Friday, March 07, 2008 Sweet summer numbers By Kara Mae Muga Noveda
THE predicted La Nina rains shouldn’t be a damper on the numerous summer gigs you’re rearing to go to, and dress up for. The quintessential party dress in this season of vacations and chill hours is the short and sweet cocktail dress.
While the events for which cocktail dresses are worn are usually late afternoon or early evening affairs that are too casual to be called black-tie events, many cocktail dresses can now be worn elsewhere, depending on the cut and the material of the dress and the accessories worn with it.
To wear a cocktail dress to a more formal event, all you need to do is to accessorize accordingly, perhaps wear more flashy pieces of jewelry and heavier makeup. If you need to wear something dressy to the office for any reason other than the usual skirt or pantsuit, you can wear a cocktail dress that is not too flashy and just throw on a blazer and slip into sensible office shoes. Many current styles of cocktail dresses are no longer limited to being party wear anymore.
Choosing what style of cocktail dress to wear, however, can be very tricky for most women. Wearing a one-piece dress such as a cocktail dress can easily reveal those flaws if the dress does not fit the wearer’s body type.
In picking out the right cocktail dress to wear, consider your body type - whether you’re top-heavy or bottom-heavy and find something that will balance out your figure. If bottom-heavy, the aim should be to draw attention to the upper part of the body and the face. If top-heavy, you can either emphasize the cleavage or wear something that will pull the eyes to the legs.
What kind of cocktail dress would suit a woman with a bottom-heavy figure?
A woman with a bottom-heavy figure would want to hide the thickness around her hips and thighs. A good cocktail dress would be a dress that fits closely around the waist but without the seams pushed out by extra padding around the abdomen and has a skirt that flares out around the hips and thighs. A cocktail dress with a full skirt would be perfect for a woman with a bottom-heavy figure because it will definitely hide whatever flabbiness and bulges that she wishes not to be seen around her lower body.
Another option available for a woman with a bottom-heavy figure is a cocktail dress that sports an empire-style waistline. A cocktail dress with an empire-style waistline has the waist placed higher, thereby pulling the eyes towards the shoulders, the neck and the face. It also drapes and skims over the lower body. The only risk with wearing an empire-style cocktail dress, however, is that the empire-style cut is often used on maternity dresses. Then again sporting a maternal bump seems to be fashionable, as recently seen in this year’s Oscars.
And yet another choice open for a woman with a bottom-heavy figure is a cocktail dress that is either sleeveless or strapless, also with a flaring skirt. Again, baring the arms and the shoulders is effective in drawing attention away from the hips.
As for women with top-heavy figures, a cocktail dress with a solid-colored top paired with a patterned skirt is a good equation. You can hike the hem of her skirt up to make it shorter and really draw the eyes to the legs.
Should you attract attention to an ample cleavage rather than legs, you can cover up the legs in a long-skirted cocktail dress but reveal a little skin on her upper body with a low V-neck or plunging neckline. Don’t wear a cocktail dress with an overly busy top because it will make the upper body appear larger and skew the balance of the figure.
Accessories also help to keep the illusion of balance on a woman’s figure aside from wearing the right kind of cocktail dress. Bottom-heavy women can wear flashy earrings, necklaces or chokers, while top-heavy women can forego the necklace and opt for a bracelet instead. Take it a step at a time, buy your cocktail dress first before figuring out what accessories, bag and shoes to wear.
