why did this work for Kristen?

Queen Mum

I loved this outfit of Kristen's with the gorgeous scarf. It was tied for my fave in her post. To my eye it was perfection, but shouldn't the top and sweater have been too long to wear with a skirt?

http://lowfatdressing.blogspot.....-pink.html

I thought that with a skirt your top was only supposed to go a few inches below you waist. So, what did she do right that made the proportions work? was it in the coloring? the layering of the sweater and the scarf?

16 years ago

Dressing

12 replies

Latest reply was from shana

Kristen

(website)

Veteran

Hee, i was so surprised to see my name on the subject line! I'm flattered you liked the outfit.

I don't really follow strict rules about top lengths with particular bottoms, I rely more on my own eye and knowing my body shape. I am tall with long legs and a long waist, but I actually have a short torso in proportion to the rest of me. So I generally choose longer tops, boyfriend cardigans, etc, and I wear my scarfs long -- all so it elongates my torso and makes me look more proportionate. Cropped jackets and shirts make me look stumpy, in a weird way; I have a whole bunch of them from SF that I just inherited and I don't think I'm going to be able to keep them, alas.

Does that help? If I'm doing it wrong, I do hope someone replies and has suggestions for how I could wear it differently!

16 years ago

shana

Veteran

Kristen, that short torso thing makes alot of sense. I sometimes wear longer tops with skirts as well and I think it works for the same reason - makes me more proportional. Maybe it has something to do with bust size too? If you have a larger bust, maybe some length is good to balance everything out???

16 years ago

Queen Mum

Veteran

Thanks Kristen...yes, that does make sense.

I don't think you're doing anything wrong. You seem to have a great feel for what works for you and your outfits always seem so put together... nothing ever seems "off".

Keep up the good work!

16 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

(Love the colours of that scarf on your skin tone, Kristen!)

I think Kristen’s pose might be at the heart of the matter. Kristen is putting her hands on her hips which is defining the waist - an effective trick for long tops worn over skirts (often, this is done with a belt). Also, you can wear your top longer when the skirt is straight. It’s A-line skirts that are problematic with long tops.

Kristen, how can you have a long waist and a short torso! Unless I’m missing something it’s like having short and long legs at once.

Shana, please re-explain what you see as I cannot grasp why you prefer to wear a long top with a skirt.

16 years ago

Kristen

(website)

Veteran

LOL, good point, Angie! I guess I do have a short waist; I did that handspan thing that Imogen had suggested a while ago, but I thought it showed my waist was long. I didn't quite get that exercise, to be honest; I know my torso is short in proportion to my legs and shorter jackets tend to not work as a result. Same reason why pants don't look as good on me as skirts and dresses. Not a big deal, imo!

I also agree about the skirt style; when I wear my a-line swingy skirt I do go with a shorter top. Like here:
http://lowfatdressing.blogspot.....s-yes.html

16 years ago

Veteran

Yes, I was thinking the same, that it's fine to wear longer tops if the skirt is straight or pencil. I also like the fact that Kristen's scarf is the same length as the tops which help keep the eye moving vertically.

Angie, is it possible to be short waisted and have a long rise? I think that is my situation.

16 years ago

Mamapicklejuice

Veteran

AJ - I think that's a good way to think of it. If you have a long torso, is the "extra" length above the belly button or below? One way to figure it out is to find a jacket that has seaming at the waist. I can't wear these off the rack, because my extra length is above my belly button, with the result that the jackets waistline is about 2" above my belly button/waist line. For someone whose length is below the belly button, the waistline of the jacket will match theirs perfectly, but the jacket will appear cropped.

When I adjust sewing patterns, I'm always adding length above the marked waistline - but others with long torsos might have to add the length below.

HTH

16 years ago

Maya

Veteran

I'm not Shana, but I think I know what she means. I'm not sure how to explain it clearly but I will try.

Fact: The bigger the bust, the more space it takes up. Therefore, a big bust makes the torso appear shorter. If you are already short-waisted like Shana and I, you don't have a whole lot of space left that isn't consumed by your bust! I have very little space between my bust and the top of my hip. A longer shirt breaks the body's proportions up differently, so it looks like there is more breathing space between the bust and hips.

I'm grabbing this image from Imogen as a visual:

http://www.polyvore.com/golden_mean/set?.mid=embed&id=9825963

That said, I like shorter tops with skirts as well and manage to wear them despite my short waist/big bust. I think defining the waist, however much or little there is, is key, which is why this outfit worked;

http://img.photobucket.com/alb.....G_2230.jpg

But also why long shirts work just fine when belted, or with some sort of band across the waist. The latter has been my trick in finding skirt tops even though I am generally way too short-waisted for them to fit off the rack.

(AJ I am short-waisted and have a long rise. It is definitely possible and surprisingly common)

16 years ago

Christie

Active Member

I think I knew what you mean about the torso/rise. I think I'm the opposite ... long torso, short rise. In other words, my torso appears long for my height, but the extra length is above my bustline. I actually am short in the rise.

All this to say --- wow, are we all unique!

16 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Aha. I totally understand your reasoning Maya, and nice visuals. I thought that Shana meant a LONG tunic top over a skirt and I just couldn’t grasp the concept of why that would be flattering on a petite person.

Cricket and AJ, as Maya already reassured you, you can absolutely be long in the rise and short in the torso.

16 years ago

MsMaven

Veteran

I think one of the reasons this works on Kristin is because it is close to the Golden Mean, simplified version. If you look at the horizontal lines--shoulder, end of cardigan and top, and skirt, the top is approximately 2/3 of her figure and the skirt 1/3. Long over short works well here because of the proportion.

16 years ago

shana

Veteran

Yes, Maya has articulated what I was trying to say very well! I usually try to visually lengthen my torso otherwise I just look like boobs, hips and legs without any sort of waist at all! I don't mind sacrificing a little leg length to help out the torso.

16 years ago

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