Boucle skirt and sky-high pumps.

This post has been a long time in coming, so please excuse the mishmash of topics! Life has been very hectic lately, so I haven't had a chance to write about a lot of petite fashion-related things that are on my mind...

Such as a more comprehensive review of the H&M items that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, for which I finally got around to taking proper photos and measurements. I'm actually obsessed with this boucle skirt, both because of the quality (it's fully lined, and the material is nice and thick - perfect for winter!) and the pretty color. Since it isn't a solid red, but instead has flecks of other colors such as green and blue, it's so very easy to match with. It goes great with neutrals, but also works with brighter hues!

Teal and orange.

I've had this outfit floating around in my head for ages - inspired by the color trends for autumn (teal! orange! so much love!). But life has just been very busy lately, since I was caught up in a flurry of birthday celebrations, long hours at work and, most happily, moving preparations. Everything is finally slowing down again, though, as I'm now settled into my new apartment and have a lot more free time.

But enough about my life - boring, yawn, I know! 

Reviews...Ann Taylor and LOFT.

Since my birthday is fast approaching (Monday, to be exact!), I've been the happy recipient of more than a few gift coupons in the mail - one of which is for $15 off any in-store item at Ann Taylor/LOFT. So what's a girl to do except spend said coupon as soon as she can? I'm lucky enough to work within walking distance of both AT and Loft - oh, the perks of working in Midtown. 

On my last visit to both, I found a couple of items which I really liked. Since I'm on the hunt for the perfect work-appropriate skirt (the ones I currently own are either too loose, too tight, too short - in other words, I'm just too picky), I thought this might be the perfect opportunity to try a few on.

I apologize for the grainy, blurry, and all around horrendous quality of these photos - Blackberries definitely do not take editorial-quality pictures!

Maxi skirts and cropped shirts.

So basically, maxi skirts are one of the it items for fall - and for good reason! The look is generally chic, easy to put together, and oh so comfortable (loose and flowy skirts mean having the flexibility to do pretty much anything, bar possibly going for a quick jaunt on your horse). So of course, I've been on the hunt for the perfect maxi skirt to add to my own fall closet - there's nothing to lose with adding such a versatile item to my sartorial repertoire, right?

Except, of course, I tend to look a hot mess in the majority of maxi skirts I've managed to find. The problem has to do, as it always does, with my body proportions. Most maxi skirts tend to sit lower on the hips which, when you have short legs like I do, tends to emphasize just how short they really are. Of course, wedges and/or higher heels help balance out the issue (and honestly, you should always wear high heels with a maxi dress/skirt) but not enough to really make me happy with how I look in them.

So what's a pocket sized girl to do, abandon the trend altogether? I think not. Instead, I made the trend my own by going the faux-maxi skirt look - in other words, by wearing a maxi dress with a crop top. This totally works! Since the crop top hits higher up, the visual is more lengthening as a whole. 

Dressing wise for your pocket size!

I have a friend who is, for all intents and purposes, sample size. I’ve gone shopping with her for years, but to this day, it completely confounds me that she can waltz into a store, pick something up off-the-rack, and not even bother to try it on. “Oh, it looks like it’ll fit,” she’ll say, and buy it on the spot.

Being petite, this isn’t something I’ve ever been able to do. Clothes simply don’t fit off the rack, even if they’re from the petite section -- and on the rare occasion they do, I’m totally overjoyed. It’s a novel experience for me, to find something that fits perfectly with no alterations necessary.

But enough complaining! Because my real point is that there are perks to being pocket sized, too -- by virtue of the fact that you don’t fit into any and everything, you learn what does work for your body pretty darn fast. You’re forced to, really, when only 25% of the clothing out there (if that!) will fit. When your selection’s so small, you want to be sure you’re getting something good, am I right?

But all the same, I’m a firm believer in the fact that you can never really know enough -- and so I’d like to pass on a link to this really insightful post by Kelly of AlterationsNeeded about petite fashion and body proportions. Determining where you fall on this scale (whether your torso-to-leg ratio is weighted towards one or the other) can go a long way in helping you balance your proportions in a way that’s lengthening and flattering.

So although the wrong item can make you even shorter than you already are, the right item can do a ton of good! For example, I personally have a longer torso and shorter legs (and thus, as Kelly describes, I fall on the “appearing more petite than I am” end of the scale). Because of this, I’ve found that high-waisted items do a lot to balance between the two. Alternatively, my friend (who stands at 5’0) has a much shorter torso; for her, bottoms that hang lower on the waist (or are just lower-waisted in general!) are more flattering.

Of course, there are a whole host of other factors that come into play in determining how a skirt will lengthen/shorten your petite figure -- the shape, the hem line (for more on that, see Extra Petite’s great post), etc. But you tell me if you think I’m right! Here are two outfits, one with a high-waist, and one that hits me a little lower, near the hip. Which do you think does a better job of lengthening my proportions?