Is 5 foot 4" Petite?

[Deggy]

I'm slightly prompted another S&B thread here, but I'm convinced I used to be 5 foot 7 " and always considered myself quite tall. However, I'm losing height as I go through menopause and I'm only a shade over 5 foot 4 now.

It hasn't occurred to me to ever buy petite clothes, but I'm constantly sending clothes back and moaning about how ridiculously long everything is

Am I really starting to edge into 'petite'?? I always imagined petite clothes were for much daintier looking women than me!

I'm 5ft 4. I buy petite in midi dresses so I don't look like I borrowed my mum's wardrobe, or I might deliberately buy regular length so I get a maxi skirt out of a midi one.

Trousers have to be regular on me though otherwise they are flapping about at the ankle. I do have to be mindful of having slightly built up shoes though to ensure regular ones dont drag on the pavement. I need a slightly petite but not properly petite trousers range!

There about, yes. Quite a few posters have remarked on the marked height loss, but I don't think OP has addressed it (not that she needs to obv).

I’m 5.4 and a half and 30 leg. I buy regular.

Petite is not just about height. It is about body weight and shape. If you have boobs of any size you might struggle with petite.

The USA take petite really seriously and one time I had an assistant flood me with sizes and regular and petite sizes. She was right - in the petite ranges I had to go up a couple of sizes to get my boobs in if I wanted the correct length.

Most brands class “petite” as 5'3" and under, but honestly it depends so much on proportions rather than just height. I’m 5'4" myself and sometimes petite trousers or jeans fit far better, especially with cropped styles that end up full length on me otherwise.
You definitely don’t need to be tiny or “dainty” to wear petite — it’s more about where things sit on your shoulders, waist, and legs. It might be worth trying a few petite cuts just to see; you might be surprised at how much better the fit is.

Not saying OP shouldn’t get checked out, but I’ve had similar height loss at a younger age and have no osteoporosis (bone scan for other reasons) and my height was checked before, they said its not necessarily unusual or abnormal apparently.

I wouldn’t consider petite sizing based on the OP, but it depends on other factors such as overall build as well.

No harm in trying for size as so much variation (depending on the models used) but in general likely the garment wouldn’t fit well in other areas eg the arms.

I don’t deny your experience obviously, and others have said that they’ve found petite to cater more for the slimmer woman, but I’m sure petite is not meant to take weight into account.
A woman of petite or not petite height who has larger breasts may struggle with the dress size that is right for the other measurements (waist and hips).

I’m just over 5’4” and often buy from petite ranges because I have relatively short arms and legs.

Three inches is a lot of height to have lost if you’re still young enough to be going through the menopause. Do you have specific health issues contributing to this?

I am 5ft 4 and when I have bought petite trousers they have been too short so I don't bother now just regular length which are usually ok but on occasions too long.

I find the same. I have quite narrow shoulders and am short waisted so a lot of fitted dresses have the waist too low to fit me properly if I don't get the petite version.

I am 5'4.

Mostly I buy regular but I like dresses and trousers to be quite long. However I find knee length or mini dresses are too long for me and buy petite in them sometimes, especially Boden which seems to be cut for taller people in general.

If your feet are size 5 or smaller then also check out children's shoes. My feet have grown and I need a 6 now but I used to be able to buy children's shoes. Things like trainers are often the same as adults but cheaper because they are not taxed!

I’d say 5ft 4 was short yes but I’m 5ft 10. Petite in my mind would be in body frame as well as height.

Can you look back on your medical records, losing three inches would be very signficant, and a cause for real concern. Do you have trousers that used to fit to the ankle and are now three inches longer on?

edir to add, when you lose weight, things thay were tight before, appear longer when looser.

You cannot call it short these days. The correct term is vertically challenged.

You can call it what you like! At 5ft 2, I am short. In any case, if you were vertically challenged, wouldn't you be veering towards horizontal?

What’s your inside leg measurement?

Im sure its just clothes companies these days having no idea what the average height is for a woman.
Im average at 5'5 (no freakishly lengthed arms or legs either!) and I often buy petite things or get cropped trousers that actually work out as ankle grazers or longer on me.
Not sure if the companies are deluded or are we all supposed to be wearing giant platform shoes?

Give over. That's like saying you cannot say someone is tall. You're describing the person, not making a perjorative remark. Saying the person was short and black or short and white wouldn't be a problem.

https://www.thewardrobeconsultant.com/blog/are-you-a-true-petite-or-just-short

I do think trousers have got longer. I’m pretty tall and tall ranges are often too long and seem to be for women more like 6ft+

I am 5ft 3 and buy petite trousers and dresses, but not tops. I have a longer torso with wide shoulders but short legs.

DD1 is 5'4" but has relatively long legs so her inside leg is not that much shorter than mine at 5'7". Though I think with dresses and tops she can get away with petite ranges in those, as she is only a size 6/8 also and quite a narrow build.

My inside leg is 31/32" and increasingly I find standard trousers are a good length rather than long, so definitely agree that trousers are getting longer. I used to find that most women's trousers came in 28/29" only and were always just a little short.

I’m 5’5 but I have quite a short torso. I find petite jackets and tops fit much better than the standard sizes, though standard size tops seem to be getting longer all the time. Very few shops seem to do petite sections though.