Weddingbee boards

I tried all styles. I didn't like the A-line or empire. Fitted styles looked best on me. I ended up with a fit and flare dress. I did try on a few mermaids, but they were just too much for me and don't even get me started on ballgowns. My sister made me try one on and I could barely get out of the dressing room! LOL. Definately not for me.

I vote for the mermaid/trumpet style gowns! A-Line is universally flattering as well, hence the reason most brides seem to go that route.

I love empire and it totally flatters my petite, big booty and boobies body...so classic, IMHO.  I look like poo on a stick in drop waist ;)

You've really crossed two categories there: skirt width and waistline height.

Skirt widths include empire, a-line, ball gown, sheath, and mermaid. A-line tends to be the most flattering but not on everyone. I chose an a-line because it was flattering and it made me feel like a bride with a fuller skirt than I'd normally wear, but without being swamped in too much fabric.

Waistline height:

Dropped waist dresses make me (and lots of people!) look short. They tend to elongate the torso which is good for people with short torso or big boobs. But I already have a long torso and short legs... meaning my legs look even shorter in them.

Empire line dresses make me look like a balloon! I have a small waist and wide hips so the empire line dresses skip the skinny part and make my entire body look thicker. Not ideal at all! They flatter people who are a bit more straight up and down, or with a wider waist or narrow hips.

Other waistline height options include natural waist (where the waistline is at the narrowest part of your body) and dresses that don't have a defined waistline at all - ones that use vertical seams (called princess lines) to make the dress fit to your body. My dress was a combination of the latter two: the bodice ended at the natural waist so it drew attention to my slimmest part, but it was still slightly fitted through to the hips using princess line seams.