Turns out I'm a pear!

I just bought the book The Body Shape Bible by BBC's Trinny and Susannah.

They describe 12 body types for women and then give advise as to what clothes will or won't flatter each body type.

From their descriptions and the pictures I am mostly a pear, but with extra weight and age I've become somewhat of a bowling pin (actually I bought the UK version of the book, so they actually call it a "skittle"). 

Reassuringly, some of their advice matches the intuition I've developed over the years: skirts can never be above the knee, bias skirts are definitely out, and I should focus on shapely tops and jackets that mark my waist (what is left of it, nowadays) and take attention away from my bottom half.

My absolute favorite part is their advice that: "one of your main indulgences in life should be to start building a collection of amazing coats for every occasion and season." Hooray! One of my biggest fantasies has always been to make lots and lots of coats and jackets (and I have acted that fantasy out at many a fabric shop...) So I now have professional license to go wild! 

But wait a second. The Marcy Tilton jacket pattern I started working on is not at all shapely nor fitted. Yikes! Lucky then that I am first making it in muslin...