The Great Striped Debate – Horizontal v Vertical
The Great Suspender Stripe Debate – The Effect of Horizontal Stripes and Vertical Stripes
Do stripes really make you look fat? Or thin? Or tall? For as long as there have been stripes, there have been debates about the effect they have on appearance. But what do horizontal stripes and vertical stripes actually say about the person wearing them, and which ones should you choose for your shirt or suspenders? The SuspenderStore is here to help you make the call.
Do Stripes Really Make You Look Wide or Narrow?
Conventional wisdom is that horizontal stripes will make a person look fatter while vertical stripes will make them look thinner. But some recent studies indicate that horizontal stripes actually have a slimming effect, while other studies support the popular opinion of a widening effect. A comprehensive study by i-Perception in 2013 found that factors such as the size and viewing order have a noticeable impact.
In other words, you may need to experiment some with stripes to get the look you want. Our striped grosgrain suspenders are an excellent starting point for this undertaking. But you don’t have to stick to classic designs when it comes to stripes. You’ll find a number of high-fashion options in our striped suspenders collection to pair with striped or non-striped apparel.
What We Know About Suspender Stripes
When it comes to stripes, a person’s body type or shape matters. While suspenders don’t cover as much ground as a shirt or pants, their stripes can still have an effect. (And black suspender stripes are always slimming – whichever direction they’re facing.) Therefore, you should use stripes to accentuate certain aspects of your appearance. A few examples of how to do this with suspenders are:
Conventional wisdom is that horizontal stripes will make a person look fatter while vertical stripes will make them look thinner. But some recent studies indicate that horizontal stripes actually have a slimming effect, while other studies support the popular opinion of a widening effect. A comprehensive study by i-Perception in 2013 found that factors such as the size and viewing order have a noticeable impact.
In other words, you may need to experiment some with stripes to get the look you want. Our striped grosgrain suspenders are an excellent starting point for this undertaking. But you don’t have to stick to classic designs when it comes to stripes. You’ll find a number of high-fashion options in our striped suspenders collection to pair with striped or non-striped apparel.
What We Know About Suspender Stripes
When it comes to stripes, a person’s body type or shape matters. While suspenders don’t cover as much ground as a shirt or pants, their stripes can still have an effect. (And black suspender stripes are always slimming – whichever direction they’re facing.) Therefore, you should use stripes to accentuate certain aspects of your appearance. A few examples of how to do this with suspenders are:
- Apple-shaped women – Vertical stripes are shown to have an elongating effect, so if you carry more midsection weight, some vertically striped suspenders will make your frame look more balanced.
- Pear-shaped women – When worn together, thick horizontal top stripes create the illusion of more volume in your shoulders and torso, while vertical bottom stripes will lengthen out your legs. A set of wide horizontal striped suspenders will achieve the top half of this look.
- Athletic men – If you don’t want all the attention to be on your barrel chest (for whatever reason), wear suspenders with vertical stripes for a more evenly proportioned look.
- Heavy men – Whenever you’re going to an event with a lot of slender people, horizontal suspender stripes will make you appear both thinner and taller.
- Short and petite – If you are on the shorter side, some pinstripes will instantly add a few inches in people’s eyes, so we recommend a pair of our vertical pinstripe suspenders.
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