shape not looking liek the one i bought

[RaVeN101 Hush]

everytime i buy a slim shape it never looks like the picture the hands are huge and the face distorted and i dont understand why im paying money for a fat shape when it looks nothing like the picture?

[Adria Yheng]

usually you have to try a demo first.. every trusted creators put near skin for sale box a demo box, with 0 or 1 L

using demo save a lot of money..

and u have also to use the shape of the skin. many skins look nice only on the skin designed for ... there is a lot of high priced skins who look like a shin for most shapes in sl but great for the shape created by the skin designer

[Rolig Loon]

Well, a skin can't be either fat or slim.  That's the job of your shape.  The same skin can look very different on avatars with different body shapes, so you have to be careful to match skin and shape.  It's very unlikely that you will ever look like the av in the picture, because she's probably not your shape. 

Before you go shopping for a skin, always be sure that you are wearing a shape you like, and then try on demo skins to see how they look on that shape.  Wear a skimpy bikini so you can see as much of your body as is allowed in a shop on a G- or M-rated sim.   Don't pay for a skin until you have tried a whole mess of demos on that shape and have angled your cam all around to see what you look like. 

[RaVeN101 Hush]

its a shape not a skin that im having problems with

[Rolig Loon]

Sorry. I misread your post. It didn't occur to me that you would actually buy a shape. Just start with a default shape, stand on a pose stand, and play with the Appearance sliders until you have a shape that you like.

[Nyll Bergbahn]

Well, the fact that demo shapes have large hands and feet has already been explained. Regarding shape and skin combinations, try eStyle. It's one of the few shops in SL where you actually get what you see on the poster as the included shape and skins are the same as those modelled.

Many skin shops include a shape with the package that bears no resemblance whatsoever to the shapes used to model the posters. I think they all use the same freebie shop for the shape as they are goddamn ugly with awful facial features.  I doubt anyone uses them.

Good shape shops will include a styling card indicating where you can purchase the skin portrayed with the shape in the poster to achieve a similar look but remember that even then, hair, eyes and other attachments can make a sizeable difference.