What Colors Make You Look Thinner & Slimmer

A basic understanding of how colors can be used to accentuate a plus-sized figure can be a real asset while shopping. When used correctly in clothing, colors can make your body appear slimmer and conceal any areas you’d rather not show off.

If you don’t use flattering colors or patterns, though, you run the risk of wearing items that create the illusion of more weight. If you aren’t sure how to use colors to appear thinner, you aren’t alone. Take a look at this basic guide for finding clothes with flattering and slimming colors and patterns.

A guide to slimming colors

What Colours Can Make You Look Thinner?

Are you tired of the last few pesky pounds that have been clinging on to you no matter how hard you try to shed them off? Are you daydreaming about that perfect “hourglass figure” that you have been longing for ages? But you just cannot manage the extra few minutes to add to your exercise regime amidst your jam packed daily schedules? Well, then we have some good news for you. Although there is no better alternative to sweat out those extra kilos by hitting the gym regularly or following some exercise/yoga routine to fight off those unwanted pounds and stay slim, we are here today to share with you some neat tricks that we feel might just do the trick without too much hassle. It is a well-known fact that certain flattering colours tend to render an overall slimming effect on you, while others can work the other way around and add a few pounds. So, technically, if you could deck up in the proper shade and hue, you can expectedly manage to a few of those extra kilos. In this post, we will be talking about what colours can make you look thinner. So without any further ado, let’s proceed to enlist some colours that have a slimming effect on you:

Whether you’re talking about bathroom paint colors, abstract art, or clothing, one rule remains the same: dark colors recede and light colors advance. What does this mean for you? Light-colored clothing will draw the eye and stand out, making the area it’s covering appear prominent and larger. On the other hand, dark-colored clothing will diminish the appearance of whatever it’s covering, making it seem smaller and slimmer. For instance, if you want to make your legs and hips appear thinner, opt for dark skinny jeans and pants, and avoid wearing khakis, white pants, or even light denim.

Just because it’s universally slimming does not mean you should feel like you must have an all-black wardrobe. Here are some ways to use bright or light colors in your outfits to look skinnier.

Layer Colors Strategically

Layer light colors under dark ones to get the best of both worlds. A white or light-colored blouse looks pretty and sophisticated under a structured black or navy blazer or fitted cardigan. The vertical lines elongate your body making you look taller and slimmer.

A bright-colored statement piece

Go for a bright teal handbag, red pumps, or a cerulean statement necklace to incorporate some brightness into your look. They attract eyes to it – and away from your problem areas. Statement pieces are a great way to show personality!

Balance your proportions

Ladies with smaller upper bodies and curvy hips and thighs can balance dark bottoms with brightly colored tops. Try tucking a pastel-colored button-up into a black skirt, for instance, to make your upper body stand out and create an hourglass figure.

Slimming colors other than black

Does black make you look slimmer? Absolutely. But, black isn’t the only dark option for slimming clothing. Try playing with dark greens, reds, navy blue, and grays to add some extra excitement to your outfit and have a slimming effect.

Using color patterns

Like colors, patterns can also create the illusion of slimness or added weight depending on how you wear them. Here’s a guide to wearing some common patterns:

Slimming Stripes

Horizontal stripes can make whatever they’re covering appear wider, so it’s a good idea to stay away from them. Instead, wear clothing with vertical stripes, which creates a long line, making you appear taller and thinner.

Color blocks to look slimmer

When two or three colors are used in graphic shapes to add interest to a piece of clothing, it can be very flattering and slenderizing for curvy women. Look for color-blocking that uses darkly colored panels along the sides or around your waist, which will make you appear thinner. A slimming color block dress is an extremely powerful tool in the plus-size wardrobe arsenal.

Busy color patterns

Large busy patterns can look unflattering on curvy women, so if you’re going for a busy pattern, it’s best to find one with very small designs. Clothes with small all-over patterns are great for curvy women because they can disguise extra pounds, or any lumps and bumps underneath, whether that be on the belly, bottom or thighs.

Black

Black, the darkest of all shades in the color spectrum, is one of the most flattering of all colours on the visible spectrum that creates the illusionary effect that the person donning a black attire appears a few pounds less than is the reality of things. As such, black is one of the most sought-after colors amongst people who wish to try this trick to give the impression of being slimmer than they really are. Other darker shades: Next on the list would be the other colors that follow black in general. Shades of navy blue, chocolate brown or dark grey. All these colors are quite prominently used to give the wearer the advantage of casting the illusionary effect of being slim. In principle, the darker the shade you wear, the slimmer the look it imparts.

Monochromatic shades

If you want to accentuate your height and get a slim looking appearance, wear monochromatic colors from top to bottom. This helps to create a visual vertical line that lengthens out the body and helps to camouflage areas of the body where it looks bulky.

Mixing it up

However, there is no need for one to stick to monochrome colors to look slim and trim. As a matter of fact, a judicious combination of dark and lighter shades can have a flattering effect on you as well, despite you being rather bodacious. Like go for alterations such as dark bottoms for a brightly hued top or vice versa. Furthermore, a bright shade of red or pink can do a lot to create the perfect impression of you looking all slim and trim.

Colours to Avoid to Look Bulky

However on enlisting colours that one may choose to sport to create the illusion of a slimmed look, a fair disclaimer or precautionary word is prudent, that pertains to the colours from your cupboard that you mustn’t choose if you wish to look slim and fit.

Khaki or off white

These colors are a strict no-no for they are notorious in adding a few extra pounds further to your image, so try to avoid them.

White blouse

If you intend to conceal that you have a large breast, we would advise you not to don a white blouse that would only accentuate the feature you wish to camouflage.

Bright colors

In general, if you are trying to hide your tummy and large chest, then avoid wearing bright-colored shirts and tees. Likewise, if you intend to conceal your bottom and legs or a wide hip, try avoiding wearing bright-colored pants. Wear bright colored outfits on places on where you want to flaunt your assets. Similar choices apply for accessories too

Well dear readers, we hope that you shall find our representative list quite to your satisfaction. And we are confident that if you do follow that tips that we just shared you can achieve that slimmed look that you have been longing for a while with the least amount of effort.

We all know the rule: When in doubt, wear black. Admittedly, black is the ultimate color to make us look slimmer.

However, what actually are the colors that make us look bigger?

While there are other factors that determine the result, we just can’t deny how chubbier we look in white jeans than in black jeans! So there you go ladies – the 6 colors and color patterns that make us look fat so we can avoid them, enjoy!

White

Black is the most slimming color as it absorbs all the colors and reflects nothing to our eyes, this also explains why white color makes us look fat.

On the opposite, white reflects all the colors out and visually makes us have a bigger frame and our actual size.

Plus, white tends to enlarge the horizontal lining and that explains why those belly fat rolls can look deadly obvious in a white bodycon dress.

Alternative colors: Creamy white and Ivory

If white is too bold for you, you can always wear similar colors like creamy white and ivory.

I personally love white jeans so much but for some days I just want to relax, warm creamy jeans are my best pick.

Compared to the stacky white which has a cool tone, creamy white and beige colors have a warmer color with the underlying red, yellow, and orange as the undertone.

High saturation color

When it comes to high saturation colors, it means the colors that are bright and vivid.

For example, with pink color, there are many different shades of pink if we adjust the hue intensity.

In that case, shocking pink is a high saturation color while baby pink is a low saturation color.

One of the easiest ways to identify high saturation colors is testing whether they are harsh on the eyes or not as you can visually feel the color intensity.

High saturation colors make us look fat because they are visually more attention-grabbing than other darker colors.

We just subconsciously pay more attention to the bright color areas and so it gives an illusion of a thicker figure.

Pale color

Some people may think pale colors to pastel colors are the same thing. However, not all the pastel colors make you look fat.

Pastel colors like Violet Dark Pastel Purple and Coral rose don’t have the enlarging effect as they are more of a dark color. However, the light pastel colors like magic mint and peach can make us look fatter as it is closer to pure white.

Alternative:

Instead of totally avoiding the pale color, mixing it with the dark color is always a no-fail strategy.

For example, if you are the pear shape (thinner on the upper body and thicker on the lower body), you can always wear a light pink V neck top with black skinny jeans! With the balancing of color and addressing to your body curve, pale colors can look really flattering!

Nude color

I wish I knew this sooner because nude color can make you look fatter!

For a long period of time, I am so obsessed with the nude monochrome outfit.

However, I just don’t feel it looks best on me.

The problem is with the nude color, I feel like I am blending in with the background and I can’t use out outfit to show my body silhouette anymore, and that makes my body look thicker.

Alternative way:

But is that mean you shouldn’t wear nude colors? Not at all!

Nude is a tricky one, with the right fabric and design, nude color can look really good on us!

If I am wearing a long nude dress, now I will add a high waist black belt to define my waistline and makes my figure looks slimmer. Added to this, I am so obsessed with wearing nude heels as it blends into my leg seamlessly and makes me appear to have longer legs!

So nude color is definitely worth trying but you really need to pay close attention to what’s work and does not work for your body!

Big prints and patterns

Even you are wearing all black but if you have some bright red floral big print on it, it will still visually make the prints look more pop-up and have the enlarging effect.

Any busy patterns like big dotted prints are going to add some dimension to your body so keep them to the minimum.

Alternative:

If you are a big fan of prints and patterns, you can try vertical stripes instead of horizontal stripes for an elongating effect!

Added to this, instead of the bright prints with big contrast, you can always choose the light color prints to contour the clothes a bit. For me, I think shadow lace clothes are better than the ones with big prints – classy and elegant!

Pair contrasting colors in an outfit

Last but not least, let’s talk about color pairing! If you pair a shocking pink top with yellow pants ( That example is awful…), with two contrasting colors, visually it will look like you can chop into two colors and that makes you look shorter visually. Instead, we should always pair our outfit with a similar tone so that our outfit always looks united and completed.

This also explains why people always look taller with a monochromic outfit. With the different shades of the same color, you just look naturally more put together. Wear tone-on-tone is probably the easiest way to look high fashion on a budget!

Conclusion:

So there you go – the 6 colors that make you look fat and big. What are your thoughts on that?

So you are probably feeling so overwhelmed right now and questioning “Hmm… should are you suggesting I should only wear black now”? Of course NOT!

No matter your size, you can embrace all the colors and I mean it!

As a pear shape girl, I love wearing white jeans and pastel color tops as it just makes me feel really refreshed and out together.

The intention of writing this article is to let people figure out what colors will make you look bigger so you can balance it by choosing the slimming fabric, cutting, and accessories!

For example, you can always wear a V neck shirt instead of a round neck shirt to elongate your neckline to make your shed the volume on your upper body.

Added to this, instead of choosing a shining fabric like silk, a matte structured fabric like tweed can make you look way slimmer.

So, feel free to play with the colors with tricks and tips. After all, life is too short to just wear black!

To wrap things up, below is the checklist of colors that make you look bigger.

• White
• High saturation color
• Pale color
• Nude color
• Big prints and patterns
• Pair contrasting colors in an outfit

So, tell us what you think of this piece in the comments section. And as always, stay pretty everyone!!!