Are you petite and do you have rectangle figure?  If so, this article is for you to better understand your body type and find the best skirts and pants for you.

First of all, let’s take a close look at the characters of rectangle figure. See how many of below applies to you.

Your bust and shoulders are about the same width as your hip-line.

You have a small bust size.

You have little waist definition.

You’ve got a small frame in general, with little or no curves.

You might look shorter and heavier than you really are.

You usually are an athlete.

How many of the above facts are you?  If your answer is more than half, then you probably have a petite rectangle figure. If you are still not sure, take our petite body type quiz to find out.

If you are a petite rectangle body shape, your curves are evenly proportioned.  One of the positive thing on being a rectangle shape is that you gain weight everywhere and lose it everywhere.  Overall, you may come across as “straight up and down” or “boyish” type of body, which lacks curves.  You may have noticed that you do not have an obvious waistline, and that does not necessarily mean you need to lose a lot of weight.  In fact,  slim/athletic rectangular figure have small bone structures, with lower than average body fat percentage.  Therefore, petite women with rectangle figure normally do not need to lose weight.  Even if you do lose some weight, you probably still will not see much curves around your waist either.  It is because of your wide waist you might appear heavier on top than you really are and even if your stomach is flat.  In addition, a rectangle body shape can come with wide shoulders and chunky calves, which means you can look fairly athletic or masculine.

Natalie Portman (5’3″)

Rectangles are the classic model shape – straight up and down with slim hips, small bum and bust and not much in the way of a waist.   Amongst the petite actresses in Hollywood, the most famous petite rectangle body shaped celebrities are Reese Witherspoon, Natalie Portman and Hilary Duff.  If you are already petite, with the rectangle figure, you might look shorter and/or heavier than you really are.  If you aren’t very curvy (most rectangle figures aren’t), your focus should be to create curves (in the right places).  Your main goal should be to create a waist on your figure and add more width to your upper and lower part – transforming your body into a proportionate hourglass shape. You should accentuate your best features- the overall athletic figure is your valuable assets! Emphasize a pair of lean legs and toned shoulders.  For our petite rectangle body shaped beauties, of course you should also aim to look taller and make your proportion look better, in addition to creating curves in your figure. (Read more about the Best Wedding Dresses for Petite Rectangle Shape and Best Swimwear for Petite Rectangle Body Type)

The beauty of having a rectangle figure is your wide selection of pants and skirt.

Focus on girly & flirty skirts that will give you a feminine shape.  Avoid too full or fluffy skirts as they can make you bottom-heavy and create unbalance to your rectangle body shape.

Try A-line styled skirts, especially those with self-belts that you can cinch to create waistline definition or skirts constructed in panels with princess seaming that curves outward from the waistband and inward at the hem to mimic a shapely hip.

Adding dimensions to your frame will also create the illusion of curves for your straight up and down shape. This means “breaking up” your silhouette to create curves.  Details in skirts will give you the feminine look needed by your boyish figure.  Such details include full circle cut,  tiers as well as ruching and gathering.  Any trim that has flounce or ruffle is fantabulous, and try to keep the skirt’s overall shape close to the body. This way the skirt doesn’t overwhelm your trim little body.

Prints are great for petite rectangle beauties.  Reese Witherspoon is the expert of using prints to flatter her petite figure, and it is fair to say prints are her signature looks.

Reese Witherspoon (5’2″, Photo: Elle)

Since you have straight up and down figure already, generally we do not recommend a plain straight pencil skirts to you.  That doesn’t mean you should completely stay away from pencil skirts.  Pencil skirts that are stitched down at the side seams add curves, which could be a good choice for you.  Another way to create the illusion of a curvier figure is to peg your pencil skirts. Find a good tailor who can make this easy adjustment by narrowing the skirt at the hem.  Make sure the adjustment is done at the right length, otherwise you may not be able to walk in your skirt because it could be too tight at the hem! If you are petite and slender, pegged skirt works best for you.  If you’re a full-figured short woman, you may want to pass on this skirt style because it will emphasize hips.

If you have rectangular figure, you probably have amazing legs. Your athletic build allows you to wear boyish clothes as well as a wide range of feminine styles, so you have many choices when it comes to jeans. (Read Best Petite Jeans for Your Body Type)

Most rectangle figured women tend to have flat buttocks. You can almost wear all types of pants especially flared leg because the flare hem which make it look like you have hips.

Boyfriend jeans might look good on you, given your athletic frame.  However, for petite women, we generally do not recommend boyfriend jeans that is too loose or too big, as that will overwhelm your small body frame.  On the other hand, if you prefer more feminine style, for instance, you want your buttocks to look less flat, then the best petite jeans for you are those with pocket details.  Pockets with flaps will add extra volume and  will make your butt look less flat.  Slit pockets also help to give you more curves back.

We talked about the lack of waist definition for the rectangular figure- and the most obvious way to address that is to use a belt to create the illusion of waist.  You can either wear a dark colored belt around your waist or place a waist cinching shapewear underneath your clothes.