Where is my waist?

Designer Carmen Marc Valvo said a key to finding the proper fit is to understand where your waist is, and whether you are long- or short-waisted.

He vows the best way to find your true waist is to put your hands on your waistline where the rib cage stops and the pelvis begins; there’s a natural resting place there.

A method I learned in fashion design school is to put a piece of twill or ribbon at your approximate waist, tie it, then bend in all directions, moving your torso as much as possible. Where the twill settles is your true waist.

Measure the string and you’ll also have an accurate waist measurement.

Once your true waist is identified, measure from the shoulder (where you feel the indentation at the outer edge of the collarbone) to the waist. The average measurement for a woman who is a size 8 is 17 inches. If your measurement is 16 inches or less, you are probably short-waisted and petite. If it’s 18 inches, you’re probably long waisted.

"The short-waisted woman doesn’t want to emphasize her waist, so she should avoid defining her waist," Valvo said. That means no belts, and shirts worn out rather than tucked in.

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