Petite Holiday Gift Guide

December 8, 2010

Being petite can make gift buying hard for your family and loved ones. I shudder at the thought of all the well meaning, but completely odd-sized clothing I get from family each year. Here are some petite friendly gifts to give or get this holiday season…

1. Vintage style brooch -This pretty little pin from Ann Taylor would look fantastic on jackets, sweaters, dresses, handbags…you name it.

2. Rebecca Minkoff Mini Mini - The pint-sized sister to the infamous Morning After Bag, the Mini Mini comes in an array of colors, and with the option to wear it over the shoulder, cross body, or held as a satchel.

3. Fashion tape – This stuff is a lifesaver! Helps to keep hemlines, necklines, and tons more perfectly in place. Great stocking stuffer. More fashion tape ideas.

4. Sewing machine with lessons – Give a petite a tailor, and she’ll have hemmed pants for a day. Give a petite a sewing machine and teach her a basic stitch, and she’ll have hemmed pants for a lifetime!
(How’d you like my poor attempt at a modern day interpretation of an ancient Chinese proverb?)

5. The Little Bra Company Petite Bras – A favorite of petite bloggers. Only for A & B cup girls at the moment, but C cups are coming soon!

6. Gift cards – Petite ladies need to try clothes on themselves to find the right fit, so gift cards are amazing gifts. We get to go shopping and find exactly what we want! Genius!

7. Narrow calf boots from Duo Boots – Boots for tiny calves as narrow as 30 cm (11.8 inches) around, and as wide as 50 cm (19.7 inches) around.

8. Personal shopper – Can’t find clothes that fit? You can hire an experienced personal shopper to help  navigate the stores, and find a new perfect wardrobe. Some major department stores like Nordstrom offer complimentary personal shopper services, but for a more personalized experience, think about hiring a professional personal stylist.

9. Small bangle bracelets from Etsy sellers – Many great Etsy jewelry designers will special-make small size bracelets for petite wrists. To find what size bracelet you need, see my post about bangle bracelets for thin wrists.

What are your petite-friendly holiday gift recommendations?

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  • curls-and-pearls

    Great ideas! So….who out there wants to teach me how to sew?

  • thesmallone

    I want to go to Express. I don't see them talked about much in the petite blogosphere but they carry lots of 2s and 0s and they have petite versions of a lot of their clothing.

  • PetiteAsianGirl

    Wonderful gift guide…I wouldn't mind getting any of the above, except maybe a sewing machine (just brought mine back home after giving up on sewing lol). Vintage style brooches…glad I hit that one up while gift shopping for you : ) In addition to fashion tape, petites would probably like foot petals or any similar shoe inserts.

  • Really Petite

    Great post! A petite friendly belt like the AT perfect patent skinny belt in XS is a must! Got my first one and love it! Fits nicely on a petite waist. I wish someone would teach me how to sew:)

  • Trystan L. Bass

    Many sewing machine stores (including Jo-Ann's, national U.S. chain) offer at least 1 free lesson when you buy a machine. It's may be called a "get to know your machine" lesson & it's pretty basic, but very useful. And bigger stores have all kinds of lessons available from beginner sewing to advanced tailoring.

    That said, most people don't need a machine — they need lessons on how to hem pants/skirts & sew on buttons. Check YouTube for some great tutorials. Even the basic alterations described on this site can be done by hand easily (tho' I'll admit, I've been sewing since I was a kid ;-). Buy a thrift-store shirt or trouser to practice if you're nervous. It's only thread.

  • littlenashua

    My local YMCA is offering a complete sewing curriculum, from "crash course sewing" to "pattern drafting and design" and "Construction 1-3". Check to see if any of your local Ys or community organization offer similar classes.

  • Irene

    I love your blog! I just found it a few days ago and I've gone through almost a year's worth of posts already! :) Great recommendations – I'd love to get any of those (especially the sewing machine…hand stitching can be tedious)

    Ooh, in addition to vintage bangles, you can get inexpensive vintage brooches on Etsy too! And while petite-sized dresses & shoes are difficult to find at thrift stores, I like going to Etsy for those things because searching for "petite" or "junior" (or even "XXS" or "XS" because many shop owners don't realize the tiny dresses they've listed are petite) is like having a personal shopper – the shop owners have done all the hunting for you, you just have to compare the garment measurements with one you already own! It's pretty nifty – they're open to questions about items too. You can find plenty on Etsy for less than you would at expensive stores like J. Crew or Banana Republic. And best of all, many vintage styles are flattering sheath dresses or high-waisted dresses with full skirts so you look a little curvy and a little taller, and more women in the 50's & 60's had 23 – 24" waists than today. Vintage shoes in the 4.5-5.5 range are pretty common on Etsy too. In fact, my shop has a pair of 5.5N shoes right now, and I'm about to list some little silver 1930's/1940's strappy heels too. And since many vintage dresses were handmade (60's and earlier especially), I've found that those are the easiest to alter yourself from regular sizes since you just do a row of seams on either side and another row of some folded fabric at the waist (or if you've got some free time, you can reattach the skirt higher on the bodice like I often do).

    Irene
    5'2", 0-2P
    http://fingerstaches.etsy.com

  • Anonymous

    HIP & BOTTOM ENCHANCING PANTY/PADS (as a gift to petite myself).

    I am dainty petite with narrow hips and flat bottom. I am considering trying HIP & BOTTOM ENCHANCING PANTY/PADS. Does anyone on this blog try this kind of products? If so, please share your experience and brand/product recommendation. Thank you.

  • Cee

    I swear by gift cards — love giving and receiving them.

    #9, Duh, Etsy! I knew there must be somewhere else to look for small bangles/bracelets. Thanks for the recommendation, definitely going to check them out now.

  • Megan

    a purse is always a good gift.

    http://fashiontriedandtrue.blogspot.com/

  • Petite Mom

    The Duo Boots site is a terrific find! I totally missed out on the boot trend this season because I couldn't find any boots that wouldn't overwhelm my 30cm calf! Too bad their stuff is so pricey – have you tried their boots? Comfortable? Quality? Worth the money?

    Jewelry and purses – always on my gift wish list!

    http://petitemom.blogspot.com

  • Alterations Needed

    @curls-and-pearls – Seriously! I not only need someone to teach me, but I need to find the time! My little sewing machine (that I got as a gift!) isn't getting much use, not because I don't want to learn, but because I can't seem to find time to sit down with it! Poor little neglected machine. =(

    @thesmallone – I knew Express had size xxs but I've never seen petite. Is this new? It's true the size xxs is pretty small. I've never bought from there though…the styles just haven't spoken to me yet. =)

    @PetiteAsianGirl – I love my little vintage brooch! Thank you! Ahh, yes, Foot Petals are amazing. I'm always buying more to add to my shoes.

  • Alterations Needed

    @Really Petite – I just picked that up in size S with a 30% off coupon!

    @Trystan L. Bass – Very true that you don't necessarily need a machine, but it does help! I find sewing by hand a bit painful. Maybe I need to build calluses on my fingers, but pushing a needle through thick fabric can hurt! Definitely deters me from sewing by hand.

    @littlenashua – What a great resource! Thanks for that idea!

  • Alterations Needed

    @Irene – Awww…thank you! I never thought to check Etsy for vintage clothes…I gave up on vintage when all I could find were bigger sizes. Vintage shoes are AMAZING! My mom dug a few out of her closet and I ran off with them as fast as I could. =)

    @Cee – Even if the small sizes aren't listed in the Etsy seller's store, most of them say they will gladly make a special size for someone. So if you find a seller making amazing bangles and have to have them, ask if they'll make small sizes.

    @Petite Mom – I bought a pair of Duo boots last year in 30cm for my scrawny little calves. The fit in the calf is nice and snug, but the style I got is baggier in the ankle than I'd like. I have my first post about there here:

    Knee-High Boots for Narrow Calves – Duo Boots

    I've pulled them out to do a revisit post with my nice camera, so stay tuned!

  • Anonymous

    Shoes and Boots by Stuart Weitzman run very narrow. The knee high legging boot are made for ladies with small and slim calf. The length of your legs from knee down is pretty long and the shaft height will not be a problem in your case.
    They are a bit pricey but give it a try!
    Although I love mine, but I NEED to hide them under my pants because of my caveman calf. LOL.

  • PetiteXXS

    I love everything on your guide! And already own some of them include the exact #2 :) Been thinking about Duo boots too but keep hoping for a coupon code (or at least free shipping).

  • Alterations Needed

    @Really Petite – I just picked that up in size S with a 30% off coupon!

    @Trystan L. Bass – Very true that you don't necessarily need a machine, but it does help! I find sewing by hand a bit painful. Maybe I need to build calluses on my fingers, but pushing a needle through thick fabric can hurt! Definitely deters me from sewing by hand.

    @littlenashua – What a great resource! Thanks for that idea!

  • littlenashua

    My local YMCA is offering a complete sewing curriculum, from "crash course sewing" to "pattern drafting and design" and "Construction 1-3". Check to see if any of your local Ys or community organization offer similar classes.

  • curls-and-pearls

    Great ideas! So….who out there wants to teach me how to sew?

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