Short or Small? Shapewear Solutions for Petites

By Marcy Montgomery Jones
Cupid Intimates

If your body’s shape lies somewhere outside the range of common sizes, you undoubtedly encounter trouble shopping.  We’ve already discussed problems and solutions for the tall woman, but what about those for the small one?  If you’re petite, you know the central problem is always length – inseams, sleeves, and torsos are just too long.  But small women are also often swallowed by garments designed for those with fuller hips and larger busts.  One solution is to take your outerwear to a tailor.  If she’s experienced and there’s ample fabric, adjustments can be made to give you the proper fit for your small frame.  But what do you do about your shapewear?  Here are some helpful hints to allow you to confidently choose shapewear that will work well with your smaller body.

First, know the quick fixes.  You may have noticed all-in-one shapers, like bodybriefers, in stores.  Typically, a bodybriefer has a hook-and-eye closure at its gusset (crotch).  This provides some lower-torso length adjustability.  In addition, its shoulder straps usually have ring-and-slide features which can help with upper-torso length adjustments.

Second, understand that sometimes the way in which garments are graded (the process of adding and subtracting height and width to a pattern to create multiple sizes) just won’t produce the shorter lengths you need.  This is where separates come to the rescue.  Shaping camisoles and briefs can be paired together to make a tailored fit.  If your cami is too long and rolls up, I recommend tucking it into your shaping brief or thigh slimmer.  Alternatively, you can look for a shaping cami made with a silicone edge at its bottom.  This type of cami doesn’t roll up.

Third, think legs, legs, legs.   Recently, thanks to the popularity of rising hem lines, there’s been huge interest in shapewear leg lengths other than those of traditional thigh slimmers.  Typically, shorter styles like boy shorts and bike pants are worn so that underpinnings aren’t visible, but these provide an opportunity for you.  Instead of choosing a long leg or a thigh slimmer, choose a silhouette with a shorter inseam .  A boy short or a bike pant may have the customized inseam length you’ve been looking for.

Fourth, don’t limit yourself to brick & mortar retailers.  Even though there’s huge demand out there for size “small” shapewear, you know the big problem if you’ve ever gone searching for some.  Stores don’t stock many styles in size “small,” or they order so few units that they run out of them quickly.  A fantastic solution is buying your shapewear online.  Shopping at websites allows you to see all of a style’s available sizes so you don’t have to guess whether it’s made in a “small.”  And manufacturers who sell shapewear online are more likely to offer “smalls” than brick & mortar retailers, who have to worry about the sales productivity of their floor space and are often unwilling to stock sizes at the ends of the spectrum.

Lastly, for those of you with small busts your shapewear answer has arrived!  The torsette is the perfect solution for those with hard-to-fit busts.  Why?  A torsette allows you to wear your own bra – whether it’s an A cup, B cup, or a DD.  Torsettes are available in a plethora of silhouettes including slips, thigh slimmers, and bodybriefers.

Shopping for petite, short, and small intimates is challenging.  Hopefully, these tips will help you find the custom shapewear solution you’ve been searching for.  Don’t forget to send this post to your petite girlfriends and send us your comments about any special problems you encounter as a petite shapewearer.

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