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Cynthia Nellis

Cynthia's Women's Fashion Blog

By Cynthia Nellis, About.com Guide to Women's Fashion

Have You Ever Been Tricked by a Skinny Mirror?

Monday October 26, 2009

My skinny mirror incident happened just a few weeks ago when what I thought was a swanky little black dress in a flattering shift silhouette turned out to look like a maternity dress at home (and not a very good one at that.) The elusive skinny mirror theory is a tough one to prove. I mean, things like lighting and atmosphere affect your perception of how you look in the mirror (for example, I always like the way I look in an Anthropologie mirror because the dressing room at Northpark Mall in Dallas is as cozy as someone's living room and it smells delicious.) Digging deeper into the urban legend of the skinny mirror, I've found that some retailers tilt the mirror back a bit to make you look longer and leaner. Even soda machines are getting into the skinny mirror act, but their mirrored skinny images are created by a rounded form that shows a skinny version of yourself.

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Comments

October 29, 2009 at 4:25 pm
(1) mick says:

I have the opposite problem. All the mirrors in my house are either antique or cheap. When I try on clothes in stores or see myself in store windows, I’m always surprise at how much weight I lost “overnight”. (tee hee)

Besides, I’m really tall so I appreciate those tilted back mirrors so I can actually see all of myself instead of the general effect of having my head and shoulders cut off.

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