With these three easy-to-remember dress tips you can use your clothing and accessories to create an illusion of greater height. The eye can play tricks through the use of shape, style and line.
Tip #1: Smaller Things Make You Look Bigger
By wearing accessories that are on the delicate side, the eye of the viewer puts this into perspective and is left with the illusion that you are in fact larger. Accessories should be kept simple in order to avoid overwhelming the eye.
Your jewellery should be smaller than normal. What happens is that the watcher tries to put the jewellery into proportion, so they mentally increase your size as well.
A small handbag is a must for the shorter lady. Some short women have handbags that are almost half of their size.
Small hats are another small accessory that you can use to your advantage.
Fabric with small prints, such as small flowers.
Keep your hairstyle as simple as possible. You not want your head to appear miniscule beneath huge hair.
Try to avoid bulky fabrics and styles as it will only manage to make you look wider, and not taller.
Tip #2: The eye follows lines, so keep lines up and down
Since we want the eye to travel up and down and take in the illusion of length, this will involve ensuring that lines are kept vertical, and that an effort is made to eliminate any horizontal lines where possible. The lines may be in the style of the clothing, the fabric design or the fall of any accessories.
Button up shirts are great because they provide a central vertical line travelling straight up the body.
Keep belts narrow, so as not to create a thick line across the waist, cutting the body into two.
Avoid cuffs on the bottom of your pants or skirts.
High boots will only make your legs look shorter.
Choose prints which have lines that are vertical.
A straight bootleg or skinny jean creates a nice vertical line which adds height.
Long coats force the eye to run up and down the body. Great for looking taller.
Tip #3: Standing correctly will add two inches to your height
I highly recommend that you read my article How to Stand Like a Lady – with Poise and Elegance. This will help you to learn how to stand in a feminine way which is healthy for your back.
If you can keep these three illusions in mind when you are buying clothes and dressing yourself, people will assume you are much taller than you really are.
What tips do you have for the petite or shorter woman?
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