Physical Aesthetic Preferences

[TheStatutoryApe]

I assume that it comes as no shock that people have a rather wide range of preferences in physical features. This is to be the thread where we discuss that which we like and do not like in a human physique, male or female.

Since I am a straight male my opinion here will be somewhat limited. I know we tend to speak more of male preferences, especially in regards to physical appearance, so I wholly welcome any commentary on the male form from the ladies and non-heterosexual males.

A side track in another thread found an interesting article http://nsrc.sfsu.edu/article/big_booty_beauty_and_new_sexual_aestheticl . I find it interesting because I recently had a discussion with a friend who has been living in the land of homophobia and racial prejudice for some time and expressed a slight disgust for large posteriors and those who enjoy them. The manner in which he expressed this even included references to a preference "of blacks" for "a lot of junk in the trunk". At the time I found it rather odd to see the juxtaposition of "race issues" and aesthetic preferences.

Discussion of differences in cultural and gender preferences are encouraged. Please be polite and do not criticize any culture for their preferences.

Personally I am rather open to various physical features. My greatest preferences are for high cheek bones, a strong jaw line, and large eyes. I happen to be a "buttman" and, while I certainly have a preference for fuller bottoms, I can enjoy just about any bottom that is not "flat" and/or "saggy". I have little preference for breast size, though I tend to prefer smaller. It somehow seems odd to me that there is a racial element tied to butt preferences. Evo's mention of men enjoying her narrow hips and small butt has made me wonder if there is some cultural difference between here (CA) and there (TX).

 

[nucleargirl]

hahaha! we have way too much time on our hands!
I personally like slightly bigger guys... as in big-boned, not big-fat lol!
I can't stand guys with really thin waists - a guy who's waist is skinnier than mine is a total turn off - it makes me feel masculine! and I am a thin girl!
I like thick arms on guys... it makes me feel very protected! but of course within reason - don't want any body-builder types no! not too muscly - scary then :p
and apart from that I'm not fussy! don't really care about a guy's butt or any other feature really... maybe not tooo hairy... don't want to have really hairy girls in future!
oh! and eyes are attractive - not just having them haha, but blue/green/grey/amber eyes are hot!
oh and hair (on head) should not be too long/greasy/manky...
and and of course must have good personal hygiene!

 

[nucleargirl]

but honestly... its not just the physical looks that are important. A huge part is how they smell! I'm not talking about perfume, I mean just how a guy smells intrinsically... that helps me in a big way to decide if I like them!

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

hahaha! we have way too much time on our hands!
I personally like slightly bigger guys... as in big-boned, not big-fat lol!
I can't stand guys with really thin waists - a guy who's waist is skinnier than mine is a total turn off - it makes me feel masculine! and I am a thin girl!
I like thick arms on guys... it makes me feel very protected! but of course within reason - don't want any body-builder types no! not too muscly - scary then :p
and apart from that I'm not fussy! don't really care about a guy's butt or any other feature really... maybe not tooo hairy... don't want to have really hairy girls in future!
oh! and eyes are attractive - not just having them haha, but blue/green/grey/amber eyes are hot!
oh and hair (on head) should not be too long/greasy/manky...
and and of course must have good personal hygiene!

I am "big-boned" and have hazel eyes. Unfortunately I am somewhat hirsute and have no idea what this hygiene thing is. ;-)

In reference to your posts in the other thread, I "went through a phase" where I had decided that asian women were superior to other women. I think I liked their hair (I am bored of blonde) and that they always seemed fairly youthful. Since then though I have found myself partial to red hair, pale skin, freckles, curly hair, really long hair, really short hair, dark skin, and many other things that seem rather contradictory. The only real constants are the cheek bones, jaw line, and eyes as mentioned earlier.

I've read that these are supposedly fairly universal human male preferences. I believe I have read that females tend to have few physical preferences though I wonder if this is cultural. I think that perhaps women have been "sexually repressed" and that this colours their opinion of sexual attractiveness. Perhaps they have been programmed to believe that it is not proper of them to be attracted to men sexually and so they have repressed their physical desires in favour of more "emotional" and "intellectual" desires.

 

[TheStatutoryApe]

but honestly... its not just the physical looks that are important. A huge part is how they smell! I'm not talking about perfume, I mean just how a guy smells intrinsically... that helps me in a big way to decide if I like them!

Pheromones are important. I have met an inordinate number of women that say that are attracted to a man's scent when he is sweaty. Oddly I can not say the same for males.

 

[FrancisZ]

We each have our natural preferences, of course; but I honestly believe most of it goes straight down the drain, when you finally realize you're in love with someone.

As a matter of fact: the woman I loved totally changed my preferences for females. I wasn't attracted to her when we first met. I didn't even think she could stand me; such, in fact, my initial instinct was actually to dislike her also. Then I felt bad, and tried to be indifferent for a while. But eventually, she grew on me; and so much so, that now I don't really like anything, as much as the sum of her particular characteristics--and no one, of course, is exactly like her; or could ever be! It would be wrong to expect anybody to be, anyhow.

That having been said: I believe, that everybody has at least one physical trait about them, that is exceptionally alluring. Such that: even if a person isn't your type, per se; you'd still find them uniquely beautiful. For straight guys at least, I'd say it's more than the obvious femme-ological attracting factors. Sometimes it's as simple as a lady's appealing hairdo; and maybe, other times, a literal posture. And in still other instances: it's the depth of voice, or the manner in which she speaks; or her fingers, or her smile.

Personally, I tend to like even what others might normally consider someone's physical imperfections (I don't really like anything fake).

I also don't really have a height preference (as I imagine a lot of people do). I find that I can like exceptionally tall women just as much as those very short; for different reasons, and both being equally gratifying to my soul somehow.

Over time, I think you just naturally adjust yourself to someone--they become your preferences when you really love them. And maybe that's a good way to tell, whether you love someone or not. Best to try to figure that out early on.

 

[Edin_Dzeko]

I like a:
-girl who's shorter than me
-I don't like flat chest' and butts (but I also don't like 'em gigantic either) nice decent sized ones will do
-I'm really into short dark brunette hair (like Rihanna's)
-Don't like 'em too skinny or too thick somewhere in between but would be nice if she's slightly smaller than me (I like physical dominance in a relationship)

 

[FrancisZ]

I'd be lying to say that I wasn't attracted to specific attributes of the female anatomy. But I honestly believe that it depends particularly on the person carrying those attributes.

There's such a thing as femininity--an authentic outward expression of womanliness--I think. That's what's attractive to me.

Femininity is not weakness OR overbearing-ness (as machoism often is); it isn't even necessarily gentle. I think it's just a positive assertion on the part of woman.


I would never--on my life--ask my girlfriend to cook, or clean up after me. Personally: I imagine women hate men like that; and I would not think it an obvious outward expression of love, on my part, to expect my wife do anything for me, either. If anything, as a man, when you really love some else, you'd want to serve them yourself; not be served.

But, my Jayne, she insisted sometimes on doing certain things (like preparing me a meal); and I realize now, that maybe that was a sort of nonverbal message to me, of her asserting herself as my Woman. I would even go so far as to say, that it was meant sexually.

It was something she happened to know how to do (and to do well, as a matter of fact); and she did it for me, because she knew I needed her to (because it wasn't something I've had a lot of practice with, to that point). She was saying "I love you; and by making this, I'm taking care of you."

She was always very proud of her abilities; which were numerous. That I think was what was most feminine about her.

She would say things like: "I'm good at this...let me show you how to do it;" or else, she would simply do whatever it was that she excelled at, to show you. She taught me a lot of math. And in everything she did, somehow, it always felt like her showing me how good and strong a woman she was.

 

[jackmell]

Small breasts, slim, fit, healthy and long curly hair that gets in the way of our kisses when she's on top.

 

[FrancisZ]

I really like a hairdo. Is that weird? It doesn't have to be jewel encrusted or dyed (I like gray hair actually); just the hair itself, up in some simple fashion or other.

For example:

Yvonne Craig had a great beehive...

And Carrie Fisher had the most beautiful cinnamon buns...

http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/geek-to-me/assets_c/2010/04/carriefisherauto-thumb-autox379-120615.jpg

[URL]http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2008/11/29/article-1090503-009EE2F20000044C-624_468x343.jpg[/URL]

[PLAIN]http://26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kq33udraR21qzvqipo1_500.jpg

That is so punk.But it must be a headache I suppose (maybe even literally) to try to do that sort of thing, every day; so I can understand, naturally, ladies not wanting to do that too often. But alas, it isn't too common at all, in these modern times (as are a lot of really nice hair styles).

Through college, I had frequently observed women tended to fall back on the "Jennifer Aniston," if you will, more than anything else; and by now, that's been absolutely done to death.

ENOUGH WITH THE ANISTON!

In my view, even the Annie, the Pippi, or the Wendy, are infinitely more adorable on a grown woman, than are those Aniston bangs...

[URL]http://content9.flixster.com/photo/33/09/09/3309099_tml.jpg[/URL]

[URL]http://img.hotmoviesale.com/dvds/COL-D05986D/1/The-New-Adventures-Of-Pippi-Longstocking.jpg[/URL]

[URL]http://blogs.sfweekly.com/foodie/wendy.jpg[/URL]

 

[Math Is Hard]

My most favorite updo ever.

 

[Astronuc]

I prefer low maintenance.

 

[brainstorm]

I've read that these are supposedly fairly universal human male preferences. I believe I have read that females tend to have few physical preferences though I wonder if this is cultural. I think that perhaps women have been "sexually repressed" and that this colours their opinion of sexual attractiveness. Perhaps they have been programmed to believe that it is not proper of them to be attracted to men sexually and so they have repressed their physical desires in favour of more "emotional" and "intellectual" desires.

Try this funny experiment: coax and liberate your partner into discovering her truly superficial side. Then watch her leave you for a sexier guy.

 

[FrancisZ]

Generally speaking: I confess a preference for the pear shape; and I can't understand why so many celebrity women hate their hips so much.

 

[dreiter]

Statistically people tend to prefer symmetry over everything else. I highly recommend the book The Red Queen by Matt Ridley. It's a well-thought book and very scientifically based.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0060556579/?tag=pfamazon01-20

 

[Evo]

Generally speaking: I confess a preference for the pear shape; and I can't understand why so many celebrity women hate their hips so much.

I'm a banana.

 

[Ken Natton]

Oh the questionable wisdom of succumbing to the temptation to respond to this thread… I’ve never been able to decide if it is okay for men to objectify women, so long as women objectify men in equal measure?

Of course the whole business of physical attraction is perfectly real. There is even a part of it that is genetically programmed; aspects of our physical aesthetic that vary in quality between individuals and that are designed to push each other’s buttons. There is even a quite serious notion, however hilarious it might actually be, that breasts are essentially replacement buttocks – in that their evolutionary function is to replace the visual stimulus that was lost when humanity developed the habit of mating face to face.

But there is also an undoubted part of it that is entirely cultural. It is well recorded that classical art favoured a much fuller female figure than is fashionable today, at least in the west. And indeed, for ancient art, the preferred object of beauty was actually the idealised male body.

But I would like to contend that, however much we may all inwardly cringe when a guy, after engaging in a long, enthusiastic, unashamed objectification of his ideal woman then says ‘of course it isn’t just how she looks, she has to have a good personality too’, it is actually the case that in the great demographic of human erotic relationships, the physical aesthetic is of, at most, secondary importance in the determination of who pairs with whom.

I realize the flaws in trying to demonstrate demographic trends with individual examples, but I do see a broader significance in some examples of personal experience. One former colleague of mine was, undoubtedly, a very good looking young man. But what really got to the rest of us was not so much that he got the girls, but that attractive young women had this irritating tendency to actively chase after him. That, I would suggest, was not so much a question of his physical aesthetic as that he was a master of the ‘little boy lost’ demeanour. Of course he was actually no more the little boy lost than is Hulk Hogan, and I am sure that the women knew that. But he played the role well and they loved him for it.

Another former colleague of mine, also a good looking young man, amused me when he told me that when he was on holiday in one of Europe’s hot-spots, and he met a young woman at a nightclub, though he was actually a high achieving student engineer, he would tell her that he was a refuse collector. It seems that when it comes to transient holiday relationships, some young women like a bit of rough.

At a broader, more demographic level, I recall seeing a report once that spoke of an emerging trend in Sweden. Swedish men had really embraced the whole ‘new man’ thing and were all taking their share of the domestic chores and child rearing tasks. And Swedish women were all expressing their preference for Italian males – still overly connected to their mothers and all expecting their women to take over the workload of pandering to their every whim. Conversely, this fashion that emerged among western men towards a preference for Asian women had far more to do with compliance than it did with anything inherently more beautiful about Asian women.

So, I would suggest that when anyone of either sex and of any sexual orientation talks about the physical features they prefer in members of their target group, all they are really talking about is what catches their eye in their general day-to-day interactions with society at large. It doesn’t necessarily have that much significance when it comes to forming serious relationships.

 

[nucleargirl]

I'm a banana.

me as well, I think its good - clothes look nice on bananas :)

 

[FrancisZ]

So, I would suggest that when anyone of either sex and of any sexual orientation talks about the physical features they prefer in members of their target group, all they are really talking about is what catches their eye in their general day-to-day interactions with society at large. It doesn’t necessarily have that much significance when it comes to forming serious relationships.

Agreed. And truthfully: whomever you are in love with, eventually, they become beautiful to you.

My beloved totally changed any idea I had of a woman (I wasn't even attracted to her when we first met; and I didn't think she liked me much either). She was very tall, and very broad-hipped (I'd swear almost a yard across); and she carried herself very well somehow. Great posture too (I'm like a question mark, sometimes). Yet I had no eyes it seemed.

I remember when it finally dawned on me too; how beautiful she was. I finally realized how ignorant I was.

I'm a banana.

I think that's pretty much the major ideal anyway, isn't it? But, if it's any consolation: I'm probably an apple myself...http://www.health.com/health/static/hw/media/medical/hw/h9991471_001.jpgAnd if this diagram is any indication: apple men suffer from, well, maybe a bit of a malaise, shall we say. It's comedic how unhappy he looks. I hope I don't have an expression like that when I hit 50.

me as well, I think its good - clothes look nice on bananas :)

This is also true. Banana people always look comfortable to me (and that is attractive), even in the most painful, mod clothing. "You have to suffer to be beautiful!"--not these folks. They be stylin.

 

[FrancisZ]

IT IS GOOD TO BE A BANANA!Proof...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LH5ay10RTGY I love Onision. And in keeping with the ongoing love conversation: here I would say is a good example of a positive loving relationship (bizarre as it may seem). The Onisions (the two people in this video) are married. Think about it: you really, really have to love someone to be willing to dress up and dance around with them in a bird or banana costume. I'm envious really.

 

[FrancisZ]

For sake of fairness, I thought I should add these...

(1) What I wish I was: "B" or a "D."

(2) What I really am: either a "C" (on a good day) or an "E" (every other day).B's and D's, at least, are what comic books have taught me, are the kind of body you'd need to kick sand in somebody's face at the beach, and get away with it. Not that I'd want to do that; but it would be nice to be able to go to the beach.

 

[nucleargirl]

I like C best

 

[loseyourname]

I'd argue E is probably the body you want to kick sand in someone's face at the beach and get away with it. That's the body of a heavyweight MMA fighter.

 

[Math Is Hard]

Could I have Mr. E? Because I think he'd really like my cooking. I bet he'd say, "Hey, can I have some more of your incredible fried chicken, MIH?" and "Do you have anymore of those wonderful mashed potatoes, babe? The kind with the sour cream and little bits of chives mixed in?"

 

[FrancisZ]

Could I have Mr. E? Because I think he'd really like my cooking. I bet he'd say, "Hey, can I have some more of your incredible fried chicken, MIH?" and "Do you have anymore of those wonderful mashed potatoes, babe? The kind with the sour cream and little bits of chives mixed in?"

I have this terrible image of Mr. E in my mind, wearing a wife beater somehow. Kind of like, little pink Kirby in this clip...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDG2x3rOj_A

*thinking out loud* Oh boy, better get back to doing some sit-ups, Mr. Francis.

 

[FrancisZ]

Gotta say: I really love this coat...

Ms. Dechantel really looks striking in it.

 

[kramer733]

I love thick women. Aka lisa ann. >_>

 

[FrancisZ]

I find this woman strangely attractive...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saubXcBWfU4

Something about her reminds me of Carol Burnett. I think it's the shape of her mouth. And I think she has nice hair too. Plus, she's funny. She's actually, literally cute when she's angry.

But that's just the problem though, isn't it? She seems really pissed all of the time. In this video, I'd agree she has a legitimate reason to be angry. In others, not so much though.

Not that I'm delusion or anything. But she even lives in Jersey. Anyway, I'd go out with her if she'd have me and wasn't so negative all of the time.

 

[cronxeh]

I find this woman strangely attractive...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saubXcBWfU4

Something about her reminds me of Carol Burnett. I think it's the shape of her mouth. And I think she has nice hair too. She's actually, literally cute when she's angry.

But that's just the problem though, isn't it? She seems really pissed all of the time. In this video, I'd agree she has a legitimate reason to be angry. Sometimes not though.

Not that I'm delusion or anything. But she even lives in Jersey. Anyway, I'd go out with her if she'd have me and wasn't so negative.

Yess its called the buxom chick. Although don't google that, a lot of porn comes up

Mmm she is so angry it's turning me on :tongue2:

 

[FrancisZ]

Yess its called the buxom chick. Although don't google that, a lot of porn comes up

Mmm she is so angry it's turning me on :tongue2:

I saw her first Cronx. :!)

 

[cronxeh]

I saw her first Cronx. :!)

I'm sure she'd love a tag team

 

[FrancisZ]

I'm sure she'd love a tag team

Gross. Truly.

But she's so damn cute :!) ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqQSaj7XTRc

...and funny :rofl:...but kind of grumpy though Come to think of it, maybe she is perfect for you Cronx.

According to her stats: she lives in...Friggville.

 

[cronxeh]

Gross. Truly.
Come to think of it, maybe she is perfect for you Cronx.

Yeah I would wreck that chick

 

[kramer733]

If we're allowed to post videos, i really dig this girl here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bg0b-v1JCIg

 

[cronxeh]

If we're allowed to post videos, i really dig this girl here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bg0b-v1JCIg

Is she like 40? Ok I saw brazzers on one of the images there.. :rofl: She is a porn star??

Seriously, if we go there, only two words: Raven Riley.