The apple body type has rounded full bust, but may also be frustrated with the muffin top. Since the apple shape carries weight in your midsection, it is critical to find the right wedding dress styles that can draw attention to your best assets and distract from your tummy. In this detailed guide, we’ll take a close look at your body features, and walk you through the most flattering wedding gowns for your body type.
Traits
- Prominent bust and decolletage. You have a fuller bust size that attracts attention and your entire neckline looks slim and elongated.
- Round and well-shaped breasts. Along with your larger bust size are well-shaped breasts, resulting in voluptuous cleavage.
- Well-balanced hips and shoulders. The width of your hips and shoulders are almost similar, more or less within 5% of each other.
- Unnoticeable waist curves. You lack waist definition because of the absence of indentation caused by a heavy midsection.
- Heavy midsection and bulging belly. You gain all your weight in this area so you are prone to a muffin top or tummy bulge.
- Slender legs. As opposed to gaining weight in your midsection, your legs never carry excess weight so they always look slender and shapely.
- Less prominent buttocks. It’s possible that you have flatter buttocks as there is not much volume present in your lower body, although that’s not always the case.
Understanding both your strong and weak features can help you find the best bridal dress to wear on your big day! So without further ado, let’s talk about the styles and designs that would look great on your apple figure.
Mermaid Dresses
There’s a reason why mermaid-style silhouettes are one of the most sought-after wedding dresses out there and it’s because of how sultry and glamorous they are! This design also gives a natural waist emphasis to define the waistline and create the illusion of curves similar to the proportions of an hourglass figure.
The fitted bodice of a mermaid dress showcases the upper body beautifully and the curvy seams it has softly nipped in at the waist for better definition. Meanwhile, the flare of mermaid bridal dresses that begins at the knee level around the knee balances out the proportions of your frame from top to bottom.
Plunging V-Neck Gowns
As an apple-shaped woman, you should know how highly-coveted your bust line is and you should be absolutely confident with that! To make sure that the focus is on your apple frame’s best features – your bust, then why not go for a plunging V-neck for your wedding day?
The V-neck highlights the décolletage and enhances the prominence of your bust, which also helps in creating a more balanced look between your thicker midsection and less pronounced lower body. As the V-shaped neckline dips lower to your decolletage, it adds a sense of verticality that elongates and slims down your frame.
You can either go for a minimal and neat design if you’d like the focus to be solely fixated on your bust line. But if you’re looking into more dramatic details for your wedding dress but without overwhelming the neckline, try to go for intricate beadwork or sparkly sequins.
High-Low Dresses
High-low hemlines may not seem the traditional design we look for in wedding dresses, but the asymmetry this type of gown possesses can have flattering visual benefits for your apple-shaped body. This hemline is basically where the hem is shorter in the front and gradually becomes longer toward the back, creating a dramatic asymmetrical look that helps elongate the legs by exposing them at the front.
Moreover, the high-low hemline draws the eyes downward and this visual effect helps balance the proportions of your body to make the legs appear more prominent. This will also help offset the appearance of your larger midsection and steer the gaze away from the bulge you may have in your stomach area.
Of course, it’s also undeniable that the charm of the flowing fabric of the longer back hem can add drama to the dress. It creates a sense of movement, creating an elegant and captivating visual effect that becomes apparent in every move.
Tulle Empire Bridal Dresses
Wedding dresses made from soft tulle will never fail to exude a romantic and ethereal vibe, as they give a touch of dreaminess to your overall bridal look. Apart from its mesmerizing beauty, this fabric also has the ability to drape gracefully and create a flowing silhouette to add a sense of lightness and movement and therefore detract attention from areas you want to downplay, such as your midsection.
Have this fabric in an empire silhouette and you’ll absolutely give your apple figure a more pleasing balance and visuals. These dresses often feature intricate or embellished detailing around the bust and neckline, which draws attention upwards to highlight the bust and face while diverting attention from your bulging abdomen.
It features an elevated waistline which cinches just right underneath the bust to flawlessly camouflage the appearance of extra weight you carry in your midsection. The continuous flow of the tulle fabric starting from the waist seam also elongates your frame to give you a taller and leaner appearance.
Satin A-Line Dresses
Apple shapes will definitely find the A-line design very flattering as its silhouette gently flares from the waist downward to create a natural waistline emphasis without clinging tightly to the midsection. This not only defines the waist (which is often a priority) but also balances out your proportions by seamlessly skimming over your hips and thighs, resulting in a beautifully balanced look that offsets the visual weight you carry in your upper body.
Additionally, the gradual flow of the A-line silhouette also works its magic by directing attention away from your larger midsection, as well as drawing the eye downward to highlight your bridal dress’ elegant lines. Also, the added bonus of the satin fabric is its luxurious and sophisticated appeal, with its smooth, lustrous surface that brings an extra touch of opulence to your wedding ensemble.
Beyond the style benefits, comfort and ease are paramount on your wedding day, and the A-line silhouette delivers just that! Its relaxed fit and fluid movement can ensure ease of movement and comfort that can last for hours.
Structured Sheath Bridal Gowns
Structured sheath wedding dresses are a perfect match for apple-shaped brides due to their simple and minimal design that naturally hugs the curves of your apple frame. The clean lines and tailored structure of sheath dresses can effectively produce a vertical visual line and elongating effect that helps balance your proportions.
This works as the dress gently skims over the body to create a sleek silhouette that minimizes focus on the bulky midsection while emphasizing the upper half and the legs. The structured design provides gentle shaping to give you the illusion of a more defined waist, which is something apple brides will surely love!
Fit and Flare Organza Dresses
The combination of a figure-flattering fit and flare silhouette and the dreamy structure of organza fabric can truly be a match made in heaven, especially when styled and tailored correctly.
A fit-and-flare silhouette features a bodice that softly hugs the upper body and gradually flares out. This soft flare begins below the waist, which is helpful in terms of covering up the heavy midsection while the fitted bodice highlights the bust and creates an enticing contrast with the flared skirt.
Furthermore, the flare starts at a lower point on the body to visually elongate the torso and create the illusion of a more defined waistline. You can further enhance the depth and definition that this silhouette gives when you opt for the structure of organza fabric, in which it holds proper shape.
Trumpet Gowns
The trumpet silhouette pretty much shares the same visual effect as mermaid style wedding dresses. The only difference is the level where the flare starts to flow, which is from mid-thigh or above the knees in a trumpet wedding dress and the knees or lower in a mermaid dress.
The flare of the trumpet skirt helps create a more balanced frame by giving an elegant transition from the snug fit of the upper body to the flared lower half, and therefore visually offsetting the broader and heavier appearance of your midsection. Apart from this even distribution of visual weight, trumpet dresses also feature an effect that draws a continuous vertical line that tricks the eyes into creating a more elongated and slimmer appearance.
Lace Bridal Dresses
A lace corset style is a sexier take on bridal dresses as this is a design that shows more skin, most particularly on your decolletage. A lace corset creates a structured and tailored bodice that effectively defines and cinches the waist, addressing the issue of most apple-shaped brides which is the lack of waist definition.
Also, the corset’s lace detailing draws the attention upwards, as it highlights the bust and face by acting as a bustier to give your cleavage a nice, prominent shape while diverting focus away from the midriff. Just remember to choose a lace corset wedding dress that has sleeves or straps to make sure it gives proper support for your busty frame.
Wedding Dresses with Vertical Embroidery
We know how vertical patterns can easily create the illusion of a slimmer and taller figure, so the elongating effect of vertical embroidery can be especially effective for apple-shaped brides who are trying to achieve a leaner silhouette. The vertical embroidery will lead the eyes up and down, which will help gently camouflage your heavy midsection.
This can also help visually streamline the figure by making the waistline appear narrower and the entire body appears more elongated. If the vertical embroidery is tailored to grace the entire bodice, it can help distract the vision and therefore not bring the focus solely on your tummy bulge.
Velvet Sweetheart Neck Wedding Dresses
Open necklines will always be your apple-shaped body’s best friend and one of the most aesthetic and romantic neckline styles out there is the sweetheart neck style. This, combined with the luxurious sheen and texture of velvet, can help create a captivating wedding dress that your apple figure will surely adore.
The sweetheart neckline creates a nicely proportionate focal point as it draws attention to your alluring decolletage and voluptuous bust while diverting focus away from the midriff. This neckline’s gentle curvature softens the upper body’s appearance, which gives an elegant contrast to your larger stomach area.
Additionally, the inward dip in the center that sweetheart necklines have, can also give your frame a sense of verticality. This visual vertical line can help slim your frame down and even contribute to giving the illusion of a more defined waist.
Avoid Extreme Ball Gowns
Apple-shaped brides should be more wary in terms of going for dresses with too much volume. While some volume can be helpful in creating a more dramatic silhouette, this may not be too flattering for apple shapes who already carry a significant amount of weight, especially in the abdomen area.
Extreme ball gowns feature an overwhelming amount of volume in the skirt, which can blur out your body curves even more. This can detract from achieving a balanced and proportional look as the eyes will fixate too much on the region where the volume of the skirt is, which is from your waist down.
Avoid Wide Belts
It’s a common misconception that wearing wide belts can bring waist definition, when in fact, they can only bring too much attention to the very area you’re looking to downplay!
A wide belt detail can also create a harsh horizontal line across the waist, which could visually divide the body into two distinct sections and potentially disrupt the flow of your overall look. This may not be the most flattering choice for apple figures who are aiming to elongate their frame.
