Vertical stripes make you look fat, say scientists
Filed under: Style in the News, Clothing, Fashion, News, Best of the Season
Been wondering whether or not you looked a little pudgy in your favorite striped shirt? Turns out, you do! At least, that's assuming the stripes are vertical.
A group of UK scientists decided to test the time-honored fashion adage that vertical stripes are slimming (while horizontal stripes are less flattering) -- and the results were truly bizarre. Apparently you can forget everything you thought you knew about dressing thin, because -- at least according to science -- the exact opposite is true.
The Psychology Department at the University of York showed study participants 200 sets of pictures, in which models wore dresses with both horizontal and vertical stripes. Researchers discovered that women wearing vertical stripes appeared to be a full six percent wider than their horizontally-clad counterparts.
But while you're hauling your vertically-striped shirts off to Goodwill this weekend, take heart -- it's not all bad news. This style standby has been proven false, but it turns out wearing black really does make you look more svelte. Phew!
Check out our gallery for more slimming tips.
porterhouse 9-12-2008 @ 2:15PM
enough of the garbage of women and looking "fat"
take one llook at american male's and you see they are fatter than the women these days. Pick on them for a change
I am sick of the brainwashing of women they are somehow
to fat, not good looking enough,
American males are the SLOB'S
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TheAvatarofSet 9-12-2008 @ 2:48PM
Porterhouse, you're an idiot. That sounds like typical lashing out to me because of your own shortcomings and self-esteem issues. I'm an American male and am certainly neither overweight or a slob. So stop with your generalizations. It just reveals your ignorance.
crys 9-12-2008 @ 3:03PM
Porterhouse, I know the anger might take away some from your point. You still hold a valid point though. You look at actors like Jack Black, and it seems they are judged a lot less than women who are curvacious in Hollywood. Look at the amount of TV shows that thar an overweight man married to an attractive, thin woman. There are some places that say things about overweight men, but a lot of times the criticisms are aimed more at women. It is the young girls who are taught from a very early age to be so hard on themselves about their bodies. The anger and frustration is understandable, as it seems the double standards are still alive and well. I won't classify American men as slobs, but they are held at a different standard than us women.
david 9-12-2008 @ 3:57PM
Porterhouse,
I agree totally with your comments. Please though, learn that there are 2 o's in the word too as in too fat. And to Avatarofset, if you use neither, than you have to also use nor. If you think that Porterhouse is showing what you perceive as ignorance, I look from whence the comments come...YOU!
Trav 9-12-2008 @ 4:59PM
Well, David...
before you criticize someone else's English, you might want to make sure that you are flawless. You are not flawless, however, or you would know that "from whence" is redundant. "Whence" means "from where." To say "from whence" is the same as saying "from from where."
Idiot...
Gebrish 9-12-2008 @ 5:16PM
David, if you are aware that using a "neither" requires using a "nor", then you should also be aware of the pairing of "then" to "if". As in your statement, "if you use neither, than you have to also use nor." "Than" is incorrect. It should be "then". Not to mention your slew of incorrect punctuation.
In sum, I agree with Trav. If you're going to attempt to correct someone's grammar, you'd better make sure your own is at least respectable.
Aisley 9-18-2008 @ 11:23AM
Ah, my dear Porterhouse, you're so right; and so are you Cris. For those who doubt it, take a look at the star couple of Law and Order CI. After having health issues, Vincent D'Onofrio returned to the show with a new 5 sizes bigger wardrobe. He's still on the show. That same situation wouldn't have hold for his counterpart, nor for any other actress in any other show, Delta Burke anyone?).
Now, my perspective differs a bit from what's considered the general one. As guilty as the fashion, make-up, advertising, movie, TV and modeling industries are, don't forget they cannot force you to do anything. My beloved, we need to start taking responsibility for OUR OWN actions. If you know you shouldn't, but you go and eat a bag of chips, have one too many beers, or have the slice of cheesecake you crave; then go ahead and take responsibility for it. We need to stop the "the devil made me do it" mentality. We also need to start accepting ourselves as we are. Many things are out there that we cannot change; the color of our skin, our sexual orientation, our age, our height and sometimes even our weight. Then please, please, please my people, let's not waste our time complaining and getting frustrated with things we cannot do anything about! Enjoy the life you have, with everything you have. We'll always find people in a better position than us, but go ahead and count. You'll find out those are so very few. There will always, always be people that will look at you with envy for what you have and for who you are. In closing the sermon, and before everybody fall sleep, remember that guy who made you jealous when you saw him driving that beautiful car? Has it ever occur to you that he may be one of those unfortunate people that have to "live" in their car? The next time you are about to start a pity party, make a list of all the things you have, tangibles and non-tangibles. But make sure you have a very thick notebook, because the amount of things on that list will amaze you.
Now, go ahead and enjoy your life:
1. Your name is not Fannie or Freddie and your last name is not
Lehman.
2. If you're able to read this, it means Ike didn't visit you.
3. You're not having to defend yourself from accusations your
opponent is making; cool! You're not running for office.
4. Is anybody scrutinizing even the smallest thing you have ever
done? Nope, you're name is not Sarah Palin.
5. If nobody cares about what it is that you're doing in your
kitchen, good!!! you're not Ahmadiwhatever, and you're not
getting invaded any time soon.
melissa 9-12-2008 @ 3:09PM
of course it doesn't help if said verticle striped article of clothing is ugly ..... such as the dress or whatever the woman is wearing in the picture. she doesn't look fat, just poorly dressed
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Steve 9-12-2008 @ 3:43PM
People should stop with this "thin" image that is portrayed as looking "good". We should eat as healthy as possible, excercise and wear clothes that fit. So simple but the fact is we let certain industries brainwash us into what "they think looks good" Healthy looks best!
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rwin143 9-12-2008 @ 4:39PM
If you are fat, then stripes, fatigues or palm leaves won't make your flab, flob less when you walk.
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David 9-12-2008 @ 4:49PM
Once you get outside of major cities it's hard to tell American women from the bovine livestock. :)
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neyney352 9-13-2008 @ 3:57PM
anywhere you look men can't be told apart from bovine livestock : )
Jadin 9-20-2008 @ 1:23AM
Yes, because the men are seen mounting them
Paul 9-12-2008 @ 7:56PM
There are some broad, general rules for dressing around your body type, e. g. an empire waist dress tends to accentuate the bust. Beyond that, just wear what you like. Your pleasure with yourself will show up in your appearance. We should all try to remember that.
http://LoveOfFashion.com
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SKW 9-12-2008 @ 5:28PM
I've always thought stripes, regarless of orientation, make you look fat. Except pinstripes, those look good on anyone tall. Thinner people really are generally more attractive because they're generally healthier. I'm not talking people like Kate Moss, but anyone will tell you that Jessica Alba's body is a lot more attractive than Roseanne Barr's. Health is beauty, not taking body shape to one extreme or the other.
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Kiki 9-12-2008 @ 6:12PM
The fact that a person is fat makes them look fat. It doesn't matter what you wear. If you are overweight, there is no miracle clothing that will fix that.
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DI 9-12-2008 @ 8:57PM
David, I certainly hope that you will marry a model lady. A woman of taste, intelligence,and pure beauty.Then I hope she has two or three kids of yours, lives to be over forty yrs and has early menapause.Then perhaps she too will look more of a Bovine type to you!
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Alan 9-12-2008 @ 6:25PM
You must be aware of the difference between looking fat and being fat! My ex ask me one time if her pants made her look fat. I said "It's not the pants". She got MAD at me! Go figure. LOL
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Lisa 9-12-2008 @ 6:39PM
I do believe in our society its more acceptable for a man to be fat that it is a woman. We tend to focus on the women more. But men also don't worry that much about there own weight issues. They tend to think its ok and not see themselves as fat when in reality they are fat or chubby. A belly bulge on a man is more acceptable in our society.
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Mary K. N. 9-12-2008 @ 6:49PM
To be truly scientific, the colors of the stripes in each set of clothing, horizontal and vertical, would have to be the same. But, in what passes for science these days, one cannot be sure that the so-called "scientists" (often just student researchers) have really conducted a valid study.
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