Have you been given big arms and broad shoulders? Naturally, women with this particular physical feature have the “V-taper” physique – commonly found in athletic women. But did you know about female celebrities with broad shoulders and big arms? Renee Zellweger, Halle Berry, and Kate Hudson are all blessed with broad shoulders but still look great – the key is to dress accordingly. You may be looking for help for dresses for broad shoulders and big arms, right?
Indeed, everybody shape is beautiful, and you must learn to accept it happily. However, a woman cares more about her figure and search for dresses that fit her body perfectly while giving a slim smart look.
If you are confused about knowing ideas’ how to dress broad shoulders perfectly,’ you’ve landed at the right place. But before you start shopping for dresses, you’ll need to check if you really have broad shoulders.
What Do You Mean By Broad Shoulders of a Woman?
Typically, wide shoulders are measured by the hip size. Women whose shoulders are broader (more than 5 percent bigger) than their hips are considered wide shoulders. Do check if you have arms and shoulders creating an inverted triangle or apple silhouette.
READ MORE: BEST SHAMPOO FOR ASIAN HAIR
Take a measurement with a tape
Measure shoulders
Grab a tape and a friend to help you because you can’t do it yourself. To measure shoulders, ask your friend to place a tape at the tip of one shoulder (should skim the top area) and wrap it around you. When it meets the back of the same shoulder, you’ll get the widest circumference of your shoulders.
Measure Hips
Hold the tape below your hip bone, and then wrap it around the fullest part of your other hip until it meets at the same hip.
Likewise, measure your bust and waist and use those figures to determine your silhouette shape.
There are many ways to make feminine dresses look good on women with big arms and broad shoulders. First, you’ll need to choose a dress that shows your shoulders less broad and create an hourglass figure.
Scroll on to view them!
7 Best Dresses for Women with Broad Shoulders and Big Arms
1. Peplum Waist Dresses
A peplum waist dress helps flatter your broad shoulders by lending volume to the bottom half of your body. The details are limited at the shoulder to make it look smaller. Excessive detail is given at the hip.
2. Full-Skirted Dresses
A full-skirted dress was born from Dior’s New Look in the 1950s, is best for women with broad shoulders and big arms. The design lends volume to your bottom half; helps converts the body to the sexy hourglass silhouette.
3. V-Neck Dresses
Scoop aka v-neckline dresses are great for broad shoulders and big arms rather than a square neckline. The V- shape takes away the attention from broad shoulders and directs it down towards your waist.
4. Bottom-Detail Dresses
A dress with bottom detailing is a smart way to distract eyes from your broad shoulders. The plain upper body and printed lower part draw the viewer’s attention from broad shoulders and big arms.
-
Dresses with horizontal/vertical stripes
This style of dress never gets old-fashioned and remains a timeless classic in each era.
-
Wear dark color on top, and light on the bottom
A dress with a dark top and a light bottom like pair of jeans would perfectly match your broad shoulders and big arms!
-
Textured bottom portion
Besides, printed dresses, textured dresses like sequins, pleats, ruffles, and tweeds set well on broad-shoulder women.
5. Wide Strap Dresses
You may wear dresses with a wide strap – 3 to 5 inches wide sets well broad shoulders. The sleeve of the wide strap dress won’t look too thin but looks in proportion to them.
6. Kimono Sleeve Dresses
A kimono sleeve dress is a good option for women with wide shoulders and big arms. The sleeves of kimono dresses are typically made with lightweight fabric that drape perfectly against your broad shoulders. Likewise, the voluminous sleeves hide big arms instead of highlighting them.
7. Diagonally-Cut Sleeve Dresses
Last but not least, when shopping for a dress for big arms and wide shoulders, always look at the cut of the sleeve. A diagonally-cut sleeve helps flatter broad shoulders by creating a line to the armpit instead of creating a line straight across your arm. This is because a diagonal line is abrupt-looking.
Just remember: Never wear dresses that have a horizontally-cut sleeve.
Dresses to Avoid Broad Shoulders and Big Arms
- Don’t wear shoulder pads
- Don’t wear ruffle-shoulder dresses
- Don’t wear puff-sleeve dresses
- Don’t wear dresses with sequins on or near the shoulders.
- Don’t wear strapless dresses and off-the-shoulder dresses
Moreover, if you have broad shoulders, you may also avoid wearing fitted jackets and spaghetti straps tops.
5 Best Tips That Help Minimize the Appearance of Broad Shoulders and Big Arms
- Do wear a top with raglan sleeves that will help soften sharp edges (if any) in your silhouette
- Do choose V-neck and scoop neck dresses that draw attention downward to your body
- Do choose full skirts and long jackets and blazers that hit at the hip rather than the waist
- Do wear oversize shirts that you can style up with belt.
- Do wear wide-leg pants that help balance out your shoulder broadness
- Do wear cap sleeves that are not super tight but remains flattering on broad shoulders.
By following these tips, you will just create an illusion to believe that shoulders are less broad.
Final Thoughts
The best way to make shoulders less broad and create an hourglass figure in any dress is to balance the proportions of body shape perfectly. Since you’re blessed with naturally wide shoulders, you must counterbalance this by following the tips mentioned above – to add fullness, volume – to your hip and thigh area.
These tricks will help you create an hourglass figure in a dress, hence making your shoulders less broad.
