The average height of women in the United States is slightly under 5 foot 4 inches, which places a considerable number of ladies in the petite category. Because of their slight stature, that has led many women to ask whether they can wear flat shoes or if they’re forever destined to wear heels if they want to look fashionable and command respect
So, can you wear flats if you’re petite? Fashion stylists around the world have answered this query with a resounding yes. While being tall used to be the height of fashion, there is no reason for women to keep forcing themselves into heels every day. If you want to focus on wearing cute flats instead of teetering through your day, here are some tips to make you feel both stylish and comfortable.
Be Confident in Your Size
For years there has been a focus on taller women in the fashion industry but that has been changing in the last two decades. There are many women who are shorter who have gone on to become famous as models so there is no reason to force yourself to try and appear taller than you actually are.
Taking time to focus on your self-esteem and choosing to love the fact that you are petite will boost your confidence level greatly. Every outfit looks better when it is worn with confidence and flats are no different. So, if you love yourself and your outfit, people are going to take notice.
How to Make the Most of Flats
Even if you love your size, there may be days when you want to seem a little bit taller without wearing high heels. If that is the case, then take the time to pick out the right style of flats before you step out for the day.
1. Choose Pointy Flats
Pointy flats help to create the illusion of length for your body while rounded shoes tend to make your legs seem shorter and a little bit thicker. So, either choose a streamlined shape or try out a pointed flat. You can even look for a flat that combines a pointed toe with a T-Strap as this will elongate your appearance even further.
2. Make Your Shoes the Focus
If you are wearing your flats with shorts or a dress, you should choose a simple outfit with shoes that scream serious style. While previous advice suggested a nude shoe to lengthen your legs, you don’t have to restrict yourself to only the plainest of shoes. Instead, go ahead and play around.
Choose a flat that draws the eye either with its design or with their color. This is a good time to focus on bold prints that you may not have felt comfortable wearing due to your body type. With strong, bold flats on, eyes will be drawn to your feet and less attention will be paid to your height.
3. Choose Nude Shoes for a Classic Look
You can still opt for nude shoes if you are looking for a classic look instead of trying to make a bold statement with your shoes. As previously mentioned, nude shoes can do wonders to give the illusion that you’ve actually got longer legs.
4. Give the Gladiator Look a Try
When it comes to flats, ankle laces are another option for looking fashionable while also giving the appearance of height. There are certain gladiator styles that will make you look longer as long as they fit properly.
Jut be sure not to choose shoes that tighten too much on your calves or that end halfway up your calf. Instead, find flats that lace loosely and with laces that stops near the ankle or that end well below your knee. It’s laces in those styles that will do the most to stretch out your frame.
5. Choose Shoes and Laces That Match
While we’re talking about laces… For those days when you are running around taking care of errands, you may opt for sneakers for your day. While many sneakers don’t do anything to elongate your frame, there is a trick that you can employ that will help to make you seem longer and slimmer even in tennis shoes.
What you want to do is choose black laces on black sneakers to give yourself the illusion of length. Or, if you don’t want to exclusively wear black tennies, then simply try to choose laces that are the closest possible match to your sneakers so that they are as uniform as possible.
6. Buy Some Cropped Pants
Cropped pants are always a strong fashion statement and they also serve to make the body seem longer and more streamlined. Long pants with flats tend to draw attention to a shorter frame while cropped pants provide a bit of space between your shoes and your hems which nicely serves to make you seem taller.
You can choose a pair of flats in a solid color and then pair them with a pair of cropped pants in the same shade. In this way, you will create the visual illusion of a longer line. To take this visual trickery even further, opt for a pair of pointed flats as this will help to enhance the illusion of greater height.
7. Skip Bulky Ankle Straps
While chunky straps around the ankles were a huge hit in the 90’s, they never served a petite woman well. That’s because the thick straps that were popular back then weren’t suited to the legs of many ladies. In fact, that look only serves to make you appear much shorter then you actually are.
However, while it is important to skip the bulky straps, that does not mean that you can’t wear flats with straps. Take the time to focus on straps that are more dainty and emphasize the flattering aspects of your ankles and legs. These options will give you the attractive and lengthy look that you are seeking.
8. Ensure That You Focus on Comfort
Choosing shoes should never be a chore and neither should wearing them. A lot of looking amazing in your outfit includes confidence and comfort. It doesn’t matter how cute your shoes are if you you don’t feel comfortable in them. That’s because, when you don’t feel confident and comfortable in your look, your outfit is going to flop and make you feel small, which is the exact opposite of what you are hoping to accomplish.
For that reason, it’s important to focus on shoes that fit properly, don’t rub, and have good arch support so that you don’t regret making the switch to flat shoes.
9. How to Choose Flat Shoes When You’re Petite and Curvy
If you are petite and plus-size, then you will probably want to focus on choosing flats that are less dainty. That’s because more delicately-styled flats don’t look properly proportioned for your frame. So, for this petite body type, you should take a look at adding loafers or oxfords to your wardrobe as these styles of flats are most suited to your body type.
10. Choose the Perfect Heelless Boots
When you’re petite, there is no reason to only choose boots that have heels.
Whatever you do, just make a point to avoid extra tall boots that extend above the knee. For petites, boots of this style only serve to give the appearance of a shortened frame, so there are much more flattered styles that you can choose from.
As a petite shopper looking for the perfect pair of boots, be on the lookout for styles that are form fitting and stop right at your knee or opt for ankle boots in dark colors. Both of these styles will look especially flattering on the feet of petites.
11. Dress to Flatter Your Body
If you are focusing on using flats to flatter your body and make it longer, you need to make sure that you are also dressing to flatter your whole body type. Choose clothes that elongate your body so that your shoes aren’t the only clothing element that trying to make you look taller.
It All Begins With Confidence
As you can see, there are many ways that you can wear flats when you are a petite lady; however, the first step is always confidence. Take the time to love your body and your height and you will find it easier to slip on flats any day of the week.
After you have boosted your self-esteem then take some time to do some shopping with the mindset. There are hundreds of stylish options out there that will make you feel and look beautiful in the height that you are. Not only will you look amazing, you will feel more comfortable when you take off those high heels and focus on yourself.