Petite Proportions Are Not Always Created Equal

Did you know most petite sized clothing is proportioned to fit women 5'3" to 4'11" tall? The difference in proportions between a woman who is 5'3" and a woman who is 4'11" can be remarkably different, so if a garment is cut to fit the taller end the petite size spectrum, guess what happens when a shorter gal tries the same garment.

At 4'11", I just barely make the petite sizes cut-off. Even though my height is supposedly taken into consideration when proportioning petite sizes, I often find that even petite sizes are cut too large for me.

Case in point, here is a Banana Republic Petite size XXS top I ordered on-line recently. Here is the stock photo from the Banana Republic website, which shows how the garment is intended to fit. The asymmetrical neckline is high enough to be modest, but still an interesting detail.

Petites: Petite asymmetrical tee - Grey suede, $39.50

Now, here it is in size XXS petite on my 4'11" self.

Banana Republic Asymmetrical Tee in size XXS petite.

The neckline is ill-proportioned on someone so short. The bottom of the V comes down way too low and to far to the side, so that it is no longer modest, and actually shows my bra. The shoulder width, torso width, and length are all proportioned well, but I bet the neckline fits much better on a woman closer to 5'3".

Even with the availability of sizes as small as XXS petite at stores like Banana Republic and Ann Taylor, they still aren't proportioned to fit a woman quite so small. And if this is how a garment fits a woman of 4'11", which is technically a height that has been taken into consideration, I can only imagine how it would look on a woman even shorter than myself.

Just another thing to think about when out shopping...

Adventures in Alterations: Shoe Repair

Since small shoes are so hard to find, the ones I have I try to take extra good care of. Of course, my favorites end up looking like they've been through war because I wear them so much, and that's when it's time to take them to the cobbler. Here are two of my little soldiers, back from the shopping and bar hopping trenches.

Cole Haans: The patent leather at the tip has been worn away

Christian Louboutins: The soles have been worn down

Christian Louboutins: The heel fell in a sidewalk crack and scraped the patent leather off

The wine colored Cole Haans are my "shopping shoes", and have been around the block a time or two. Apparently I'm a little rough on the toes of my shoes, because I actually scraped into the patent leather at the tip. The brown patent Christian Louboutin was a victim of a sidewalk crack, in which the heel fell and scraped some of the leather right off. Poor little guy!

I took my shoes to a very well recommended shoe repair shop here in Los Angeles called Pasquale Shoe Repair and they fixed my babies up. Unfortunately patent leather is harder to repair than natural leather, so the repair isn't perfect, but I was more concerned with covering over the white leather showing through than anything else.

Cole Haans: New tips put on and patent leather touched up with paint

Christian Louboutins: New soles put on

Christian Louboutins: Scraped leather glued back down and touched up with paint

The Cole Haans look great, but I'm a bit bummed I beat up the heel on my Christian Louboutin so badly. Oh well...that'll teach me to pay better attention on heavily cracked sidewalks!

Brand that Runs Small: United Colors of Benetton

I've heard from a couple of sources that I should give United Colors of Benetton a try for items that run small and finally made the trek over there this weekend. Results were mixed, but I did find some stuff that would work for tiny petites, and picked up this awesome little number.

Trench jacket, size 38

Benetton has European sizing, so size 38 is their equivalent to XS/0. This trench style jacket is in size 38, and except for the sleeves being a bit too long, is absolutely perfect right off the rack. I'm very impressed with the fit across the back and shoulders, which is surprisingly narrow! Perfect for someone around my size. Here are a few different shots of the jacket so you can see how great the fit is.

The sleeves need to be taken up just a bit

Back and side view

I also saw a few other tops and sweaters at Benetton that were fitting pretty small, so check them out for great preppy pieces.

The other thing I tried on for fit was a pair of pants in size 38. The waist was very small, and the pants fit well just below my natural waistline. There was a gap in the waist at the back, which is a pretty common occurrence and can be easily taken in by a tailor.

However, the front and crotch area on the pant did the strangest thing! I've never experienced this before. There is this fold of extra fabric that hangs down in a very unflattering way, and no amount of pulling, pinching, or adjusting seemed to get rid of it.

What is the fabric doing at the crotch?

Anyone know what that is? I'm going to show this picture to my tailor and ask her what's going on with the fit of this pant. I'm so curious!

Other than that, the fit in the hip and thigh was pretty good. These pants might work for someone of a different body type than myself, so it's worth taking a look if you have a Benetton near by.

United Colors of Benetton does not have e-commerce at this time, so unfortunately only ladies near an actual Benetton store will benefit from this brand. The style at Benetton is a bit preppy, so if you like argyle and tartan, then Benetton should be on your list of stores to check out. As for me, I LOVE argyle, and will be coming back often!

My Secret Weapon: Cole Haan Shoes

Being 4'11", heels are very handy at improving my ability to interact with society on a more level playing field. Things like ordering a beer is made easier when I can see over the bar, and I find I get nearly tramped in crowded areas less when I'm a more visible 5'2" in a pair of 3 inch heels. Not to mention the awesome ability of heels to lengthen the leg line, straighten posture, and polish off an outfit. I suppose what I'm getting at here is I love wearing heels...and the more often I can wear them, the better.

Of course, this "all heels, all the time" mentality is often hindered by pinching, rubbing, blisters and other unfortunate side effects of wearing high heels. This is why I am going to let you in on my secret weapon...Cole Haan shoes with Nike Air technology.

Cole Haan was purchased by Nike in 1988, and they have since infused Nike Air technology into the foot bed of a special collection of their shoes. Make sure the shoes say "with Nike Air" to ensure you get the most comfy shoes in their arsenal.

Cole Haan Carma Air Almond Pump, $278, colehaan.com
This color is surprisingly a great neutral and compliments lots of other colors.

I call these shoes my "shopping shoes"...because I can roam the mall all day in them and feel great! Basically, these are shoes I can wear all day, everyday, without day dreaming about the moment I get to kick them off at the end of the day. For a person who is greatly benefited by the usage of high heels, these shoes allow me to wear them all day and be completely comfortable.

Cole Haan makes shoes down to a size 4, but not all their styles make it down to that size, so unfortunately, the size 5 and above girls will benefit most from this brand. However, I tend to run on the small side of size 5, and the Cole Haan open toed size 5 shoes fit perfectly. The closed toed shoes, I can go up to a size 5.5, so if you're a 4.5, you can probably fit into a closed toed size 5 Cole Haan shoe. Both the options below come in as small as a size 4.

Cole Haan - Carma OT Air Pump, $278, zappos.com

Cole Haan - Carma OT Air Sling, $278, zappos.com

Coco Avant Chanel

I am so excited for this!

From The Cut.