When I first saw model Masha Tyelna in this Dazed & Confused editorial (center), I freaked out: I thought her waist was freakishly small. Upon closer inspection, I realized it's just a fashion illusion created by the black side panels on her strapless dress. Phew! Although her look is over-dramatized, we can take away a thing or two from it, much like how we learned from Leighton Meester that racerbacks can make you appear curvier.

To learn how colorblock can make you look slender, and to see a widget of dresses, read more

The moral of this story is that colorblock dresses, whose side panels are dark, can make you look inches smaller than you are. That's because, like in Masha's case, it's an optical illusion. Our gaze tends to go toward bright colors, so find a colorblock dress whose panels are dark and inside is bright; attention is drawn to the center of your dress. I hope this will come in handy next time you consider purchasing a colorblock item. Below are some items to get you started.

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