Shape of a Century: How Have Women’s Bodies Evolved?

Decades of beautiful female forms show the evolution of culture’s definition of the ‘perfect’ woman

The quest to be beautiful can be helped and hindered by many things, but when it comes to body shapes, could women be more attractive depending on the decade they are in? With the chance to see the changing perception of perfection played out on screen, women can now pinpoint when it was high-fashion to be elfin, glamorous to be curvalicious, and divine to be straight up and down.

Marisota, the online fashion retailer that specialises in clothing to make women of all shapes and sizes look fabulous, has created a range of images illustrating the evolution of the ideal female body shape from the 1920s right through to its predictions for 2020. The larger size womenswear specialist is here to show women of all shapes when their personal build may have been considered the most stunning, and what the future has in store for their figures.

Illustrated by images of the iconic women who inspired a decade – or two, in the case of one particular supermodel – the feature reveals the characteristics on each decade’s wishlist, and what women did to get them!

In Marisota’s journey through the looking-glasses of a century, Marilyn Monroe, Madonna and a host of other beauties accompany the British public to display the motivation that has seen women go boyish, big-busted and almost fade away in the name of beauty!

Caroline Evans, Brand Director at Marisota said of the company’s latest release: “The last hundred years has shaped the ideal woman in many weird and wonderful ways, and we think this trip through the decades is a fascinating way to take it all in. We would all like to know when our particular body shape was in, and what we can expect in the future.

“There are some decades we hopefully won’t revisit in terms of body shapes,” she added, “but the forecast for the next ten years certainly looks positive in terms of fabulous curves and fuller figures!”