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Tips and Trips to Flatter Short Body Types

Lawl.

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Basically,
Just slim everything if you can.

From the waist down a slim pant and a slim shoe.
If you go bootcut or have massive stacking your legs are just going to look really short.
Depending on your tastes your jeans may have to sag a little, this way the crotch sits lower underneath the shirt making your torso also seem elongated.
As for shirts nothing baggy,
your screwing yourself over if you are wearing non fitted long shirts, this makes your torso seem much longer than your pants and in turn make your legs look even shorter.
If wearing shorts, go with a style that is more tapered and ends above the knee.
Wear slim shoes, preferably a type that shows the ankle and go sockless if you are comfortable.
In my experience this shows off a good pair of legs and can also make you seem not-so-short.
 

Proof Rock

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I'm 5'7", here are a few tips:


-The supertight jeans look seems to work a lot better on taller people. I would still try to find some pants on the slimmer side, but just not something that is sized down 3 inches.

-Whatever you do, don't wear baggy dress shirts. You will look like you are playing dress-up in your dad's clothing.

-If you have smaller feet, bigger sneakers look kind of dumb. I would suggest getting some shoes in the Converse style (I wear purcells)


That's pretty much all the advice I can offer.
 

GuidoWongolini

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I'm 5'7" as well, I stick by the following:
- stay clear of anything baggy or too loose
- stay away from anything chunky, especially footwear
- try & stick to one colour spectrum
- try & stay with the same tone with bottom & top, though I do wear white denim jeans when ever possible?

My main problem is that I do a lot of cycling so have very defined thighs..

Then there is the conundrum in that I find that I look slimmer & taller in Armani suits than my previous Italian MTM suits from the likes of Brioni, Caruso & Corneliani. My Armani jackets are approximately 1" longer in the body & the pants are up to 2" wider? I think this has a lot to do with the softer shoulder & tailoring..

If you need visual(s) then have a look at my WAYW posts in SW&D for casual & MC for suits etc.

Good luck.
 

Seluv

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Wear button down shirts (with the vertical row of buttons help to make you appear taller) and although it may not be a "popular" look, keep them tucked in around waist. If you are wearing a t-shirt, opt for solid color one (no pictures and/or written messages as graphical stuff only pinpoints chest height).

When getting checkered and/or plaid items, select only those with a small pattern (then from a distance colors will "blend" together) and avoid large square patterns (they "slice" body and make you seem shorter). Solid colors, though, are always better and darker items the best.

For jeans dark indigo blue will look the best, so wear them, wash them, and "lighten" them up overall by your own wear and tear, since a vendor's artificial distressing simply phony and calls attention to bottom part of body. Belts for jeans cut in wide widths and equipped with oversize buckles are best left for the cowboy crowd since they only add clutter and draw attention. If jeans fit, just forget the belt altogether. Short guys can easily do this since other people will seldom look down and notice the empty loops have nothing threaded through them.

Finally, get a good pair of casual chunky boots for winter time wear (great for sloppy weather anyway) and . . . no one suspects you wearing them just to appear a fraction of an inch taller, but hey, they do the trick when you step inside.
 

machochino

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Not to bring up a dead thread but I would like to include my opinion on this since it hits close to home. Slim doesn't always work for the short guy. He said he was "athletic" also. Which, I can relate very well too. I'm 5'6 and 160lbs, with a very broad chest. But, I have short legs. I'm not fat either by any means.

So all this love for slim fit premium denim just doesn't do it for me. My upper and lower body end up looking very unproportional. Also, my chest never fits into smalls; I usually fit into mediums and thus, the lengths are usually a tad too long. I'm really having trouble finding nice clothes that fit well.

Any suggestion and opinions would be welcomed. I hope this helps for all my shorter dudes out there. Be nice! This is like my 4th post.

Btw, I've learned A LOT from reading on SF and it is much more mature here than on other forums!
 

TransparentCranium

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Originally Posted by machochino
Not to bring up a dead thread but I would like to include my opinion on this since it hits close to home. Slim doesn't always work for the short guy. He said he was "athletic" also. Which, I can relate very well too. I'm 5'6 and 160lbs, with a very broad chest. But, I have short legs. I'm not fat either by any means. So all this love for slim fit premium denim just doesn't do it for me. My upper and lower body end up looking very unproportional. Also, my chest never fits into smalls; I usually fit into mediums and thus, the lengths are usually a tad too long. I'm really having trouble finding nice clothes that fit well. Any suggestion and opinions would be welcomed. I hope this helps for all my shorter dudes out there. Be nice! This is like my 4th post. Btw, I've learned A LOT from reading on SF and it is much more mature here than on other forums!
Slim tapered pants/jeans will help to make the legs look longer. The wider the jeans the more sqaure your bottom portion looks. The slimmer the jeans the longer you legs look.
 

Lel

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What is short?

There is 5"7-5"9 short which isn't really short, it's just "not tall". Then there is 5"6 and below. The cut offs aren't exact, but if you're in the upper range you can pull off appearing taller. If you are noticeably shorter there isn't much to do that will make you look tall, just less short.

If you are in the former range, it also depends on how skinny you are. You can have similar proportions to someone how is tall and lean so you wear lean and slim clothing. This accentuates your slimness which in turns places vertical emphasizes, thus the appearance of height.

Then there are people who are simply stocky. That is their body type. You can only fight it so much, though it's very easy to emphasize stockiness. First thing is to stick to shorter tops, as if you can find the right balance between the overlap of jean waists and shirt hems then you can really change how your top block and bottom block are perceived.

I have a friend who isn't exactly stocky, but has short legs and long torsos. He makes it worse by wearing loose pants and hangs them low, making his legs nearly nonexistant. Not to mention he also sags his shorts so low, his legs are barely stumps.
 

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