust line at that smallest part of your torso. Many people think the waist is at the belly button or top of hips however, it’s much higher than that. Measuring the waist can be a bit confusing. Measure snug across the bust and write down that number. You’re going to take this measurement around the widest part of your bust line. You’re going to measure the circumference of your shoulders including your arms (not just across the back). Using the measuring tape, wrap it around your shoulders.

I’ve noticed other bloggers and YouTubers say don’t wear a bra but since most of us are over 40+, we want to make sure our bust is lifted to the proper location before taking these measurements. Strip down to your underwear and be sure to wear a good support bra for this. Grab paper and pen so you can jot down these numbers. As I mentioned above, we’re going to take four measurements: shoulders, bust, waist, and hips.

Different body shapes for women