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Home / Blog / Clothing and Style

10 Common Misconceptions About Dressing the Shorter Body Type

Published on August 9, 2016 by Brock McGoff · Clothing and Style May contain affiliate links (what's this?)

If you search the Internet for style advice for short men, you’ll find at least one article from every popular fashion-related website…

…and about 150+ articles from The Modest Man.

Style advice for short men

Most of these non-TMM articles contain a lot of the same old tips that you’ve heard a million times before:

“Wear vertical stripes.”

“Don’t wear light colors.”

“Wear shoes with thick soles.”

Here’s the thing:

A lot of this advice isn’t actually true. Most of these “rules” can be bent, many can be broken, and some should be ignored entirely.

Here are 10 common misconceptions about dressing the shorter body type.

Misconception #1: Horizontal stripes make you look shorter

This is probably the most popular piece of style “advice” for shorter men. You hear it all the time:

“Never wear horizontal stripes. Only wear vertical stripes so you can look taller.”

It’s simply not true. The direction of the stripes doesn’t matter nearly as much as the size of the stripes. In fact, this goes for all patterns.

Charlie Day striped tshirt
These horizontal stripes look great on Charlie Day (5’7″) because they’re thin and close together | Photo by Jean_Nelson / Depositphotos.com

It doesn’t matter which type of pattern you choose (checks, stripes, dots), as long as they’re small in scale.

Think little dots, not big dots. Thin stripes, not thick stripes.

Misconception #2: Shorter men shouldn’t cuff their pants

This is another popular bit of wisdom that gets rehashed on sites like GQ and Esquire, but it’s misleading.

You can roll or cuff your pants with confidence, as long as you keep two things in mind:

First, make sure the cuff isn’t too big. Second, make sure your pants are tapered.

White sneakers light wash jeans
A subtle cuff – not too tall – is perfect for shorter guys.

If the cuff is taller than two inches, it can make you look shorter. If your pants aren’t tapered below the knee, cuffing will look a little silly.

Misconception #3: Short men should never wear double-breasted suits or jackets

Well-fitting clothes let you get away with anything, including wearing double-breasted suits or jackets.

Brock wearing DB suit

Yes, an ill-fitting DB suit can make you look short and boxy, but that’s true for every man, regardless of height.

If you want to wear DB suits, check out this post/video:

Can Short Men Wear Double-Breasted Suits?

Misconception #4: Only insecure men wear elevator shoes

Some people believe that no man should wear height increasing shoes. Many style experts take a strong stance on this, urging short men to avoid “risers” at all cost.

I don’t think there’s anything inherently wrong with shoes that make you look taller. It’s not much different than wearing cologne, whitening your teeth or dying your hair.

These are just different ways to look and feel more attractive, and they’re not bad.

Elevator shoes
Do I look insecure?

Sure, men who are insecure about their height might wear elevator shoes to feel better. But that doesn’t mean that every man who wears tall shoes is insecure.

And even if you are self-conscious about your height, that’s okay. We’re all insecure about something, and it’s usually the stuff we can’t control.

That’s why we dress well – because we CAN control that. If you want to wear elevator shoes, wear them. Don’t worry about what anyone else thinks!

Misconception #5: Lighter colors make you look shorter

Okay, there’s some truth to this. Wearing dark colors helps eliminate shadows and streamline your figure. But it’s really more about the contrast in your outfit, rather than the darkness of the colors.

If you want to avoid looking shorter, you should wear outfits that don’t cut you in half visually. In other words, avoid stark horizontal contrast.

Here’s a detailed explanation of what I mean:

So if you prefer dark colors, wear all dark colors (dark on top and bottom). If you like lighter colors, wear all light colors (light on top and bottom).

Misconception #6: Slim fit clothes always look better

Ever see a big guy wearing skinny jeans? It’s not flattering. Clothes need to fit your body, and not everyone looks good in slim fit.

For example, if you’re short and stout, you don’t want to wear clothes that are slim or skinny. They will look and feel restrictive.

Jonah Hill black suit
Jonah Hill looking fantastic is a gently fitted black suit with just enough taper through the leg. | Photo by s_bukley / Depositphotos.com

Jonah Hill usde to rock skinny fit suits, which always made him look uncomfortable and emphasized his weight.

He looks much better in a fitted-but-not-skinny suit that has a little breathing room in it.

Misconception #7: Skinny ties are always the best choice

Again, saying that all short men should wear skinny ties is ridiculous. Skinny ties look good on skinny people who wear jackets with slim lapels).

Mountain and Sackett cashmere tie
Unless you’re very skinny, stick with slim or regular width ties.

Your lapel width should be loosely dictated by your overall body width, and your tie width should roughly match your lapel width.

Just look at the above picture. Jonah looks much more balanced with wider lapels and a standard width tie.

Misconception #8: Short men should always tuck their shirts in

Yes, many shirts are too long for men under 5’8″ to wear untucked. But the solution isn’t to tuck every shirt in, all the time.

That’s just not realistic, especially in casual situations. A better solution is to find shirts that are the right length by:

  1. Buying clothes for short men
  2. Buying made-to-measure shirts online
  3. Getting your shirts tailored

At the very least, you should have a couple of t-shirts, polos and casual button ups that are the perfect length for wearing untucked.

Misconception #9: Short men shouldn’t wear short sleeves

Yes, you read that correctly. This is an actual piece of advice from a major menswear publication.

Wearing short sleeves
#terribleadvice

We won’t spend too much time on this ridiculous tip, but keep this in mind:

Your short sleeve shirts need to fit well. The sleeves should hit about halfway between your elbow and arm pit, and they should sit closely around your biceps (less than one inch excess fabric on each arm).

A photo posted by The Modest Man (@modestmanstyle) on Jun 18, 2016 at 7:40pm PDT

A photo posted by The Modest Man (@modestmanstyle) on May 14, 2016 at 8:31pm PDT

If you have short sleeve shirts with sleeves that are too long or wide, take them to the tailor to have the sleeves taken in.

Misconception #10: Wear accessories high up on your body (to draw eyes up)

I’ve heard this one many times, and my response is always the same…

Bad advice from Esquire
This is nonsense.

It’s as if wearing a pocket square will trick people into thinking you’re six feet tall!

Short men can wear any kind of accessories they want to. Like all men, I think you should limit yourself to 2-3 accessories per outfit, but even this is a loose guideline.

You definitely don’t have to consider where the accessories are on your body.

I usually go with a belt, small watch and bracelet. If I’m wearing a suit, I’ll ditch the belt and add a tie (and pocket square).

Accessories are a great way to spruce up an otherwise boring outfit (like shorts and a t-shirt), and they allow you to add some personality to your getups.

Have fun with them!

Bottom Line

You should take most style tips with a grain of salt, especially when you don’t know anything about the person who’s dishing it out.

Much of what you read on the internet is overly prescriptive (I’m guilty of this too), so you have to experiment to figure out what works for you.

When it comes to style for short men, feel free to ignore the dumb “rules” you hear on the web.

Except here on The Modest Man, of course 😉

Do you agree/disagree with this list? Leave a comment below!

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About Brock McGoff

The Modest Man founder, Brock is an aspiring minimalist who enjoys working out, spending time with his family, discovering new brands and creating great content.

Background: Brock McGoff has a bachelor's degree in psychology and a professional background in digital marketing. He believes that men's fashion is just one facet of self-improvement, and he started The Modest Man to help regular guys feel more confident by improving their appearance.

An east coast native, Brock currently lives in Arizona with his wife and daughter. When he's not working, he spends time with family, training BJJ, reading/listening to books and podcasts, and unsuccessfully trying to decide which movie to stream.

Expertise: Brock has built a men's lifestyle YouTube channel with over 400k subscribers. He's also worked as the creative marketing manager in a men's apparel startup. Brock has been quoted in, mentioned by or featured in publications like Esquire, Huff Post, Men's Health, WWD and Forbes.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

    Ask Me Anything Cancel reply

    Got questions? Want to share your opinion? Comment below!

  1. VMJ says

    November 25, 2020 at 4:46 am

    It is a great knowledge to short peoples regarding their outfits and it is THE PERFECT guide.

    Reply
  2. Rinjani says

    June 9, 2020 at 2:57 pm

    I agree with you, thank you for a good article that made me understand something that I could use

    Reply
  3. Abhishek Yadav says

    March 25, 2019 at 10:21 am

    I don’t know if u will see this or not , but i want some advice ,im a short guy so can’t i wear like white t shirt on black jeans or light denim shirt with black jeans ? Pls gelhmem

    Reply
  4. Sral Rolyat (@FurphyHaruspex) says

    July 1, 2018 at 8:09 pm

    Edit: belt, tie, and socks are all…

    Reply
  5. Sral Rolyat (@FurphyHaruspex) says

    July 1, 2018 at 7:58 pm

    You ditch the belt in a suit? I think belt, and are all critical choices in a suit. And well chosen socks show a hell of a lot more style than a pocket square.

    Reply
  6. Ron says

    September 22, 2016 at 12:20 am

    Brock, you totally nailed it!

    Reply
  7. JB says

    August 11, 2016 at 1:48 am

    The post says a misconception is that short men should wear short sleeves. You then restate the same thing. The Esquire article says ‘Don’t wear short sleeves’. Your heading is incorrect and I think it makes that part a bit confusing.

    Reply
    • Brock says

      August 11, 2016 at 1:52 am

      Sorry, that was a typo. Fixed it. Thanks for catching!

      Reply
  8. BJV says

    August 10, 2016 at 8:48 am

    “…ditch the belt…” ???

    Can we then assume that suspenders have been added under your jacket?

    Reply
    • Brock says

      August 10, 2016 at 11:06 am

      I usually go with side adjusters on my trousers, but suspenders are cool too.

      Reply
  9. David says

    August 9, 2016 at 4:41 pm

    Probably one of the most useful posts thus far Brock. In my experience, once you start understanding how to dress well in terms of fit, pattern, colors etc, you can pick out which “tips” are bogus, or simply not accuarate / applicable to most of us.

    Reply
    • Brock says

      August 10, 2016 at 12:53 am

      Thanks! Yeah it’s usually not black or white – some truth in lots of this advice. But I don’t like the “always do this” and “never do this” type of advice.

      Reply
  10. Dave says

    August 9, 2016 at 2:27 pm

    Great article Brock, pretty insightful and goes to show how easily things can be tweaked to better suit our bodies.

    Reply
    • Brock says

      August 10, 2016 at 12:53 am

      Thanks!

      Reply
  11. Rollo says

    August 9, 2016 at 1:30 pm

    Great post. I am really glad to read your comments on stripes. Avoiding horizontal and deliberately wearing vertical goes against my main rule which is not to try to dress taller, but dress in whatever way makes me look better. And there are some great looking horizontal, small striped shirts I have passed on before for the silly reason that i bought into some so-called rule.

    The elevator shoes, on the other hand, I couldn’t disagree with more. This is real emotional issue with me and I’ll just say if you feel you need them, spend the money on therapy. The exception being if you are playing a certain role in the theater or television the requires some extra height.

    On number 8, tucking in shirts. I mentioned this a few bog entries ago, that if you have a short torso, you can very often wear an off the rack shirt out with no problem. Don’t automatically assume you need a short size or tailoring. Below mid zipper actually works great for me.

    Reply
    • Brock says

      August 10, 2016 at 12:51 am

      Good point about leg to torso ratio. Definitely something to consider.

      Reply
  12. Edward says

    August 9, 2016 at 1:13 pm

    This is a great post, Brock. It shows that advice for short men hasn’t been thoughtfully considered even by reputable sources like Esquire.

    Reply
    • Brock says

      August 10, 2016 at 12:52 am

      Well said.

      Reply
      • marcus says

        August 10, 2016 at 7:14 pm

        lots of good info here. i found your article on watches was extremely helpful (i ditched by 41mm tag aquaracer for a 36mm omega seamaster and i couldnt be happler)

        Reply

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