warholchic2

Only Participate In The Poll If You Are Female And 5'3 And Under Please!

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Hey everyone,
I'm also doing research. It's for my textiles and clothing class to see how extremely underrepresented the petite market really is.

Did you know that the average American woman's height is approximately 5'3.8? And yet, major American brands that have been around for a long time such as The Gap and Levi's push women of 5'3.8 and under into a category we all know as "Petites."

Compared to the plus-sizes industry, promotion of petite sizes in magazines and the fashion world is less prominent, even though many well-known celebrities are short. These include Mary Kate Olsen who is 5'0, Rachel Bilson who is 5'1.5, Hayden Panettiere who is 5'0.25, Nicole Richie who is 5'1, Kristin Bell who is 5'1, Shakira who is 4'11, and Eva Longoria who is about 5'2. The few "petite models" seen in fashion magazines are actually already way above average height (5'7").

To demonstrate this point even further, I'm hoping you all see that there is very little sense in these general and widely used sizing guide descriptions:

Petites
5'4'' or under. Usually wears an inseam of up to 32" (normal inseam for most companies). Often would need to wear clothing specifically designed for petites, but can get away with junior's clothing or even children's clothing. Often sleeve lengths and shirt lengths, as well as shoulder widths, and pant inseams would be too wide or long.

Average
5'4.5" to 5'7''. Usually wears an inseam of 32" to 34". Most clothing industries cater to this preferred height.


As I’m sure you see, this hardly makes any sense because that would mean the the AVERAGE AMERICAN WOMAN would be labeled as a “Petite.” By this logic then, those who are labeled “Average” because they are 5’4.5 to 5’7 should really be considered as “Tall,” and those who fit within the height descriptions of “Tall” should really be considered “Super Tall” since they are way above average height. I hope you followed that. But the point is, the women who really should be labeled as true petites (those who are considerably under 5’2ish) aren’t really being catered to at all!


Thanks for filling out the survey and please leave comments discussing how you feel about this subject!

Michelle

Glad we have a petite lady in college working on this research, trying to update the industry! It's almost like you're our spy ;) I'll fill out your survey later.

Michelle

I took the poll but was unable to leave a comment.

warholchic2

oh! then feel free to leave your comments/discussion in here since i check back frequently =]

and yes, i am the littlest of little spies! i'm a junior in college and i'm only 4'7
hehehe ^_^

pet79

That is very interesting. I did not know that the "petite models" were 5'7.
I would like to see better petite departments in stores. Some of the clothes are so frumpy.

kamisan712

I took the poll! ;D

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Mrs. R [KAMISAN]