Less Than. . . . Too Short, Too Tall

 General, Less Than  No Responses »
Sep 062022
 

Has your height made you feel “less than” others? I describe myself as a Hobbit. I’m barely 5′ tall and somewhat wide, built low to the ground like a small Sherman Tank. LOL I have a couple of girlfriends who are well over 6′ tall. Women are supposed to be right in the middle, remember? Except if you’re a Supermodel. But since few of us are, not everyone is kind about a very tall girl.

In all honesty, us short stacks have it better than a very tall girl who is gawked at like some kind of abnormal phenomenon. The average height for a woman in the U.S.A. in 2022 is 5’4″ tall. In fact, that’s the average height for a woman worldwide.

Men have it worse if they’re short. Men are supposed to be manly (tall) men, right? So what’s short? For a guy, I’d say under 5’7″. If a man is taller, it’s not so bad. If he is shorter, it’s plenty bad. I know many short men who get picked on unmercifully. And just for your edification, the average height for a man in the U.S.A. in 2022 is 5’9″ tall. Seems a bit on the short side, but there’s society telling us we’re not okay again. As my Brit friends would say. . . Bollocks!

It’s all so unfair because you can’t do much about the height that’s programmed into you. Oh sure, men can put inserts in your shoes. It’s common practice in Hollywood. Does that make it harder to walk? I honestly don’t know. Women have been wearing heels for centuries. But if you’re like me and your days of hoochie heels are long over, there are still a few things you can do. Now let me state right here that I don’t know how tall girls look shorter. If anyone wants to clue me in, please leave me a comment. Or do you even bother? As mentioned before, I have friends who are quite tall. Some of them love it. Some not so much. So if you have tips for the taller gals, please leave a comment.

Four Tips For Short Girls Who Want To Look Taller

(1) If you can, wear heels.

(2) If you can’t wear heels, find a nice pair of flat or wedge shoes with as pointed a toe as you can manage in a color that matches your skin tone as closely as possible. This will extend the look of your legs. I didn’t believe this when I first heard it, but it works! Doesn’t matter what your skin tone is. Just match it as closely as possible.

(3) Get a shoe with a diagonal strap. A horizontal strap will cut you off and make you look shorter. The diagonal strap gives you a more graceful line that will extend your legs just a smidge. I wear sneaks all the time. Super comfy. Love my big white ones, but. . . they cut me off at the ankle. I have skinny ankles for my size so doesn’t bother me. If you have thicker legs, you’ll have to try different styles to see what you can do. A classic pump is good for everyone. . . but, of course, if you need sneaks that’s not gonna do. šŸ˜‰

(4) If you have short legs, usually your height is in your torso. So. . . if you want to look taller, avoid long, baggy tunic tops. It will make you look dumpy. Instead, cut your tops off as close to your waist as you are comfortable with. Yes, crop tops come into play here. The short-on-top effect will make your legs look longer and, therefore, you will look taller.

I can hear you now. . . but what if my stomach sticks out? That short top is not gonna look good! You have to make a choice. If you have what is sometimes lovingly (or not) called a FUPA or a big tummy, you can cover the gut or you can make your legs look longer. It took me ages upon ages to get over this. Now I do the short top all the time despite Jabba the Gut making his appearance known. After 30-odd abdominal surgeries, there is no way of hiding that thing. So I don’t. And I’m no longer ashamed of it either.Ā  It takes time to get there.

This is what this Hobbit does to look a little bit taller, but I am NEVER gonna look tall by any stretch of the imagination. I do these things to just make a teensy bit of difference, especially being married to a man who is 14″ taller than me. šŸ˜Ž If your height doesn’t bother you at all, then simply wear what you love without resorting to tips, tricks and hacks. I suppose I’ll get there sooner or later. I am a lot closer than I used to be.

Now for those tall girl tips. If you have anything that you feel helps you look more “average” than sky high, please leave me a comment.

BOTTOM LINE: You are enough. You always were. You are right now. You always will be.

Oldie But Goodie For All My Beautiful Tall Gals With Those LEGS!!!!

Acknowledge Your (Perceived) Faults

 General, Good Advice  No Responses »
Aug 042022
 

Have you ever stood in front of a mirror, crying and thinking nothing about you is the way it should be? Itā€™s just not right. Have you cursed your thin lips or big boobs or skinny legs with accompanying knobby knees? If you have, Iā€™ve got some good advice for you. I wish I could take credit for it, but I canā€™t. I can tell you where I got it, though.

Iā€™ve been following You Tubers who show off clothing hauls to lean how to dress and as part of my self-development. I found a few girls who are built almost like me and I watch them to see how different styles look on them. I can drool over a dress on one of the websites, but itā€™s not gonna look the same on my short 14-16 arse as it does on the size 2 model. So I like looking at real life models who mimic my build.

One of those gals I happened upon who is NOT built like me (but I stayed with her) is a wonderful stylist named Alisha. She has a You Tube channel called Ten Ways To Wear It. She takes a piece or a style and gives you lots of styling options. I absolutely love the way she puts outfits together! Alisha is one of the most stylish gals Iā€™ve ever seen!!!! So one day I was looking for something to listen to and she was doing a Vlog where she was on a beach, I think, and she gave out some advice on self-confidence. One of the things she said damn near knocked me over. She said, ā€œAcknowledge your faults so no one can use them against you.ā€ My life has never been quite the same since those words hit my ears. So I’m gonna get it out there for me, top to bottom. And make sure you go follow Alisha. Iā€™ve linked her at the beginning of the paragraph.

Lousy Hair/No Eyebrows

When my hair fell out, my eyebrows went with them. My hair is growing back. The brows are being stubborn. Eyebrows frame your face. My face has no frame unless I draw or temp tattoo one on.

Fine Lines and Wrinkles

My face has lined with age. You may not be there yet but, trust me, yours will, too, in time. TAKE CARE OF IT NOW!!!! I always took care of my skin or it would be much worse. Iā€™d look like one of those chicks in my generation who worshiped the sun with nothing but baby oil and now looks like they need a good ironing.

Big Nose

My fatherā€™s family has big schnozzes. Not much I can do about it. And as we age, they get larger and the pores get bigger. Oh joy! Iā€™m working on those pores.

Thin Lips

My lips were never very plump and sensual but age has taken most of what I had away. Iā€™m very careful with lipstick application, using mostly gloss. And as far as hot, sexy red lips go. . . nope. I look like a vampire on a binge. UGH

Flying Squirrel Arms

Sadly, my upper arms are BIG. . . you know, the kind that are still waving at you long after you’re out of the county? Iā€™ve learned some poses to kinda tuck them in, but. . . yuck. I know gals who have had their arms surgically corrected. According to them, it’s SUPER painful and SUPER expensive. So, sadly, Rocky will be flying on.

Short fingers

At the end of those flying squirrel arms are short fingers. I have relatively small hands, but those stubby fingers. . . and I donā€™t function well with really long nails to extend the look. This is one of those that I canā€™t do much about.

Jabba the Gut

I was always a thick rectangle shape with not much of a waisted line. But after a lot of trouble resulting in around 30 abdominal surgeries, Jabba is just not on Tatooine. And on one of the last surgeries they removed my stomach muscles due to MRSA. I canā€™t even suck it in, so I’ve learned ways to hide it.

Short Legs

I have REALLY short legs. I have a long body, but short legs. My inseam is even way shorter than most petites. My husband and I are 14″ apart in height and itā€™s all in the legs as weā€™re just about the same length from shoulder to hip.

Big Feet

Donā€™t ask how Iā€™m barely 5′ tall and wear a size 9 to 9.5 shoe. My Grandmom wore a 5. 5 and my mom a 6. My sister and I both wear around a size 9 and weā€™re both short. Go figure. To quote my mother, at least I wonā€™t tip over in a wind storm.

So There You Have It

The things I donā€™t like and wish I could change. I canā€™t change most of them, but guess what? Itā€™s all right. Once I catalogued them, I knew I could deal with them and othersā€™ criticisms of them. When people said things before, I went home and cried. If you say something now, youā€™re liable to get a smile or a big eff you, depending on my mood. Just Donā€™t. And that goes for anyone. Appearance is simply packaging. More on that to come later.

YOUR TURN!!!!

You don’t have to do it in a blog or even out loud. But if you know what you perceive as your faults, no one can use them against you ever again. šŸ’ššŸ’ššŸ’ššŸ’š

This Is Me (sung by the magnificent Keala Settle!)