In shopping and fashion nothing is what it seems. Some taller women having larger bone structures try to dress in such a way that they would appear smaller. Thin and slender women want to create the appearance of curves with their clothes, while curvier women put efforts into hiding their voluptuousness. These women who are considered "petite" will frequently attempt to wear clothes that would make them look taller.



There is one common misconception that "petite" means "small". The truth is that the term petite refers to height, not weight. Petite fashions come in sizes from O to plus-sized. Women who are shorter than 5'4 are considered petite no matter if she has a slender, average or plus-sized frame.

The conception that petite women are always "little" has caused frustration for the ladies when shopping. Women not taller than 5'5 have a difficult time finding petite fashions that are not high-wasted. Despite that, recently many designers started creating petite fashion lines offering new styles for the petite ladies. Now most of the designers offer petite fashions and they try to make them more classic and tailored, so petite women would wear clothes that accentuate the good sides of their body type.

Petite woman want to find the clothes that would accentuate their own style. Some fashions are designed in such a way that they make petite woman look taller by using horizontal as opposed to vertical lines. Monochromatic colour schemes are also a good idea.

When buying clothes a petite woman should avoid cuts, color schemes and prints that are made for taller women. Petite fashions often have higher wastes, shorter arms and legs and narrower shoulders. When print patters are used in petite fashions they tend to be smaller. This is how chunky appearance is avoided.

Petite women are advised to keep up to some simple style guidelines. According to fashion experts on petite fashions, women are not to wear shirt longer than mid-thigh and they should forget about drastic colour contrasts in blouses and trousers. As far as shoes are concerned, petite women are not advised to buy flat shoes or shoes with square toes. What is best for their feet is a pair of comfortable stylish shoes with gently pointed toe. Other things that should not be in a petite's woman wardrobe are ribbons and buckles.