Suzanne Carillo

How To Visually Lengthen Your Legs

For those are you that are lucky enough to be graced with long legs (hello Greetje) you don’t need any tricks or tips. Some of us vertically challenged people need all the help we can get. At 5’4″ I always looks better when wearing heels but the older I get the less my body tolerates heels for long periods of time.

With age comes wisdom and I now classify my shoes into five minute, thirty minute, three hours and all day wear.

The five minute shoes are AKA bedroom shoes. They aren’t good for anything other than taking photos or looking pretty while sitting or laying down. Why do you need to wear shoes when you’re laying down? I’ll never tell.

The thirty minute shoes are perfect from the car to the restaurant and back.  If there is a long walk from the car to the restaurant I need to take an extra pair of shoes and have my shoe sherpa carry them for me.

The three hour shoes are quite comfy but after three hours they start to give me a headache. This is because there isn’t enough padding in the ball of the foot. As we grow older all of the cushy fat from our feet migrates upwards and plants itself firmly at our waists and hips making pants ill fitting and wearing heels agony. Imagine how much better it would be if the fat just did what gravity intended and vacated south to our feet instead clinging onto our waists and hips.

We would have tiny waists and be walking on pillows!

Instead of shrinking in height we’d grow taller with the extra fat on the bottom of our feet.

If only I were in charge!

Back to life…back to reality…

 

All day shoes are a rare breed and normally consist of a mere handful from my oversized collection.

Runners don’t count. I wear runners every day in my house for plantar fasciitis, yet another sexy side effect of age.

 

#1 Tip How To Visually Lengthen Your Legs – Flesh Toned Shoes

I scored these flesh toned low heel booties thrifting a while back and knew they would have an elongating effect without the pain of a higher heel.

 

Not only do the boots blend into my legs but the heels are transparent…so it looks like I’m floating.

These could be called the magic disappearing booties.

 

#2 Tip How To Visually Lengthen Your Legs – High Waisted Belt

I’ve added a high waisted belt which creates the illusion of longer legs.

It’s an easy trick I use all the time. It is also ideal for women with a curvy hourglass shape to define the waist.

 

 

Of course if you have muscular man-legs like me anything flat is only going to accentuate your massive calves cows.  It’s only taken me fifty-two years to accept that fact.

 

#3 Tip How To Visually Lengthen Your Legs For Photos

Okay, this doesn’t really work in real life but we can totally fake longer legs in photos.

Position one leg in front of the other slightly, make sure to put your weight on the back leg, and then point the toes of the front leg.

Pointed toes will visually lengthen your body. That is why ballerinas are pointing everything all the time, hands, feet, arms, legs. Heck, they’d point their heads if they could. They want to look as long and lean as possible.

 

The toe pointing tip works brilliantly when you are seated.

The photo below shows me sitting with my weight to one side while stretching my legs and pointing my toes which is even easier when wearing pointy toed pumps. That is why any shoe that has a pointy toe will elongate your body.

 

Below I’m elongating my body by stretching my legs, pointing my toes, arm and hand while looking up at Sherry. That photo was from this fun post.

 

As a shortie I can use all the help I can get when taking photos for my blog or the Etsy store.

 

 

This 1970s crocheted top was a recent thrift find.

I thought it wouldn’t fit me and would be heading to the Etsy store right away.  Uh…nope. That is the problem with trying on inventory, sometimes it is too good to pass on. It all balanced out when some other items I was sure I’d keep turned out to be destined for the store.  I can hear my closet breathing a massive sigh of relief.

 

Do you use any of these leg lengthening tips? Do you have any of your own you’d like to share?

 

Linking up with Patti for Visible Monday, Turning Heads Tuesday and Fancy Friday