Posts with tag tall

Old Navy recently gave us $30 to pick out something from their Tall and Petite options and try it on for size -- so to speak. We asked our resident Jolly Green Giant, Kristen Seymour, to give it a whirl. Here's what she came back with.

Those of us on the tall side (or petite) know that it's not always just the length of clothing that's an issue -- when you're taller, you might have the all around bone structure to match. I know I do -- I have broad shoulders, which is an issue with many shirts, jackets, and dresses.

Old Navy knows this, and created their Petite and Tall clothing with this in mind. Petites, for women 5'4" and under, have narrowed shoulders, higher arm openings, shorter sleeves and length, narrowed hips and waist, and a shorter inseam. Talls, for women 5'10" and over, offer an extra half inch in the shoulders (yahoo!), longer sleeves and body, a lower waist, and longer inseam.

Oh those lanky, leggy girls who can wear just about anything. Yes, that means the lucky few like Whitney Port, Blake Lively, Paris Hilton, and the fierce (and seriously scary) Naomi Campbell.

We dedicate the last "Suit up" installment to those long ladies that we secretly despise for their limby... uh... ness.

One of the most talked about portions of Rip the Runway is always Size Sexy -- a collaboration by designers who are committed to dressing women who don't fit in standard sizes. Plus size and really tall women need clothes, too! And, the women modeling these designs were truly the women for which they were made. There weren't a bunch of size 14 models with big boobs -- we had some women with some size out there, and they were working it just as well as their size 6 counterparts.

Three collections were shown, each with its own draw:

Qristyl Designs are from a woman with real curves, so she knows what curvy women want. For the most part, she was right on -- the sexy, flowing fabrics were exquisite, and while I might not have agreed with the choice of the hotpants, I'm sure there are women who have searched high and low for them in a plus size cut. However, I have to draw the line at the tapered legs -- bigger ladies aren't generally trying to make their thighs look bigger.

Monif C. was a little shinier, but the designs were really beautifully done for plus size women. You don't have to be a size 10 to wear a hot little dress, you know!

Six Foota is for really tall women who want to embrace their height and feel empowered through fashion, and I think they did it really well. The designs were gorgeous, with some high fashion touches, but were still totally wearable for the fashionable six foot female.

Be sure to check out the gallery of these designs and others from Rip the Runway!

After a recent post on how to flatter various figures, I received comments from two girls with the same issues -- they're quite tall (about six feet tall), and curvy, but not overweight.

At about 5'8" with broad shoulders, I run into issues with fit, often having to find long lengths in pants or letting hems out when long lengths aren't offered, and sometimes having to go up a size in jackets to accommodate my shoulders. These girls have it worse because they'll run into problems like that nearly every time they go shopping.


For girls in this predicament, I offer the following advice:

You might think that height is beyond your control, but by changing the way you dress, you can give yourself the appearance of a couple extra inches.

According to the blog, Grow Taller Secret, if you choose dark and uniform colors, avoid plaids and square designs, wear suit jackets that match your pants, and wear trousers that are long and narrow without cuffs, you'll look taller than you really are.

That said, don't overdo it. The idea with fashion is to choose clothes that suit your appearance. If you're tall, be tall, if you're short and cute, be short and cute. No matter how much money you spend, you're never going to turn yourself into something you're not.

This is a message to all of the other long-tall-sallies out there: freedom from the exposed mid-drift is on the horizon!

You know what I'm talking about! Ever since Jessica Simpson and her tarty-ilk popularized those crazy low rise jeans, we tall girls have been stuck spending half of the day yanking on our midget-sized t-shirt hems in an unending battle to maintain the slightest shred of personal modesty. Oh the humanity!!!

But finally, someone has started to consider our needs. That someone is a high-end t-shirt company called T Luxury, which makes long-tall-sally tunics to cover every inch of your long-tall-sally torso. They're 100% cotton, and I assure you, they feel like second skin! Get one, get three -- they're $79.