How to Dress for Your KIBBE Body Type for BEGINNERS

Dressing for your kibbe body type can feel like an absolute maze at the beginning. In this video I break down the body type lines to their most basic recommendations to help you understand the kinds of silhouettes you could wear if you want to understand your kibbe Image ID better.

Timestamps:
0:00 the challenge of dressing for your body type
0:46 why should you dress for your body type?
2:57 what are kibbe body types?
4:47 dramatic
7:10 soft dramatic
7:39 flamboyant natural
8:35 soft natural
9:07 dramatic classic
10:19 soft classic
11:22 flamboyant gamine
13:00 soft gamine
13:50 theatrical romantic
15:09 romantic

ABOUT ME:
You can find my page @bodyandstyle over on TikTok where I have over 500'000 followers. Discovering the body types changed my life and that's why I want to share it with you all.

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[marinaborges]

I'd love more modern and applicable recomendations for Romantics because almost everytime someone gives examples with photos they are really dated and old fashioned. I'm having a really hard time choosing more formal clothes for work without looking like I'm from a 1950's movie.

[alexandrah]

Would love a video on how to “dress down” for dramatics! All the examples are usually very editorial or formal, but street style would be so helpful (especially for dresses, since that’s what I personally wear)!

[sophierosebisou]

I did a deep dive into finding my Kibbe body type (SN) over the pandemic. It was very difficult at first to analyze myself, without comparisons to figure out if I had small vs big hands, angularity and even “perceived” body height. When I was younger, I remember putting on an outfit for school and changing several times till it felt “right”. (My sister still teases to this day for changing outfits so much.) It is pretty much as described, feeling like you are wearing someone else’s clothing or wearing a costume. Learning the Kibbe system helped to reinforce what I instinctually already knew. Trying on different silhouettes for different body types also helped to physically see what did or didn’t work on me. I now use it to avoid buying clothes that do not accentuate/accommodate my body lines. Your videos on Kibbe and Essences are helping to refine my eye further. I do custom costuming for people and it helps me advise them on selecting silhouettes that will look the best on their figures. I practice by trying to classify my friends. This video really helped clear up any doubts I had about most of them! Thank you for all your videos!❤

[hiddenmutant]

I appreciate what you're saying around 3:25 about some things not changing in our bodies, but they absolutely do and that's one of the things I think causes a healthy skepticism with Kibbe. Something as simple as posture dramatically changes your shoulder, torso, and hip proportions, as well as our bones absolutely tend to change quite a lot with age and lifestyle.

A friend of mine's mom was nearly 5'7" in her early twenties (approaching that automatic vertical point), and, due to lifting heavy weights for years, compressed her spine so she's now under 5'4" mid-forties. Torso shrinking is very common in general since our limbs lose little to no length with age. Pregnancy can cause your actual hips to be physically wider (or narrower!) due to the ligaments holding the bones together to relax and "stiffen" back up in different positions, and it often makes the ribcage physically wider as well due to the baby needing more room (particularly for folks with shorter torsos); some people lose an inch of height due to their feet flattening out. Years of working hunched at a computer desk will absolutely change your shoulder width and height, and then things like yoga and general stretching could eventually pull them back into place. Osteoporosis can cause your leg bones to bend (bowlegs) and/or your shoulders to round/slope.

At which point should we find a Kibbe ID? When our body is "least changed?" When our body "settles?" Do these very real and obviously visual changes somehow not affect our ID which is, at the end of the day, based on visual impressions? I like Kibbe, but I don't think it's a bad thing to consider ID's may not be immutable, and people may have different accommodations in different seasons of life.

[chloe-fywc]

Discovering that I’m SN made me realize why I hated school uniform so much.

School uniform is actually everything I have to avoid ( a LOT of harsh, geometric lines, tight hairstyles, no waist definition as we had to wear mid rise pants and skirts). Everything is also symmetrical !

So every time I could, I tried to relax my look. Let my hair down, unbutton my shirt, take of blazer.

It’s kinda hard to look good in professional clothing as a SN. Luckily, I can make buisness casual work for me at my job )

[Gandellion]

I’d love to hear about cuts that suit each type, like neackline, sleeve style and length, waist length and whether it needs to be fitted or if blousing is better, skirt shape and length etc

[theahaberman]

I would love more videos on the Soft Natural type... Especially on how to look more polished. A lot of times with SN I feel like we get sort of skimmed over, or only shown casual or "boho" ways of dressing.

[chlomackin]

I’ve never clicked on a video so quickly 😅

[HeatherFonseca]

I’m SD and I truly feel like there’s pretty much nothing normal I can wear. Sexy hourglass shaped dresses don’t work for a non-celebrity lifestyle. I’ve basically had to ignore Kibbe’s direction because it’s just not practical.

[ElCubed]

Now I understand why I hated collars on me so much in school and felt so off wearing them (and still do) as a Flamboyant Natural. And why dresses that look great on the hanger (usually curvy/sexy or structured) also didn't vibe with my body, creating a lot of disappointment in the dressing room 😅. Now I look for flowy, effortless and unstructured pieces with a wider neck line and I feel so beautiful in them! But would have never thought to look in that direction originally because I didn't want to be seen as "shapeless". Thank you so much for your helpful tips and videos!

[dapplerosegrey]

I’ve been into kibbe for years and never could settle on my type—knowing I was a natural but not knowing if I was FN or SN. I think your videos really clarified the kibbe system for me and I now know I’m probably an FN. It really makes sense now!

[TheGPFilmMaker]

Love your content! I spent about six months figuring out my Kibbe Type (SN) and am now starting to really apply it to sorting my wardrobe and purchasing new pieces (after an 8 month no buy!) That idea of things feeling "off" just resonated so much with me and really got me interested in Kibbe. My sister is a pure dramatic and even though we're the same size every time I borrowed her clothes it'd feel so wrong and off, which inspired me to understand body typing better!

I also showed my husband Kibbe Typing and he was super excited to find his type and start applying the lines and advice (he's a DC) Your videos have just been so useful to me!

[susanstephan]

What really helped me to find my type was hearing others of that body type describe their struggles with clothing or what doesn't work for them and why. I'm mostly moderate in height and proportions, so I thought I was maybe some kind of C until I saw an online SN discussion about things like turtlenecks and zipping up dresses. I struggle with both and that's what helped me to realize that I've got some upper body width to accommodate.

[briyee-sandoval]

Ever since I found out I'm a soft natural styling outfits I feel good in has been so much easier! I still wear some things that go against my lines sometimes, but I think it works because one of my style roots is moon and I like to dress to dress a little edgy. Now I'm just more purposeful in the ways I contradict my lines. I would love an in depth video on Soft Naturals since I haven't seen one on this channel yet.

[LoveandLucy]

i used to dress for my (non-kibbe) body type of being an hourglass and it always made me feel incredibly uncomfortable because i was dressing like what i now know as a romantic, and i'm much more comfortable now dressing for my body type as an fn

[shanyahashtyn]

Would love a deep dive on flower style root for all the Kibbe types! Would be so helpful for looking feminine but not like I’m playing dress up as a flamboyant natural ❤️

[xuxagirl]

If your head is swimming from all the terms and recommendations, this video is all you need. Short and sweet and to the point!

[jennahanbingzhu]

Ellie-Jean, I just wanted to thank you for all of your incredible educational content! I learned about Kibbe body types, style essences, and color seasons through your channel, and it truly changed my life. Before stumbling across your videos, I could never see myself as beautiful or understand the basic principles of style (and didn't even know about any of these theories)! Learning about all of this has completely transformed my self-image in a positive way, and I am now able to embrace my inner beauty and make shopping informed decisions and even find my own style voice. It has even given me the confidence boost necessary to pursue modeling and to uplift me to the next level of my career. I am forever grateful to you for sharing this knowledge so generously and wisely. It is making the world a better place and adding some much-needed nuance to the online dialogue around body positivity, inclusion, consumerism, sustainability, and fashion psychology. I appreciate you and the work that you're doing (as a fellow Soft Classic with ethereal, classic, and ingenue essences and flower, stone, and sun style roots)! :)

[jenniferlawrence]

Please do a video on every day dressing for the romantic. I really struggle with how to translate this to daily outfits without looking like I'm trying to look too dressy or heaven forbid, on the make!

[kaitlincrane_]

Firstly, LOVED your explanation for how the Kibbe theory personally helped you. I feel exactly the same way, it was such a relief to learn to appreciate me as myself and not feel the need to change.

I will say- I am curious about the Kibbe system after pregnancy though because I am positive it actually does change your bone structure slightly. The pelvis opens and my rib cage also opened more. Am I crazy? I’m pretty sure this is true, right? Maybe it doesn’t change it enough to count as changing into a different type!
Love your channel! ❤️