Years ago I read one of the popular "Big is Beautiful" books--I couldn't tell you now which one it was, but I owned nearly all of them--and I remember the author saying "Wherever you 'break' when you bend sideways, that's your waist." Mine's about an inch or so above my bellybutton. Yours may or may not be there.

Hips: Well, most seamstresses I know will say "the widest part below your waist," because that's what they have to fit clothes to. I measure right across my hipbones, because that *used* to be the widest part--and now I can tell what's changed!

As for the others, I'm with the majority here. Pick a "landmark" and use that for reference, so you're sure you're measuring in the same place each time.