Clothes for the Petite Frame

Is fashion all about long legged skinny models wearing clothes that accentuate their body? Or is it inclusive of petite women who would still love to look sexy and smart without having to visit the tailor. It certainly is the latter as well; but try convincing this, to major department stores and you’d surely be given that ‘where the hell did she land from’ look. Major department stores like Bloomingdales, Saks Avenue and Neiman Marcus in the US and Dorothy Perkins and Selfridges have either discontinued or cut back on choices for petite dresses. And even if they do have a separate section for petite clothes, the designs are so ghastly, that it’s impossible to buy one without trying. More often than not, just shortened sleeves and hems constitute petite clothing for these designers. There’s hardly attention paid to fine details like the distance from the hip to the waist and short legs. Very rarely do designers spend time and thought when catering to short women.

Most ‘not-so-tall-yet fashionable’ women including me, are tired of the same sagely advice; wear monochromes, avoid large prints with a lot of designs, avoid wearing wide belts, wear clothes with vertical lines…blah...blah...blah. Reading all this would make anyone believe that it’s indeed a virtue to be blessed with long legs.

Height has nothing to do with fashion sense and women aren’t at a disadvantage, just because they are short. Style is all about individuality and women can look attractive; their height notwithstanding. Short women are also victims of stereotypes. They are often portrayed as frivolous, party types with no ambition at all. This probably explains the lack of women’s petite work clothes. Come on designers! Not all petite women spend their lives going to tea parties and luncheons!

But all hope’s not lost. The trend’s slowly, yet surely changing. And rather than high end department stores, it’s the online retailers who’ve led the change. A majority of these retailers are petite women themselves, who’re either frustrated with the choices available, or have burned their pockets with costly alterations.

From formal trousers to shift dresses, blouses, jackets, petite suits, jeans, underwear, maternity clothes, evening wear and other accessories, these stores are a complete one stop shop for petite women. Thanks to these online retailers, finding smart work clothes for petite women isn’t a problem anymore.

The camaraderie of these short framed women in the blogosphere is almost infectious. There are sites that advise petite women on the right clothes, sites that review petite clothes and of course, sites that showcase, online and offline retailers selling petite clothing.