The problems of the short legged! - YouLookFab Forum

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The problems of the short legged!

anne

Veteran

I finally have computer access at home so can pose to you the question I have been pondering.

The current fashion trends are very focused on the long tops and skinny leg look, whether tunics over skinnies or leggings or some of the newer looks with shorter voluminous looks over tight skirts.

These are really not great looks for people like myself who are proportionally short legged and stockier in the thighs.

(To make it worse I have put on weight and feel a bit self conscious about my midsection so hard to wear some of the bodycon looks in that area - and the weight makes me more thigh self conscious)

Have I missed something - are their actually current trends that are flattering for those with my proportions?

Body Type

19 replies

Latest reply was from Suz

Isabel

Veteran

I am not really sure that I can answer that. But I hear you !!!! I put on 32 lbs in 3 months back in the Fall. Most of it in my thighs and stomach. I look like a 50 year old beer guzzling, football lovin' , male couch potato. LOL

I have a very long torso and short legs. There are always going to be trends that just don't work for us. We also can't "stretch" our legs with clothes. For example, I can't wear high heels all the time, nor do I want to. I have really learned to like the more blouson look and the tunic over skinny look ( which I had never done prior to this Fall ).

The reality is that not many people CAN wear those super body con looks, so take it easy on yourself.

anne

Veteran

You are encouraging . And I have put on less than 10 pounds (but unlike you for reasons under my own control).
Like you I don't wear high heels much. I do wear the tunic over skinny (leggings or pull on jeans) look - practically to death but I just remember a point in the 90's when I realised that the long sweater/ baggy shirt over leggings look I had been wearing wasn't really doing me any favours and I wonder if that point has come again.
I am not too keen on the blouson look - may need to try again - I felt like the tops (in common with some of the shorter voluminous tops) exposed my bottom and thighs.

Anonymous

Ugh! IKWYM. I feel like tunic-length tops do nothing for my long torso/short-ish legs. And I don't wear heels either. I can wear an untucked shirt, but I feel like it needs to be shorter than the crotch point. A curved shirt tail hem is especially good. Straight legged jeans might be more forgiving than skinnies on you right now, if you have any. Do you wear skirts/dresses in the wintertime? They could be your best friend. I'm seeing more skirts that sit *at* the waist, which can lengthen the legline when the top is tucked in. You look great in A-line skirts, do you have a denim one that you could wear with tights and boots?

anne

Veteran

Thanks Claire - I do have some straight legged, but they may be too tight at the waist, I haven't been game to try them for a while!

I do have an A-line /straight demin skirt and it certainly is a lifesaver. It doesn't really fit properly at the waist though, so I am not keen on tucking. In fact I only have 1 skirt that actually fits at the waist.

I am probably reacting from a bit of cabin fever. I stayed home all last week with a sick child, didn't go to church, even had my groceries delivered (cos I hate it when people bring sick kids to the supermarket!) And just wore leggings/jeggings and long warm tunics ALL day, every day. And felt that I wasn't wearing any of my new season clothes, partly because of the cold. I have managed to fit in a few wearings since then, though one day I was freezing and wished I hadn't ventured out without neck coverage!

BTW - you have slim legs Claire, and I feel that enables a bit more exposure (ie shorter tops) than I want to make

lynne

Veteran

anne, I have a long torso and short legs and have found that if the tunic/top has shape to it that will make all the difference. Baggy tops are not our friends, flowy ones can be.

harmonica

Veteran

hmmm.. sorry, but I'm not sure I understand this correctly, so take my words for what it is and correct me!

Anyway, I'm not following you on how tunic/leggings or tunic/skinnies don't fit for the short legged. My legs are not very long, but I find that when I sort of "hide" the crotch area where the legs stops, my legs seems longer because you can't see how long or short they actually are. It is along the line that Claire suggested with skirts.

As for being consious about the midsection, you are not alone! As an apple, I hear you totally. What works best for me is high waist jeans/trousers with flat front (no pleats! been there, done that, no good!) I also find skirts and dresses that are not very clingy or very tight below the belly area the best. Very volumious tops is no good either. Better with fitted or just skimming the body curves. And also better with thicker and heavyer fabrics, than very thin and light ones that often come out quite revealing

And supports Isabel that many trends does not fit all people.

rae

(website)

Veteran

I hear you loud and clear!

For myself, since I do like the look and casual feeling of tunics, I try to cheat a little. Instead of a regular tunic, I like to wear button-front shirts with curved bottom hems - the curve really helps the legs look longer since you see more of them on the sides. I also try to keep my shirts no longer than the crotch break.

A cropped jacket/vest/cardigan or a pendant necklace that hangs around your natural waist (or where you'd like everyone to *think* is your natural waist) can also make the legs look longer. Heels help, too, but I know they aren't for everyone.

harmonica

Veteran

Great advise, Rae! Taking note of curved bottom hems

catgirl

Veteran

In all the time I've been here, I still don't know whether I am short or long-waisted, high or low-waisted, and long or short-legged. I am definitely short (5'1") and wear tunics and skinnies all the time.

I think the key is to alter the proportions to suit your style and to ask yourself what your goals are. In my case flattery gives way to lots of other factors (function, comfort, holding my interest, meeting my other style requirements...).

Aziraphale

Veteran

All good suggestions. Like Una, I am 5'1", so all of my parts are short! Although for me a short torso is a bigger problem. I think the trick is to get a shirt of the right length. Button-front shirts with a curved hem are flattering on everyone -- short legs, average legs, long legs! And straight leg jeans are more flattering that skinnies that are tight all the way to the ankle.

anne

Veteran

Thanks for everyone who replied to this post and sorry about the post and run. It turned out my computer was having a fake recovery - but it has now been repaired!
Lynne - I think I agree with you on a top needing some shape

Harmonica, I know what you mean about the covering the crotch making for not showing the actually staring point of the legs. But then there isalso the argument about showing more leg to make them look longer

Rae - I think I have got to start liking curved bottom hems. Have always been a bit sensitive to revealing the curve of my thigh though!

Una you ROCK the volume on top/ skinny leg look!!! I don't know about your length proportions, but you sure have the legs for it

Vix

Veteran

Hi proportion-sibling!

I feel your pain on this. Even taking low-contrast into consideration, I look best in things that don't cut me mid-thigh -- but then I'm wearing more of a dress-over-slim pants/leggings look than a tunic one, sigh. Oh well.

Anyway: Imogen at Inside Out Style did one of her patented posts (tons of visuals, lots of body proportion and body type variations) on this topic. It was actually a reader question based on the "below the crotch vs crotch showing" debate.

I dug it up for you to read/look at:

http://www.insideoutstyleblog......inish.html

Check out the "shorter legs, curvier thighs" example. I generally aim for the 2 on the far right.

catgirl

Veteran

Okay, that was interesting, Vix! i'm not sure what she means that your "head" length and "leg break to knee length" should be about the same. Is your head measured from top of face to chin, or to end of neck? Because if it's the former, then I have long thighs! And I'm definitely the no hip shape in her demo - the grape leggings could be me.

All the measuring stuff really confuses me, but I so want to understand it.

Aziraphale

Veteran

I can answer your question, Una. Hope this doesn't count as a thread hijack.

You measure not just your face, but the top (crown) of your head to the base of your chin. That's a "head length".

"Perfect" proportions are as follows:

crown to chin: one head length
chin to bust peak: one head length
bust peak to waist (narrowest point): one head length
waist to leg break (end of torso, where your hip bends): one head length
leg break to knee break: two head lengths
knee break to floor: two head lengths

Not many people have these exact proportions. Most of us are short somewhere. Also, if you have a particularly long face, your head measurement will be bigger than average, and all your other measurements will seem too short. I believe Rae came up against this problem when she tried measuring her proportions using Imogen's instructions.

I've tried this on myself with a tape measure and it works out as I expected. All my proportions work out as they should, except the bust peak to waist, which is about HALF a head length -- and I consistently come up against short-waist fit issues when trying on clothes. Also my thighs are slightly short -- a little less than two head lengths -- but my calves are the right length, which helps give the impression that my legs are longer than they actually are. Interestingly, my upper arms are a little short too, so my elbow bends right at my natural waist, where it's supposed to, even though my waist is so short. Isn't biology clever.

anne

Veteran

Vix,thanks for reminding me of that post. I like how Imogen really precisely deals with proportion. Her post makes me think that one reason my favourite tunic look at the moment is a dark blue sweater tunic that I wear it with dark jeggings. - ie low contrast.

No problems with hijacking the thread Elisabeth. I just tried to measure this again and came up with a total height about 5 inches greater than my actual height so obviously not really accurate. Anyway, unlike on Una's more proportionate body, this is pretty easy to work out. My height is 64 inches, my inseam is 29 inches, so it is quite obvious I am short legged. The Imogen method did show me I was quite long from chin to bust and not as much in bust break to waist as I had thought, but I think that my small bust means I still look quite long waisted (I can fit 2 hands inbetween waist and bust)

harmonica

Veteran

Thanks for that reminder, Vix! Seems that I'm short waisted and have quite proportioned legs. Interesting, because I thought I had short legs and longer waist... well, now I've learned something new today too It makes sense, because Tops are often too long for my torso (making puffs in the back / waist area) and bottoms less problematic in terms of length (though have to shorten jeans because no-one sell petite sizes here)

Vix

Veteran

You all are welcome for the link!

I myself never completed the 8 (or 4, I've seen both ways) proportion length measurements, but I should go back and try again despite my big ole noggin potentially derailing things.

Last time I wasn't in my most supportive undergarments and the chin-to-bust deal got me focused on Newton's Gravity vs Da Vinci's "code."

catgirl

Veteran

Thanks, Elizabeth - that makes more sense. It helps me to try this with a flexible tape measure instead of string, so I get actual inches instead of just lengths. I need to redo this with your head length definition. There has to be a way to account for the larger/smaller proportioned head lengths.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

I'm really late here, but I wanted to thank you, Anne, for raising this, and thank everyone for the helpful discussion. Vix, I hadn't seen that post of Imogen's and found it very enlightening. Elisabeth, thanks for reminding us of the measurements and how to do them.

I definitely struggle with wearing tunics AT ALL. I like the look on others but do not think it suits me. Anne, as you know, we have similar proportion issues. I will have to measure again when I am home, because I've forgotten some of the details, but like Rae, I struggled with the measurements because I have a long head. I DO know that my calves are especially short, and that is one reason why my legs look even shorter than they are. I wonder if that is an issue for you, as well?

I really hear you on heels, but I have recently succumbed to the lure of the wedge. I can't wear them all the time (here in Banff, for instance, it might be suicide!) but when I can wear them, I find they help enormously with my proportions.

I know that I made some discoveries when I first did Imogen's test. Like Harmonica, I learned that I was much less short-legged overall than I thought (in fact, torso and legs were equal) but that my waist was short. And yet I still LOOK short-legged - partly because of those calves. I think what makes it all a bit "off" is that I am short on the top half of my top, and short on the bottom half of my legs, making it seem like there is a very long space between the two.