Custom Search

Womens Petite Clothing Advice

"Fashion Advice On How to Dress Your Petite Size Frame"

Petite Maxi Dress from ASOS

The point with womens petite clothing is to fit your frame, because let's face it, if you try to wear the "standard" sizes with slightly longer sleeves and hemlines you'll most likely end up looking like "the little girl" which is not the look you're aiming for!

If you're 5'4 (162cm) or shorter then read along and discover the best petite fashion styling tips and tricks to create an appealing and longer-looking silhouette! Here you'll find fashion advice on recommended cuts, prints, necklines and styles suited for your petite frame. And if you're a size 14 (or bigger) you'll also find advice on petite plus size clothing.

Your main focus when putting on clothes is to elongate your stature, so you have to avoid "cutting" up your frame. And if you're a full-figure woman your goal is also to look leaner as well as taller.

To get an accurate image of what clothes flatter your petite frame, we need to take a close look at the proportions and contours of your body:

Determine Your Body Shape

Petite Denim Jacker from Macy's

I'm sure you're aware that petite women range in all kinds of shapes, from curvy to straight-figured frames, so not every standard womens petite clothing will suit you. Each body shape needs adjustments to look their best. You might be a petite and very skinny gal who wears XS or a petite full-figure woman who wears clothes in size 16. Or you maybe you're a pear shape with a curvy bottom who wants to slim down your thighs, compared to your petite girlfriend who has narrow hips and isn't confident about her athletic-looking upper half. Now compared to you, she wants to add more flesh to her butt, hips and legs.

I advise you to start with very basics by determining your body shape to get a clearer picture of how to place accessories, colors and cuts on the right areas of your body to create a visually pleasing hourglass body shape.

Another key factor when buying womens petite clothing is your silhouette's vertical line; which is how in line your upper half (hips and up to your shoulders) is with your lower half (hips and down to your ankles). So in short, you might have longer legs compared to your upper body part, or vice versa.

Learn more on how to dress to flatter your vertical line.

Petite Plus Size Clothing

If you wear size 14 and up you need to look for petite plus size clothing. You can find petite clothes for full figure women on stores such as Woman Within, Jessica London and Catherine's.

Learn more about dressing your full-figure petite frame.

Now let's check out the best fashion tips on womens petite clothing below:

Elongating Womens Petite Clothing Tricks

Here are the best tips to avoid the dreaded "Oh look, the little person is dressing like a grown up"-stares!

Choose garments with strong vertical prints and details

Petite black tube dress
Tube dress from Dorothy Perkins/Womens Petite Clothing Section

Mini notebook icon Go for solid dark colors from top to toe, creating a long and lean silhouette. Top it off with accessories in your favorite colors but make sure you place them on areas you don't mind drawing attention to. Also pay attention to your body shape. If you don't want people to notice your hips then avoid wearing bags that dangle around that area. However you can never go wrong with black bags as they are not that eye catching. The trick to looking taller is to dress in a way to draw the eye up and down, instead of to the sides!

Mini notebook icon Show a little skin. Showing some skin can help elongate your frame. So go for knee, length to mini skirts and dresses and deep necklines.

Mini notebook icon Pick three quarter sleeves to make your arms look longer. Make sure that the sleeves on a garment aren't long on your arms. Even just a half an inch can make your arms look obviously shorter in comparison.

Mini notebook icon When it comes to shoes go for open toe, narrow toes, heels and t-straps to make your ankles and legs visually longer. Choose knee-high boots in dark colors. Avoid creating contrasts with colors, like for example brown boots on white pants, it'll chop your legs in two and make you look shorter. Well, unless you have super-long legs compared to your upper half.

Petite brown tunic top
Brown Tunic Top from Miss Selfridge/Womens Petite Clothing Section

Mini notebook icon Wear a V-neck. It's known to be the only neckline which elongates your body frame. Everything else, like scoop and boat necks seem to add pounds to your upper part, making you look stubbier. Tip: If you're wearing a round or square neckline you can counter the widening effect by topping it off with something vertical like a long necklace.

Mini notebook icon If a pattern is bigger than your fist then it's too big for your frame.

Mini notebook icon Avoid heavy layering, that means avoid piling on several garments and accessories on top of each other to avoid "expanding" your frame and dragging it down, making you look smaller in comparison to your body figure. Not a good look.

Back top Top

Did you find my advice and tips on womens petite clothing helpful? Then wait until this petite clothing guide expands with new shopping recommendations and fashion advice! :-)

Amazing petite clothing fashion range at Dorothy Perkins, UK-based. They offer international shipping.

You'll find a nice selection of trendy pieces for petite women Miss Selfridge. International shipping available.

Discover a wide assortment of affordable designer petite clothing at Macy's. Simply one of the best I've come by so far when it comes to petite fashion :-) US shipments only.