You know how you can tell if you're short-waisted? You put on a belt around just above your hips over a dress or tunic, and raise your arms. If your belt finds itself circling your rib cage, there you go.
This is part of the reason I dislike pantyhose. I swear, there's only about a finger's width between the floating ribs and the iliac crests, and that waistband never manages to fit there.
Yes, I am a fan of the recent low-rise fashions!
Word! And let's just say that the problem is not made easier if you are (1)short, and (2)emphatically not a 32B.
Posted by: Phantom Scribbler | 2005.04.13 at 03:42 PM
I bet clothes shopping is fun. Heh.
Most of my height is in my legs, so you might think that finding clothes for that half would work. But no, the longer-legged pants are for people shaped like tubes. My waist may be short, but it does exist.
Is there anyone who can wear any ol' clothes right off the rack? I do okay with tops, at least if they are not long-sleeved (long arms, sigh) and designed for teenaged girls, but most other things are tricky.
Posted by: Rana | 2005.04.13 at 03:56 PM
Oh yes: low-rise fashions! I am so unbelievable grateful for low-rise jeans. Being short-waisted myself. The eighties skinny-jeans used to just cut my torso in half, and bulge out over my belly. And on that note, I need to go jeanshopping because my favorite pair of hipster jeans is getting totally shredded at the hem...
Posted by: LiL | 2005.04.13 at 03:59 PM
The other thing that's really nice about low-rise pants is that they're designed to sit on the hips, so you don't get that annoying thing of pants that fit the hips but gap at the waist, or which _would_ fit your waist if you could only get them over your hips.
My favorite such pair is getting frayed at the ends too; I suspect they were really meant to be worn up higher (they have belt loops) but that just doesn't work.
Posted by: Rana | 2005.04.13 at 04:02 PM
Finding pants that fit can be troublesome for me. My hip-waist ratio is apparently greater than usual for my size, so when I find pants that fit the hips, the waist is often far too large - I've tried on pants where the waist circumference was clearly several inches larger than my actual waist, so it stood away from my body! I think some designers must never have people actually try on the clothing.
Posted by: oliviacw | 2005.04.13 at 04:02 PM
Oh, I must say. I _adore_ boot-cut low-rise yoga pants. BEST PANTS EVER.
Posted by: Rana | 2005.04.13 at 04:03 PM
I'm pretty much exactly averagely proportioned. Trendy fashionista stores seem to design for skinnier women than I, but in real-life places (Goodwill, garage sales) I do fine with almost any ol' thing. Or maybe it's just that I've never learned the difference between well-fitting and ill-fitting clothes...
Posted by: yami | 2005.04.13 at 04:05 PM
olivia -- I know _exactly_ what you mean.
I think the funniest pants-trying-on experience I had was going into (I think) the Gap. I saw these pink lizard-pattern stretch pants (don't ask) in the window and decided to try them on on a whim. The thing is, the Gap has really weird sizing -- I think it may be an offshoot of European numbering systems -- so I couldn't figure out which I should try. So I grabbed five different ones. _All_ of them were (a) tight through the thighs, (b) snug at the hips and butt, and (c) loose at the waist. As best I could tell, their dressmaker's dummy must have been shaped like a carrot!
Who the hell were they expecting to fit?
Posted by: Rana | 2005.04.13 at 04:06 PM
Pantyhose? Who wears pantyhose anymore? I can't remember the last time I saw any.
Posted by: jo(e) | 2005.04.13 at 04:07 PM
yami, I often buy at retro stores for that reason; back then, they knew women had hips _and_ waists. I've also learned to keep an eye out for Latin/Spanish pants (ditto).
Mostly I wear separates and unfitted dresses. Which is sort of sad, because I rather like my shape and enjoy showing it off. But I'd rather be comfy than stylish, most days.
Posted by: Rana | 2005.04.13 at 04:09 PM
jo(e), the last ones I remember wearing were for temping a couple of years ago. Between that and the boring flats, I felt about 10 years dumpier.
I like tights, though, except for the waist problem. If I can, I wear stockings and a belt when I absolutely _must_ dress up. I haven't found much in the way of tights-weight thigh-highs, though. Maybe I'll have to knit some.
Posted by: Rana | 2005.04.13 at 04:12 PM
Rana, I think we have the exact same body type. I love low-rise boot-cut yoga pants too, BTW.
Posted by: Clancy | 2005.04.13 at 04:32 PM
Hah! I have about a 1.5-inch span between my hipbone and my lowest floating rib. Jeans that cover the belly-button + a belt + a long car-ride = very sore waist/ribs.
I have fairly long legs and SHORT arms, too. Go figure. In Yoga poses where you're supposed to sit up straight on the floor and put your hands on the floor.... well, I can get my fingertips there!
J. Jill's "stretch, boot-cut" jeans are my latest fave. Low-riding, and just about as stretchy as Yoga pants. I LOVE 'em!
Posted by: Jill Smith | 2005.04.13 at 06:03 PM
I'll have to look into those! (I tend to avoid jeans because they're not very comfortable, especially with regard to the waist and "rise" but I do like the look.)
You must have fun with the various "jump through" vinayasas!
Posted by: Rana | 2005.04.13 at 06:15 PM
I don't do 'em much - I even swing my leg out to the side a bit when going from Down Dog to Lunge...
here are the jeans I was referring to...
Posted by: Jill Smith | 2005.04.14 at 05:50 AM
Cute!
Posted by: Rana | 2005.04.14 at 11:47 AM
Jill also posted about a good alternative that Teresa Nielsen Hayden posted on: bespoke clothing through eBay.
Posted by: Rana | 2005.04.14 at 02:52 PM