Ask Angie: Shorten, Lengthen, Keep as is, Return

Hi Angie and Fab Ladies,
I recently purchased these trousers from Anthropologie and am not sure about them. They are lined and well made so I'm hoping to make them work. They are supposed to be ankle pants, although on 5' 2.5" me they are longer. I can usually wear regular sized ankle pants as regular length pants with a good bit of scrunch..love that scrunch!, but these hit in that awkward area between the two. They have a 2" cuff so I can easily gain plenty of length, although the lining would be shorter. Don't know if that makes a difference. Other options are shorten to true ankle length, keep as is, or return.

I would also love your opinion on which shoe works best. And, of course, styling suggestions are appreciated.

Pics 1 & 2 are with flat slippers. Pics 3 &4 are with heels. 5 is close up of length.

TIA!

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11 years ago

carter

Veteran

Waiting for the wisdom to pour in, as I have a couple pair that length as well.

shiny

I can relate, as a fellow shortie. Personally, I like the length just as they are. I would not change a thing. So what if they're "supposed" to be shorter. I think on us petite gals this is a good interpretation of the trend. Still gives us a long, lean line, with a nod to the trend. Does that make sense?

I will be interested to see what other's say but I'd wear these as is in a heartbeat. In fact, I'd wear your whole outfit. Speaking of which, what is the top and also that bag...

P.s. I like the pants with BOTH shoes...

Sarah A

I like them with the heels at this length but not as much with the flats, not really able to articulate why though. Hopefully more expert eyes will chime in soon

AviaMariah

My first thought would be to let the hem out a little to get some scrunch.

Suz

(website)

Hmm. I understand this problem.

First, you look great! And those are nice pants.

I think it depends a lot on the fabric and what footwear you're going to use. I like them this length with heels, but somehow they look awkward with flats to me.

I have a pair of pants like this. (Different style but they hit in a similar place). Eventually I had them lengthened a bit by letting down the hem. The problem was, the drape wasn't quite right like that. So...not sure which way to go. The other question is whether they are tapered enough that they would work if you shortened?

I guess it's easy to try lengthening them. If that doesn't work, you can shorten them.

JayS

Thanks for your replies.
Shiny, I do see what you're saying..tweaking the trend to make it work. Makes sense. Thanks for that. Oh, the handbag is Pour La Victoire and the black top is Classics Entier - a NAS Angie pick from a few years age. The blue sweater is Joie.
Sarah and AviaMariah, thanks for your input. Food for thought...

doubleh

I love the pants and I love the way they look with the heels. I agree with others that the flats seem off. Though, I wonder if you paired them with flats that had a shallower toe-box- would that help to elongate the line, perhaps?

Very good points, Suz.
The fabric is a little on the stiff side, so scrunch could be awkward. I hadn't thought of that. I can untack the cuff and fold it down to see how it hangs. I would have to think long and hard before I shortened them. I'm on team long leg line, lol.

Angie

Fashion Stylist

Queen Pedantic About Pant Lengths is here.

I love the way they fit JayS, other than the length. They're just a tad too short to be regular and far too long to be cropped. So they look "wrong" if you know what I mean, and not intentionally fashionable. They would look better with a bootie though, which will make them look longer. Have you tried that option?

Sorry to be a profit of doom about the length. It's my thing and I am non-negotiable about it. Of course, feel free to ignore my opinion. I am hard to please with the length of cropped pants.

Thanks everyone for your input.
And Angie..no reason to be sorry. I'm very thankful for your opinion. Lol..I addressed this to Ask Angie because I know how very particular you are about pants length.
So..a trip to the tailor is in order. I'll see if we can lose the cuff and gain the length.

Thanks for being a sweet sport, JayS. I look forward to seeing the length alteration. The trousers do fit marvelously well otherwise, and your bag is divine.

catgirl

Thank you for posting this. Cropped pants fall exactly this way on me and confuse me beyond belief. Too short to be regular, too long to be cropped - so hard to find in P sizes... I share your pain!

Thanks, Angie. It's a deal.
Alaska Girl..it's a constant problem, isn't it? Having a longer rise, I usually do better in regular sizes although some things just can't be hemmed. I have a love/hate relationship with zippered leg openings. Also, the wide leg trousers that should cover my whole foot have a lot narrower opening when you chop 6 inches off...

shoppingisfun

I love those heels you're wearing in the last pick. Nice! As for the trousers, I'd shorten them,but to me they look kinda big all over. If you got the waist taken in,maybe they would sit higher and thus look shorter. Just a thought.

Sorry, double post

Thanks for your thoughts, petitesanonymous. I kinda like the looser fit of the trousers. The legs are fairly wide and taper at the bottom. Guess this is my version of a fluid look.
Oh, and I'm glad you like my new heels. They are from Comptoir Des Cotonniers in Soho.

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