Short Shrifted

The NY Times just did a summer trend piece on guys rolling their trouser bottoms. Although not targeted to a shorter audience, I thought this quote brought it home to guys like us, who have to hem everything:

This is an easy way to get around shortening your pants,” said Josh Peskowitz, the style editor of Esquire.com, who had rolled up his pants that very morning. “It’s noncommittal.”

Especially when I take it out of context and let it stand alone like that.

Anyway, I beat the Times to the punch by a full week. As the pic above proves. (I’m just barely holding onto my coolness here, in the face of fatherhood)

That’s me on vacation up in Portland, ME, around the 4th of July. I’m chasing my 16-month-old daughter up a hill at Fort Preble. Awesome, wild, crazy seaside-stormy half-baking-sun/half-angry-clouds-and-pelting-rain weather that day.

Anyway, forgive the rear view. But it does show off my lillywhite ankles. That’s how I roll.

The NY TIMES on HOW TO ROLL:

“Getting the roll right is harder than it looks, and the experts differ on technique. Tom Julian, [a fashion consultant and the author of two men’s style books with Nordstrom] suggests rolling one inch of cuff three times for cotton canvas trousers, and a single two-inch cuff for dark jeans.

“For slightly looser pants, like chinos, Mr. Peskowitz advises creating a peg by pinching the fabric slightly at the front during the rolling process. Starting from the bottom, you flip once, making as small a fold as possible, then twist the front of the pants leg by about an inch, then roll twice more while holding the pinch tightly. The pleats should stay in place.

“‘You want to make sure that both are pointing inward — for the left side, fold it to the right. For the right, fold it to the left — to stay symmetrical,’ he said. ‘I just figured that out a couple of weeks ago.’”

–NYT

Loveship blogger Michael Levy just put together a summer outfit that he’s pretty jazzed about. The foundation to his look?

Beltless. High-waisted. High-water. Cuffed. Mauve pants.

The sound you just heard was every writer who’s ever penned a ‘10 Style Rules for Short Guys’ column’s head exploding. There’s so many of them and my guess is they were all average height or probably even tall. At least now they probably qualify as potential readers, height-wise. From the neck down anyways.

But seriously. I think Michael looks great. And as he says, they’re not pink; they’re mauve. These aren’t go-to-hell pants. They’re see-you-in-hell pants.

Check out all the pix on his post Manly in Mauve.

I’d never heard of the place he got his trousers: ASOS. Apparently, it’s sort of a British Urban Outfitters. They have a strong online presence — and great shipping deals for the US and Canada: $6 for Standard (8 days) or $14 for Express (4 days). Hard to beat. And the 5-foot-5 Michael says the pants are “the closest to a perfect off-the-rack fit I’ve ever seen” — for his body type, at least.

Keep killing it, Michael.

–

PS If anyone’s interested in going sockless this summer, there was a good How-To on Art of Manliness today. Rule #1 was a total revelation to me. I wish I was kidding. And Put This On just did a round-up on no-show socks. I went with the cheapest rec: 5-pairs-for-$10 at ye olde tween identity purveyor Journeys. Tagline: It’s a Lifestyle You Can Wear! Apologies for not being able to reproduce the original font here. I think it might be called Fierce Tiger Scratch Sans. But I’ve tried on the socks and they get the job done. Why pay more for something nobody’s supposed to see?

I always hate the way jeans look when I get them hemmed — as if they were a pair of office khakis. It just never looks right. A piece of All-American Cool is suddenly Squaresville, USA.

One alternative is to actually reattach the original hem — with its distinctive stitching, thread color, and marks of distress intact. Here’s a pretty extensive forum thread about original/frankenhems.

I’d read about it be never tried it until a week ago. I was at my local tailor in Queens, and he asked me if I wanted to give it a shot with a new pair of jeans. They’re neither the best tailors nor jeans in the world, but: What do you think? I’m not so sure how well it turned out…

Click here for a short Flickr set.

Is it just me or is nobody even remotely thinking about shopping these days? The thought of dragging large plastic shopping bags around on the hot, steamy pavement: disgusting. It’s the height of summer and if you’re not drinking ice-cold beer while lazily flipping steaks on the barbecue at the lake house while the kids are out diving off the rope swing into the water while setting off sparklers and eating ice cream, well, you’re doing something wrong. But here’s a deal that doesn’t require going anywhere or carving more than five minutes out of your summer pursuits.

Land’s End is having a Summer’s End Sale (man, that has an ominous ring to it). They’ve got a bunch of things marked down (shirts, shoes, etc.), but I chose to focus on pants. It seems to me that short men always have the toughest time with inseams.

I’ve said this before but the best thing about Land’s End is that their pants are hemmed to order (to the quarter inch) all the way down to a 26-inch inseam (unless noted otherwise below). And it’s always free.

Slim to Regular Fits

Plain Tailored Fit Summer Chino Pants: $29 (was $49); tailored fit (updated with less ease in the seat and thigh), plain front, alterable waistband. Available in waist 30-46, inseam 26 and up.

47Indigo Traditional 5-Pocket Jeans: $39 (was $49); Available in waist 30-46, inseam 26 and up.

Ringspun Original Fit Prehemmed Jeans: $16 (was $29); even though they’re pre-hemmed, inseams are available down to 29 inches. Available in waist 30-38, inseam 29 and up.

Stocky Fit
Several readers have asked for more explicit advice for short, stocky men. It’s true that a lot of my posts are more geared toward slim cuts, but there’s usually also plenty of information that applies to all short body types. Still, I know I need to do better. So here goes:

Plain Front Comfort Waist Washed Chino Pants: $29 (was $39); traditional fit (classic and roomy), concealed side bands expand waist up to 3 inches, plain front. Available in waist 32-48, inseam 26 and up.

Six-Inch Plain Front Comfort Waist Carefree Chino Shorts: $29 (was $36); traditional fit (classic and roomy), expandable stretch side bands, flat front. Available in waist 40, 44, 46, 48. They also have a 9-inch inseam in the Comfort Waist style.

Loden Dager’s designer line for Uniqlo is a bust for short guys. Actually, it might be a bust all around — when I was in there on Launch Day last Friday, the Loden Dager section was untouched. I’m talking virgin forest untrammeled, moon-surface un-trodden. Tumbleweeds, crickets, cobwebs… it was kinda sad.

My interest was piqued a few months back when I read a few early descriptions of the line; I was especially interested in the cropped bumfreezer jacket. Unfortunately, the shirts are too long, the shorts are over-the-knee types, and the jacket didn’t make the cut, either. The hemline was on the shorter side but the chest size was way too big for me. It might have worked for a stockier short guy but for the sleeves. They’re really long and have working buttonholes, which make them much more difficult to tailor.

But here’s the real problem: a store manager confirmed that Uniqlo’s Loden Dager line only comes in Small, Medium, and Large. For a store that regularly stocks Extra Smalls, this was unexpected and disappointing. Typically, Uniqlo offers a remarkably rewarding shopping experience for short men. The fact that they’re a Japanese retailer, carry Extra Smalls, the cut of their clothes, the reasonable prices — these things make Uniqlo a go-to resource for men under 5-foot-9. I believe that short men probably account for a much greater percentage of their bottom line than many retailers. I always see a ton of short guys in there. And the sale racks are always groaning with larger sizes, while they can’t seem to keep the small stuff on the shelves. So why no Extra-Small love from Uniqlo’s Loden Dager line?

In any case, it may not matter that much in this case. The Loden Dager stuff looked cool online, but up-close and in-person it seemed cheaply made and disposable. Worst of all was the flimsy cotton jacket.

But enough with the negatives. If you find yourself at Uniqlo anytime soon, they’ve still got plenty of stuff for short guys, especially for summer.

Speaking of polo T-shirts, See Jack Shop just did a post on The Proper Fitting Polo.

Polos are a summer staple for the fashionable guy, but big sloppy polos are sort of the anti-trend. Seriously, all that extra fabric billowing in the ocean breeze just doesn’t cut it… So think shoulders that sit where they should (not come halfway down your bicep), a slim athletic cut that tapers from shoulder to waist, sleeves that are shaped to your arm (rather than, inexplicably, a rectangle), and a hem that actually sits at the waist.

Although Jack is just a men’s budget fashion blog and isn’t geared toward short men, I like the cut of his jib on this one. Jack’s picks:

I dunno. The Old Navy shirt looks pretty long in the picture. But these could be a move in the right direction. I’ll have to check them out soon. In the meantime, anyone have an opinion on these?

The Sartorialist caught a nice snap of Robert Burke (Bergorf Goodman�s ex fashion veep) standing off a curb in midtown a week or two back. He looks casual but cool and totally put together. Even though he�s breaking a cardinal fashion rule for short men. The Sartorialist said:

�I find it is hard for a shorter guy, like both Robert and myself, to wear light colored pants. The fact that his pants are cut pretty slim (or at least more slim than most khakis) really helps keep a good overall balance for him.�

I�d never really though too much about light-colored pants before. But maybe I subconsciously knew they didn�t work well for a short build because I don�t really own any. In any case, there were a couple of comments on the post that offer good advice and help describe how he gets away with it:

butch said: �White is a difficult color for a short guy�especially when worn on the �bottom half,� as here. It tends to draw attention to shorter legs. But the line is kept so nicely here, top to bottom, that his relative shortness is actually camouflaged.�

Anonymous said: �Flat front pants on shirter chaps work great�they lengthen the leg and slim the torso creating the �taller� illusion.�

Stefano g. said: �A shorter blazer, jacket, top, etc. can visually heighten a smaller person�s overall appearance, especially if the legs are shorter in proportion to the torso.�

Note to a certain New England college and/or university: Never award a short college kid grant money for “independent study” in Japan. He’ll probably just blow most of it on clothes.

Ahem. I’m not saying I experienced the above first-hand or anything. But it’s probably a good idea nonetheless. With that in mind, I was excited last year by the news that Uniqlo, a hot Japanese clothing retailer, was setting up shop in New York. Though sometimes misguided, the Japanese generally have a great sense of style — and if you’ve always been short in America, you’ll feel much more at home, heightwise, among the throngs in Harajuku or Shibuya.

But I wasn’t too impressed with Uniqlo when I checked it out this past winter. It seemed like the Japanese Gap. Or the Japanese Old Navy. With a bit of a Japanese Banana Republic thrown in. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. It just wasn’t exciting or different, even if they have exclusive offerings from the occasional big name guest designer.

I recently stopped into their enormous three-floor flagship store in Soho and I have to say that my first impression was right: In true Janglish, they could have named it Old Banana Gap.

It’s definitely not geared towards short men. Designer jeans in authentic “Japanese denim” don’t come in lengths shorter than 32. XS blazers are baggy and the way-long arm lengths will probably make you feel like Bono. And there is far too much other big, baggy stuff. Merchandise displayed on vertiginous shelving and hangers that stretch up 20, 30, 40 feet for visual effect don’t help with the impression that Uniqlo isn’t for short people.

For the Uniquely Low like us, the pickings are scattershot. But that doesn’t mean you can’t ferret out some good, inexpensive pieces there that fit. Sounds kinda like this tidbit from the PR on their site: “Rather than become characterized by a brand, Uniqlo encourages its customers to integrate its pieces into their own unique style.” In other words, cherry-picking is encouraged. Wander around and you’re bound to come across something you like.

The Fit: Some of their XS and S polos, rugbys and T-shirts were super slim and fairly short. Their XS and S dress shirts (some with COOLMAX technology for those hot summer days) are slim and not too long. Plus, the sleeves are a good length and the cuffs aren’t too wide. And the price was right at around $30. And those giraffe-length jeans? Those can be altered in store, while you wait, at no extra charge. They use the same thread, but you’ll have to take care of any “distressing” yourself. Supposedly, everything is pre-washed and pre-shrunk, so don’t count on it getting any smaller when you crank up the dryer to high.

The verdict? Though it’s not a godsend, if you look carefully, Uniqlo offers some fresh alternatives to the same old XSs and Ss at Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic, all three go-to classics for short Americans for years.

Link: Uniqlo

On the few occasions I’ve ventured into Brooks Brothers I’ve felt like an anemic waterboy lost in a forest of retired linebackers. It’s one of the all-time classic American brands for men so what a bummer to find that nothing there fits me. Part of the problem is their boxy, traditional American cuts which just hang off a guy like me. But that could soon change. Last fall, Brooks Brothers announced they were forming

a new creative concept for the brand — a laboratory for guest designers chosen for their forward-thinking vision and youthful application of fashion trends. Creators will be invited to present capsule collections produced and marketed by Brooks Brothers in their stores across America, as well as their shops in London, Milan, Paris, Tokyo and throughout Asia.

A few weeks ago at a show at their Madison Avenue flagship, BB debuted the first concoctions created in this laboratory by their first guest designer, Thom Browne. His new Black Fleece collection rolls out in stores this coming fall. Of course all the models were beanpole tall, but his line could still be a boon for short and/or skinny men. This could just be wishful thinking on my part, but the review on Men.style.com (Details & GQ) seems to confirm that the signature TB cut that anemic waterboys everywhere love, are still in evidence:

“On the issue of proportion, Browne sent a clear message: The mainstream would have to come to him. A high-and-tight aesthetic pervaded, whether in widely cuffed floods, nicely paired with pebble-grain ankle boots, or a formfitting white dinner jacket embroidered with the Brooks sheep logo.”

“High and tight.” That’s one of the most effective pages out of the waterboy playbook.

As for price, I can only hope that Brooks’ Black Fleece pieces would be cheaper than Thom’s own boutique line. According to Men.style.com, “prices not yet set, but expect to pay significantly more than normal Brooks prices, owing to the high level of hand-tailoring,” but that could still work out to be a savings. And most of Black Fleece also seems a bit tamer than Thom’s own stuff which implies a bit more longevity. See you there in the fall.

Link: Brooks Brothers