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A DIY Tall Shorts Suit

We steer clear of showing you a ton of non-tall clothing. There are still mainline places we tend to shop at, and Express is one of them. I (Jenilee) used to work there as I was finishing college, and have had good luck with the length of their tops, shorts, midi dresses, and some of their jeans/work pants. Both Caitlin and I would agree, they do a lot of ankle length pants in long length and those will probably only work on small talls like 5’10 to 6’1 depending where you carry your height. Caitlin has worn many of their work pant options in the past and I even have one pair I sized up in. So all of that to say, head into one of their stores if you’re in an area that has one and try a couple of things on. 

Today, I’m wearing these “bermuda” shorts (click here and also select sizes available in polka dot here), and think they are awesome for tall women. I put bermuda in quotes, because they are obviously nowhere near the length of what we’d all consider bermuda. That would be much closer to knee length. I took one look at the description and chuckled, because I had a feeling they would be a great length on my long legs. Plus the rise on them is perfectly high, above my belly button. It allowed me to rock a crop top comfortably as well! I am wearing them in a size 12 and all other reviews say to size up as well. For size reference I typically wear a size 10L in their jeans. These shorts do not have stretch, especially in the waist.

When I got these shorts I knew I wanted to try a DIY shorts suit. I loved Caitlin’s yellow one from last year (check it out here). I grabbed my new ¾ sleeve blazer from Tall & Isi, and voila it all came together. If you haven’t shopped Tall & Isi yet, or heard of them check out the site here. Isi is a new small business and as we know, they need our support to keep making us clothing that fits!

I finished it off with my white heels from Long Tall Sally (click here, available in three other colors). We’ve been questioning you all about what you’ll miss the most when LTS closes their doors and larger shoe sizes are one of the top answers. I am with you 100%, as a size US 13. If you can take advantage now, go shop LTS’s shoes section because sizes are already going quickly. We’re in the middle of compiling a comprehensive list of all the tall clothing/large shoes we know of, so stay tuned for that by the end of the week! Plus drop us a comment if you haven’t responded on Instagram of what you’ll be missing the most when LTS closes.

A couple of other things we’ve bought recently and loved from Express, are their midi dresses! Caitlin snatched up this perfect khaki colored linen dress (click here), as well as this snakeskin slip dress (click here). Plus you might remember my 90’s inspired square neck leopard midi dress (click here), if you follow on Instagram. Just filter by midi dresses to save yourself the time and frustration of scrolling through the butt cheek exposing mini dresses. We bought all of these dresses in size Large!

We’ve both also bought their ¾ sleeve blazers. It’s worth noting the larger your shoulders are you should size up. I just bought this army green version in XL (click here) and because I’m more of an hourglass shape I will need to get it tailored so it doesn’t look so boxy on me. You know we both live for a statement sleeve. I bought this red balloon sleeve peplum top (click here). I also did size Large for the shoulders, but also size down if in between!

Check back with us on Friday for our (hopefully) complete list of tall retailers, to make your future shopping as seamless as possible!

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Height Goddess

We will continue to lift up Black owned businesses, which is made super easy due to so many incredible tall companies are owned by Black women. We’ve already told you about Height Goddess once before, but they really make the BEST tall girl t-shirts. Caitlin and I used to talk about how great it would be if we had sassy t-shirts that would say things so we don’t have to respond to yet another tall comment from a stranger.

Lameka did the work for us, to enjoy these gems! Not only that but they are buy one get one 20% AND free shipping. You could snag one for yourself and another for your tall sister/mom/friend! Of course, the other option is to grab two for yourself, since she has several hilarious options.

I was just wearing my sweatshirt this last weekend and helping out at my cousins rummage sale, when a lady started asking me how tall I was in Spanish. Luckily I remember my numbers in Spanish, so I could tell her I was seis y cuatro. She really tested my memory when she wanted to know how old I was as well. My cousin thought that was hilarious because of my shirt. So now, Lameka just needs to create tshirts in English and Spanish and we’ll be all covered!

These t-shirts and sweatshirts make me smile every time I wear them and we get so many fun comments from friends saying they need/want one too! They are cut for our length, so no need to worry about sizing up. Plus they are super high quality. The t-shirts are so soft and we love the higher scoop neck and the v neck options. The sweatshirts have a great stretchy feel to them and you definitely won’t feel like you’re borrowing from the boys.

We feel strongly that every tall person should have a fun t-shirt in their arsenal when they get tired of answering redundant questions every time they leave the house. If you haven’t found anywhere to donate yet, take the opportunity to support a Black owned business and have an incredible quality piece of clothing! Check out Height Goddess for yourself, here!

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Saying Goodbye to Long Tall Sally: To Heel or Not to Heel

**We write this with heavy hearts, as we just found out Long Tall Sally will be shutting their doors by the end of Summer. Dealing with the repercussions of COVID19 has been ridiculously hard, and I think we speak for everyone saying thanks for absolutely nothing, least of all this news. Growing up, I remember our Mom receiving the quarterly catalog in the mail and looking through it with her for a couple of well-fitting items for each season. It would be impossible to quantify what Long Tall Sally means to tall women across the globe. The company is truly one of a kind and we literally don’t know what we’ll do without them. They paved the way for all of the newer tall small businesses, and we are so grateful. LTS championed having many options for tall women, which is no small feat as a small business. We had originally written this post to go live on their blog, but are posting on ours due to the circumstances. I know all of the women we’ve come in contact with believed in the LTS dream of creating well-fitting clothing for tall women. We truly empathize with their pain and frustration at this awful news.**

It would be impossible to forget the many times other people have inserted themselves into this conversation with a bossy declaration. “Why should you need to wear heels, you’re already tall enough?” As an impressionable teenager, I couldn’t help but agree with them. Internally, I was most assured that I did take up more than my fair allotment of (female) space. God forbid I take up more and make people feel more uncomfortable in my presence. It is yet another way for others to attempt to control your body. In all seriousness though, to heel or not to heel, that is the question. 

As tall women, we live a heightened experience (pun intended) of the average woman. What I mean by that, is most women have lived their lives hearing unsolicited feedback about themselves. If you’re not wearing makeup and you typically do, maybe it’s a well-intentioned remark, “you look a little under the weather today.” If we’re feeling a bit cheeky, we might tell them, “No, I just didn’t put on makeup today,” to see if they squirm. 

So while every woman gets opined on pretty regularly, tall women experience literal strangers handing out their opinions. To cope with this, we all come up with sets of rules to live by. If I just don’t wear heels, no one can bother me even more about my height. Conversely, some want to wear heels consistently as if daring someone to mention it. Those being the more extreme examples of all or nothing, but I’ve talked to many women who feel that way. 

I would have told you, even back in my college days, that heels weren’t for me and I would have believe it too. Thoroughly convinced that I was blessed with this height and others needed heels, while I could wear flats and still stand a head above them. All of that is factual, to be fair to younger me. But what about personal preferences? There is something special about your legs in a great pair of heels. If you’ve ever tried a pair on, you know what I’m talking about. When I put them on with a dress?! To me, it just finishes the look. 

What I’m getting at, Caitlin and my relationship with heels has evolved. Ten years ago, I thought wearing a 1.5” heel a couple of times a year was daring. Now, I have boots with 4-inch heels that I wear regularly, which make me 6’8! The mindset shift has been from, “Do I want to be 6’8 if I wear these heels?” to “Are these heels comfortable enough for me to stand and walk-in?” That is the bottom line in pondering whether heels are for you. Do you like them? Do YOU want to wear them?

For Caitlin, being the shorter of us at 5’11, she knew the answer used to be a resounding no. Nowadays, after experimenting with different heel heights her personal preference is a 2-inch block heel. That way she can feel comfortable and confident while walking but still get the benefits of a heel. You might think, “5’11 isn’t even that tall, she can wear whatever heels she wants, easily.” I’m even guilty of thinking that it’s no comparison between 5’11 and 6’4. Just this last year, Caitlin attended a wedding wearing those 2-inch heels. The wedding photographer found her multiple times throughout the evening and told her she was too tall and didn’t need to wear heels. Uhh… what?! 

Aside from being completely outraged at that person’s behavior; it just goes to show that whether you’re 5’11 or 6’4, people can’t help but notice a statuesque woman.  Why not let them notice your legs in their full glory in a pair of heels? Yes, their brains might shut off entirely at the sight of you, but I’ve noticed that if I’m wearing something I feel good in, the comments roll off a lot easier. 

For us, we’ve found an appreciation for heels. While flats will mostly win out for comfort’s sake and have come a long way in stylish options (especially Long Tall Sally’s selection), we want the option to wear heels. That is the last part of the discussion, which is that larger sized feet have limited shoe options. Growing up, I couldn’t even find a cute pair of heels like other teenage girls had in my size. When you like clothing and keeping up to date with evolving styles, it puts a damper on your enthusiasm to know you’ll never find shoes in your size. We’re forever grateful to Long Tall Sally for keeping our feet outfitted in both classic styles AND the latest trends. 

The bottom line in the debate is this: do you want to wear heels? Have you ever even put a pair on to consider the possibility for yourself, or have you resigned yourself to flats to make others feel more comfortable? We’d challenge you to explore the answer to the question for yourself. We spent years letting others answer the question for us. Truly, their opinion is more about them than it is about you! No more of that! So, to heel or not to heel, is an entirely personal preference indeed. 

**We’ll end by saying that we have already seen the sadness of the loss of LTS flood across Facebook for women grasping for straws asking what they are supposed to do now? “Where can we shop? Who makes jeans that fit my 6’7 frame? I am literally going to have to lose weight to fit into other retailers”. We hope that anyone reading this feels comfortable asking us for help. We have done the research, we have compiled the information for you. Please use our page to help guide you to the resources you need and please pass it along to all of our tall sisters feeling frantic right now!**

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Standing Tall Against Racism

After I graduated college I first discovered blogs. Late to the game, you could say, certainly. Desperately searching for other women who I could look to who looked like me as I was rebuilding the shell of a self I came out of college with. As the blogging bubble hadn’t really begun to pop yet, there weren’t many. What I do recall is, being so impressed and inspired by Alicia Jay of Tall Swag. She is the true OG of tall blogging. 

I’ve been doing my own soul searching, reflecting on the past couple of weeks of positive change for our country finally having the courage to address the racism woven into the fibers of our history. 

Growing up in a suburb outside of Milwaukee, I knew and understood that Milwaukee was one of the most segregated cities in the country. As I grew up, I learned that when they put in Highway 43 they displaced many, MANY, people out of their homes which contributed directly to the invisible line that continues to keep Milwaukee’s Black and minority populations in poverty. 

We’ve long shared with you our love for Milwaukee, but I do NOT love this about Milwaukee. 

I referenced in our post yesterday about our feelings as Christians on loving everyone. Just to be very clear – Black Lives Matter. That’s not up for debate with me. We did share a couple of stories last week, but obviously they disappear after 24 hours. A lot of people are sharing information at an incredible rate, sometimes making it difficult to keep up. We have been doing our best to take it all in, uplifted by the number of voices finally being heard. We chose to listen and learn rather than add another white voice to the mix.

It is our belief that we are created to be equal and that there are systems in place that have made that impossible, as evidenced by the disparity in Milwaukee and too many other large cities. I would never be so bold as to say I had no idea that any of this was going on. There have been too many conversations with people I love and care for, for me to feign ignorance. Nor would I want to, as that would be the ultimate disrespect to what they’ve experienced.

So, with that in mind, I wanted to circle back to the blogging community. It feels weird when you’re normally here writing about how happy you are that clothes finally fit you, to now attempt to address racism. Another example of white privilege right there. The point I’m trying to make is that I think the tall blogging community, which is pretty small (compared to the rest of the fashion blogs etc) has some incredible tall Black bloggers who have led us to be more confident and embrace ourselves for many years.

We want to encourage you if you aren’t following any Black women blogs: seek them out and diversify your feed. As tall women, we already know that God makes us in all shapes/sizes/colors. We are all made in His image and these are some seriously fabulous ladies who have long been championing us all to stand tall. We literally would not be here today without them paving the way and that is no exaggeration.

TALL BLOGS

Alicia Jay of TallSwag, Bree Wijnaar of The Tall Society, Rajahnique of Tall N Natural, Akia Danielle, Tanasha of Pretty Tall Style

INSTAGRAM PAGES

J.Enovy of TallDistrict, Briy Gilgeous, Tall Tay, Truly Adetola, Ijaykheavens, Iman Noir, Meagan Brown, and please comment below if we missed anyone and can add them!

So while I acknowledge my discomfort in attempting to convey this message to you, I’d rather stumble through this so you know we care than be forced to guess. While we will never understand, we stand with you.

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Heating Up in Tall Rompers

Rompers are a sore subject with tall women, amirite?! We just want to rock these one-piece wonders like everyone else, without a cameltoe or our buttcheeks hanging out everywhere. Amalli Talli shows up as a champion for us yet again! It’s like they’re reading our minds. Last year they came up with the best sleeveless romper, see the blue Laguna romper here (if you’re lucky enough to be shopping for a size XS this one’s for you). This year we were really hoping for a sleeved version, and to no one’s surprise, our dream came true with the Seychelles Romper!

You might be wondering if the fit could work on both 5’11 and 6’4. Amalli Talli nailed it by having the elastic waistband. It creates the blousing effect that you can either pull up to sit at your natural waist or it can stretch long and lay flatter for extra length. No tugging down as you go either, which is sometimes the effect when you force a romper to work on your length. Plus the waistband serves a double purpose. It both flatters and draws attention to your waistline while also still smoothing that area because of the way the fabric skims.

The fabric has a terry cloth feel to it and does have some stretch. It is made a bit more casual by the barely discernible white flecking in the fabric. The fabric is lightweight but still thick enough to not feel flimsy! The bottom line, we’d still be confident wearing it out to dinner but also rocking it as a coverup on our way down to the beach/pool. The leg holes are cut generously which has been a dealbreaker for us. If it sticks to our thighs, it’s not sticking in our closets! Think of a culotte type cut that won’t hug close to your butt or thighs but skim over both.

Another detail is; although it has sleeves it doesn’t have the “feel” of a sleeve. They are a fluttery style that falls directly over your arms because it’s cut to correctly fit your shoulders. That is also an underrated part to note. We are typically concerned with our shoulders fitting into clothing as well as arms sometimes. This is ideal for anyone who might also struggle. It flatters your arms by not squeezing but instead laying gently.

As for the neckline, we know v necks are one of the most widely flattering! Not to mention it helps out any nursing moms for easier access. Some other rompers we have bought in the past have been very difficult to finagle your way in/out. We’re happy to report we can shimmy in and out with no issues, so you can too! You can wear a cami underneath if you’d like to feel more covered up or if you want to pin it so it stays closed that’s an option. 

For sizing, I’m wearing in a medium, and Caitlin went with the large. The Seychelles romper is a clear winner, and I think we speak for tall women everywhere when we say the only improvement could be more colors! Don’t forget this is the last week for 15% off your purchase using THEREALTALL15.

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