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The Long And Short Of It: Women’s High Fasion

Jun 29, 2016
by Caroline Miller
Claire Suddaath, High Fashion, J. C. Penny, Long Tall Sally, tall fashion, tall women shop men's clothing
2 Comments

While I’m standing at the lunch counter at the retirement center, a woman whom I’ve known for several years greeted me with surprise.  Had I grown and inch or two she wondered.  By her recollection, she’d always been taller than I.  She was right, of course.  But age had done a little whittling on her bones while I had maintained my height thanks to hip replacement surgeries, exchanging brittle bones with steel that is impervious to time’s passage.  On the morning of her greeting, this former 5’5 woman now stood at my eye level.

Heights vary by country as well as age.  In the United States, the average woman is 5’4’ while it’s 5’6” in Germany and a leggy 5’7” in the Netherlands.  (“High Fashion,” by Claire Suddath, Bloomberg Businessweek, June 6-12, 2016, pg. 61.)  Pity the American gal who stands at  5’8” or above.  She represents 5% of the population and is hugely ignored by retail fashion. (Ibid, pg 60.) If she wants a pair of jeans to reach her ankles, most likely she shops in the men’s store.  Otherwise, for a snug fit, she buys women’s jeans and disguises the short cut with high top boots.  She makes similar adjustments when she buys a skirt.  My knee-length garments she would wear as minis.   In sum, the tall gal struggles.

fashion for tall gals

Courtesy of ruixinxin.com

Like her counterparts of plus size, retail ignores a tall woman and for the same reasons: pattern adjustments and the required extra material. (Blog 6/13/16)  Fortunately, a company in the U.K. has come to the rescue.  Long Tall Sally, recently emerged from bankruptcy and has opened brick and  mortar shops for tall women in England and Canada, with a few to be opened soon in the United States.  At the moment, however, the business focuses is the internet where it sells its designs all over the world.  The new CEO admits the fashions aren’t groundbreaking, but its leggings, jeans and tiered maxi skirts are sufficiently long to cover arms and legs.

When it comes to retail fashion, being average is good.  For those who aren’t average, there is J. C. Penny for the plus gal and Long Tall Long Sally for those statuesque women most of us envy.  Come to think of it, I wish I’d have thought to ask my surgeon to implant longer leg rods when he did my hip replacements.  As I grow older, I could do with a new perspective.

 

 

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2 Comments
  1. Janet June 29, 2016 at 4:14 pm Reply
    Aaacckk! What happens when you start out barely 5 feet tall! I used to get frustrated because they always stocked the small sizes on the top shelves in the stores. Plus, I was fascinated when the pants were always made for women 5 inches taller than me. Now I will be looking forward to getting even shorter? Of course, as my husband always says - it is better than the alternative!!
    • Caroline Miller June 29, 2016 at 4:50 pm Reply
      Oh my gosh! Another under-represented group of gals! And no one can argue petite women require designs with more material. Hey! What's Woman's Liberation doing about these under-represented women? Gloria Steinem, where are you?

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Contact Caroline at

carolinemiller11@yahoo.com

Portland, Oregon author Caroline Miller had distinguished careers as an educator, union president, elected official and artist/advocate.

Her play, Woman on the Scarlet Beast, was performed at the Post5 Theatre, Portland, OR, January/February 2015

Caroline published a serialized novelette, Marie Eau-Claire, on the website, The Colored Lens.  She also published the story Gustav Pavel,  a parable about ordinary lives, choice and alternate potential, on the website Fixional.co.

Caroline has published five novels

  • Getting Lost To Find Home
  • Ballet Noir
  • Trompe l’Oeil
  • Gothic Spring
  • Heart Land

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