From the style gurus: A guide to different body types in women.

Knowing your body type is an essential for finding a signature look different cuts and styles are available for different body types. The most common types are as follows:
The apple shape: women with apple shape have a heavy upper body so their entire look and details should revolve around their lower bodies.
Pear shape: women whose weight lie mostly around their thighs are the ones who fall in this category, such women should go for dresses with neckline embellishment.
The hourglass: the balanced body type, well almost all types of dresses look good on you.
The boyish or rectangular body type: women with this kind have broad masculine shoulders hence any heavy neckline details should be avoided.
The inverted triangle: it is similar to apple body type.
Lean column: extremely slim women come under this category.
Below is a picture for a better understanding: