Tan France’s Tips on Dressing for Your Proportions

Whether your body shape is that of an hourglass, apple, inverted triangle, or rectangle, dressing for your proportions is one of Tan France’s most important fashion rules. There are several ways to ensure that your clothes fit you properly.

1. 1. Ensure that your pants are the right length. Whether you're a curvier person, a fuller-figured person, a much taller person, or a much slimmer person with a narrow waist, look for pants that are as long as possible to elongate your legs. Taller people can get away with wearing a cropped or Capri pant, but you are making a choice to shorten your body if you choose to wear those shorter lengths.
2. 2. Wear pants with a slimmer leg. Whatever you're wearing on your bottom half—especially if it’s denim—should fit your lower body perfectly. A slim-cut pant will highlight your legs, while a wider leg will make you look shorter than you are. You do not have to go for a super-skinny pant; a tapered leg or a slim fit can be perfect. There is a common misconception, though, that skinny jeans are only for tiny people. That couldn't be further from the truth. Skinny jeans are scaled to fit regardless of size. They are just a more fitted jean, appropriate for any body type.
3. 3. Look for tops that hit your natural hip. When it comes to shirt length, longer tops make your legs look shorter. If you want to make the best of your proportions, make sure that the length of your shirt is appropriate for the length of your body. Your shirt should be just long enough to hit your natural hip. Don't go any longer than your hip bones, or you’ll notice an imbalance between your top half and your lower half.
4. 4. Tailor your clothes to perfection. There is a common misconception that it costs a fortune to get clothing tailored. It doesn't. You can buy something that's relatively inexpensive and have it tailored to fit perfectly for a reasonable price. Tan will often crop his blazers so they hit at a certain point on his midsection, making him look taller than he really is. If you want to play with gender and fluidity and how you present yourself to the world based on your clothing, you can buy clothing from either department, men’s or women's, take it to a tailor, and have it reworked so it fits you appropriately.
5. 5. Break the rules. If you want to push your style further and experiment with fashion trends, you are going to have to break some rules along the way. Tan will sometimes wear a piece that doesn’t necessarily fit his proportions—like a jacket with an extra-wide shoulder. He can make that work by keeping the rest of his proportions spot-on: He will make sure the jacket isn't too long and the trousers are nice and slim. On the other hand, if he’s going for a super baggy pant, he will go choose a top with a defined waistline that is tighter on his upper body. Break rules intentionally, and focus on proportions to create a real fashion moment.

Get a MasterClass Annual Membership and let Tan France be your very own style spirit guide. Queer Eye’s fashion guru spills everything he knows about building a capsule collection, finding a signature look, understanding proportions, and more (including why it’s important to wear underwear to bed)—all in a soothing British accent, no less.