Tall girl goes shopping (and avoids Tall Girl)

Although I avoided this topic for a few weeks, I thought I’d post about shopping when you are above average height. I’ve definitely worn my share of floods and belly tops unintentionally, and have figured out a few tips and good places to shop that I thought would be worth sharing.

Here’s my first tip - if you are tall you probably have a long torso like me – so when you buy a t-shirt or any shirt for that matter, avoid square shaped shirts. Go for the rectangle! In my experience it is much more flattering. (By rectangle I mean the main part of the shirt without the arms… usually it either resembles of square or a rectangle).

Tip #2 – skirts can look VERY short on a tall girl. It has to do with the amount of leg that is showing of course… more leg makes a skirt look shorter of course. So what I do is hold my arms straight down at my side. If the skirt is longer than the tips of my fingers it passes the test. If not, it is a no go. This works for shorts too.

Tip #3 – don’t even bother trying to find pants in most stores. In my experience the standard length of pants in most places is 32 (WAY too short). If you are lucky the store may carry 34 length. This might work for some, but for me I need a 35 inch length in most pants for them to be long enough. So look for pants that measure the waist separate from the length. For jeans I like Silvers or Mavi. I’ve also made a few pairs of pants work just by letting out the hem – doesn’t work for jeans but can work for dress pants.

Tip #4 – NEVER put your jeans (or anything for that matter) in the dryer! More times than I’d like to admit, I’ve gotten lazy or rushed and thrown a pair of jeans in the dryer. They’ve shrunk in length and then had to go to the Goodwill pile. My tall roommate explains this tip as “always think about the shrink factor”.

Tip #5 – don’t be cheap. The reality is you are going to have to spend a bit more for clothes. Buy fewer items and spend a bit more on each piece.

I’ve also visited a few stores specifically for tall women. I’m always disappointed in Tall Girl (http://www.tallgirlshop.com). I find they don’t have clothes I like and they don’t really fit. So I never bother with Tall Girl.

On the other hand, I LOVE the store Long Legs (http://www.longlegs.ca/). Their stores are located in Mississauga and Toronto Ontario, Canada but you can also shop online. They have great sales and really nice items. I also like the spirit of their company: We believe that it is important to create an atmosphere of acceptance and confidence, where women can embrace their height. (http://www.longlegs.ca/spirit.cfm?pageAction=spirit). My first trip into Long Legs was hilarious. I couldn’t count the number of girls in the fitting rooms trying on pants and coming out of the room shocked that the pants were long enough. We were all laughing. It is also nice to be in a store where everything you see comes in your size.

A shop I found online that looks like it could be promising is www.ocollection.com. Based out of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, the website looks like it has some nice stuff.

For workout clothing I like buying pants from Lululemon (http://www.lululemon.com/). They make their pants in a very nice long length and also offer free hemming!

Can you tell I like shopping at Canadian companies? J

Nobody can say that shopping for anyone who isn’t average size in any way can be anything other than frustrating at times, but there are certain places and tips that make things a little easier. Hopefully these ideas and suggestions help.