Amazona's Posts - The Tall Street Journal

Tall Girls: Form an Orderly Queue for Twilight's Edward please.

2009-12-12T16:30:00.000Z

I think I’m missing something. It seems as if the ENTIRE world has gone crazy for Twilight and the Totty Two-some that is ‘Edward’ and ‘Jacob’. Every day my Facebook updates are full of new converts with friends statuses proclaiming their love for for one, or both, of the hot, young men after seeing New Moon. I’m lost - what is it about the films and these two that have women from 14-40 yrs old behaving as if they’ve got a teenage crush? I’ve got no idea.

I am told it’s because ‘Edward’ embodies some of the ultimate desirable traits in a man such as romanticism, strength, gentleness but with a dangerous edge. Er.. ok. Maybe I’m just still in my bad boy phase but I like a man to be buff, dark and sporty - not all pale, dead and lean.

Well, maybe Robert Pattinson is just a little bit more interesting to me following the recent revelation that he only used to date tall girls. The British heart-throb is 6ft 1stated in a recent article that he used to only be attracted to women the same height as him.

“I used to go for these tall Amazonian girls but now I like anything! …”

Robert is rumoured to be dating his Twilight co-star Kristen Stewart and has said that, obviously now more mature at 23, he is more interested in intelligence than good looks.

“I like smart people like Tina Fey, she is the sexiest woman. I always thought I would get more girls after I got involved in movies. And it never, ever happened! I thought, ‘I’m going to be a big movie star and I want to go out with some models!’ ”

Uh huh… “want to go out with some models” ? Seems like young Pattinson is dipping his toe into the average-height girls pool but is holding out for one of us lovely, tall women to sweep him off his feet. So, sorry to my friend Michaela who’s only around 5ft2, but I think this will make my friend Liz (6ft), a massive Twilight fan who got to meet the lovely ‘Edward’ the other day, feel like Christmas has come early!

Read more like this from The Amazona Blog

Why Tall Women Should Wear High Heels

2009-06-13T19:00:00.000Z

So at 6ft2, I’m very tall. If I hadn’t noticed this fact, I would have found out very quickly – from the ten strangers a day who feel the need to let me know.

There are many strange things about being tall but one of the most annoying has to be complete strangers (or fashion professionals incognito??) who feel compelled to tell me that as a tall girl, I should not wear heels.

I didn’t wear heels until my early 20’s because I couldn’t get them in my size but now I can and you can’t get me out of them – particularly 3 or 4 inch one’s on a night out.

Now look, people don’t go around telling short girls they shouldn’t wear flat shoes so why do 60% of the peopl e I meet insist on telling me that, as a tall girl, I shouldn’t wear heels?

Tall women should wear heels and here’s my top reasons why:

- As stylist and fashionista Jay Manuel says “Everyone can look like a supermodel with a bootleg trouser and a high heel” (it does quite ring true if you say ‘ballet flat’ instead of ‘high heel’ , does it?).

- They make you seem leaner and slimmer.

- The give you the best walk which just can’t be replicated in flats.

- They give you better legs, slimmer ankles and accentuate the best of your figure.

- The are the glamorous and somehow that changes how you feel and behave.

- Is your love-life lacking? Well get some high heels on! No, not just because men seem to love them but because, according to the latest research by Dr Maria Cerruoto , wearing high heels improves your pelvic floor muscles, and we modern girls all know what that does for you.

- They make you taller. Yes, I really did say that! Your height is something to be proud of and to be honest, when you’re very tall, 3 inches isn’t actually going to make a whole lot of difference to how tall you look (6ft and 6ft3 all look the same from down there).

- They make your feet look smaller.

- When was the last time you read the words “fabulous flat pump”? Exactly.

(Read more posts like this about and for tall women at www.amazonablog.com)

The Apprentice Wannabe doing Tall Women No Favours.

2009-04-27T08:22:27.000Z

What is it with The Apprentice (UK)? It’s like a caricature of women in business – either they are are more aggressive than a Rottweiler with PMT or they are so over-emotional they’d give Gwyneth Paltrow a run for her money doing an Oscar’s acceptance speech.

Everytime a new series turns up, it seems the women follow some kind of un-written script and immediately slot into one of these stereotypes. Once they have done that, you have to cringe through the first few tasks where they then begin arguing, b*tching and incompetently muddling their way through. Ultimately loosing the battle of Men ‘V’ Women. Don’t get the wrong idea, I’m not obssessed with winning said battle but if we do loose, I want to loose for the right reasons.

My worry is, those people who believe everything their TV tells them might believe that this is actually a true representation of women in business and that just isn’t true! Women have incredible strengths, tolence and a huge range of talents. However as a young woman in business, it can sometimes be extremely difficult and that is without some of your colleagues making some crack about you being cold-hearted, ruthless and ineffective. Of course, on top of this you then add the fact that I’m not only a young woman but that I’m very tall as well and that has people immediately making assumptions and shoving me into a box that not only doesn’t fit but that I can’t seem to ever escape.

So, being seen as professional woman was already sometimes challenging and then, as if she is the poster child of my worst nightmare, along came 6ft tall Debra Barr. She is very quickly proving to be the sterotype incarnate of exactly what everyone expected and for me, the epitome of everything I abhor about the worst of women in business. It’s almost like she feels that she must ‘act like a man’ (as she must see it) and overly develop traits often more associated with a city trading shark. Throughout this series, she has shown little talent for anything other than an aggression and shown herself to be a cold person who domineers, bitches and lies her way through tasks.

Any tall woman will tell you that she is endlessly tagged as aggressive, dominant and scary – and that’s just from walking into the room yet alone when you open your mouth and prove to have a both a mind and an opinion. Many people seem to find extreme height in women a truly intimidating force and men in particular seem to find it threatening. Now, combine that pre-conception with the traits that Debra has shown in Series 5 and you have a walking, talking thorn-in-the-side every tall woman out there, and most definitely those in business. There is no finesse, no kindness, no sublety,no yield, no grace…

Consider some of the most successful women in business, Anya Hindmarch, Sahar Hashemi, Kelly Hoppen or Linda (LK) Bennett and none of them seem to have anything in common with women like Debra. Whereas I am not disputing that businesswomen do need to possess a tenacious, determined nature and that there are times when the stereotypically more ‘male’ traits, such as aggression and ruthlessness, are indeed required, I think it gives the wrong message to young women today as to how they should be in business to succeed.

What people are saying about Debra:

Paula (Fired in Episode 4): “”The thing with Debs is which is why I do respect her and I do kind of like her is she absolutely doesn’t give a t**s”.
(Hmm I’m don’t usually find that an endearing or likeable trait!)

The Guardian: Debra would be the offspring of series two finalists Michelle Dewberry and Ruth Badger, should their genes ever be spliced

Even more than usual this week, Aidy Chiles’ follow-up - The Apprentice - You’re fired – was far better than the programme itself. The likeable, articulate, quietly amusing Paula came out with one of the best comments of the show so far – asked if the endlessly self-grooming, self-adoring Debra Barr was tall, Paula demurely but devastatingly replied ‘oh yes, she’s about 6 foot….. 7 with her mouth open.’ Just so

Daily Star: Apprentice b*tch Debra Barr is in pieces at being dubbed ‘Jigsaw’ after the demonic doll in horror flick Saw. Show hopefuls reckon her pale, moon-shaped face and chiselled features make her a dead ringer for the film’s monster.

www.amazonablog.com

Tall Girls: Get your Lingerie Right

2009-04-04T08:34:15.000Z

Six years ago I was in New York when I saw my first Victoria’s Secret store on a stroll through the South Street Seaport. For a farm girl from the rural Welsh Borders, this store had a kind of mysterious, un-attainable air about it. It was something I had heard of on US shows or had caught of glimpse of when the press mentioned their legendarily glamorous annual catwalk show. The VS models were astoundingly attractive with their eviably fit figures and phenomenal busts (how can you be supermodel slim AND have boobs? It’s just not allowed!!). I couldn’t believe my eyes when I first went in - bras in every shape, size, fabric and colour. It was the epitome of glamour. I’d never been anywhere like it.

Unfortunately for my credit cards, this visit started what I’m sure will be a life-long obsession with underwear (that’s what we call it where I come from – lingerie is a ponsey term). I buy 3 or 4 sets of brightly coloured bra’s and knickers from VS twice a year. Bras and knickers became my accessories. Sod handbags and shoes - I was all about the pants from then on.

For me, brightly coloured, glamorous bras and knickers are my fashion statement. Being so tall, it’s difficult and expensive for me to find clothes and make a statement through them so I tend to stick to what suits me and what I can find (often quite boring by most people’s standard) for everyday wear, or I invest in a couture suit or evening dress . Exciting underwear allows me to express myself, all be it in a private way (as I said earlier this week, nobody else has seen my underwear for quite some time!).

What Victoria’s Secret also did was to give me confidence. It was one of those situations where I didn’t realise my usual stuff wasn’t OK, until I saw the alternative. As a reasonably flat-chested but exceedingly tall, curvy girl, I’ve always felt that if I just had a cup size more, I’d be far more in proportion. I now live permanently in their ‘Very Sexy’ range which comes with built-in gel in the cup to add around a cup size, or even two with their most extreme range (Damn it! Did I just reveal too much of my very own little secret?).

If you’re a padded/uplift bra fan, then I bet you £20 that if you try Victoria’s Secret version, you’ll wonder how you ever coped before - think of the UK highstreet offerings on padded bras as a Mini and VS’s Very Sexy version as the Lamborghini Diablo. They are that different.

And then there is the pants (that’s knickers to you non-UK people). Oh Heaven’s Above!! VS converted me to the g-string, the thong and the brazilian (I’m still talking pants here, don’t go off topic…. if you don’t know what brazilian pants are, check the VS website). Their knickers are brilliantly cut and almost create the illusion of the kind of rounded, pert bottom usually seen on the beach in Rio on my very welsh backside… well, with some low light, the right angle and a squint.

Even though I’d had attractive underwear before (Thanks to my Mum!), I didn’t realise that the UK highstreet stores offerings on the bra and knickers front were fitting me so badly until I discovered Victoria’s Secret. As with almost all clothing, US brands generally fit the taller frame better. With bra’s this is particularly important as the shoulder straps on VS bras are where they should be – in line with my armpit, not a centimetre in from there! They also seem to be just more generous with the fabric and the cup dimensions (and I wear only push-up, cut away cups!). When I put on my first bra in the store in NYC, I looked far better than I’d ever looked in any other. Not only did I look better with my clothes off, I looked better with my clothes on.

Now I probably have over 40 sets (always matching and I always have two pairs of pants to each bra!) of almost any colour with several patterns, some lace, some silk, some with diamante, some with embroidery… I could go on but I would start to bore you (I haven’t even started on the bikini’s).

In short, I’ll stop my evangelical-style preaching here and just say I think Victoria’s Secret bras, knickers, slips and bikini’s are cut for tall women like us. I’m not entirely sure why their cut is better, but it is. Give it a look as they as reasonably priced as Marks and Spencer, they ship internationally and could make the world of difference to you. Just like they did for me.

www.victoriassecret.com (p.s. Check out their trousers too - up to a 36 inch inseam!)

(All photo credits: victoriassecret.com. For more articles like this for tall women, check out the www.amazonablog.com)

PZI introduce jeans for real women! Curvy & Tall....

2009-03-30T09:04:46.000Z

Great news in the battle for longer (and curvier fit!) jeans! Atlanta-based PZI Jeans has announced the launch of a collection of skinny jeans made just for curvy women.What’s even better is they’re making these new styles in very short and very long inseams… Jeans for real women!

PZI now offers ten different styles of Skinny Jeans that are said to be becoming all the rage of curvy fashionistas. “PZI Jeans was one of the first denim lines to develop a Skinny Jean for curvy women, we have taken it a step further to offer an entire collection of PZI Skinny Jeans, designed especially to meet the fit challenges of curvy women,” explains PZI Jeans Co-Founder and Vice President, Claire Jason.

“The industry said curvy women should never wear Skinny Jeans or they would look like an ice cream cone, so many lines did not offer a Skinny Jean for curvy women. Initially we did not offer our customer the Skinny Jean either. But, our customers kept asking for the Skinny Jean. So we started researching, studied and developed the perfect Skinny Jean for curvy women,” explains PZI.

Although PZI Jeans designers constantly follow fashion trends they do not take everything written in the media about what a curvy woman should or should not wear to heart: “The curvy woman’s concept of her fashion style is misunderstood by a many in the fashion media, the success of our PZI Skinny Jeans is proof of this fact.”

PZI Jeans are available in sizes 4-16 with short, regular, long and extra-long inseams (up to 38 inches!) so that women short and tall can buy their jeans off the rack with no more costly alterations. PZI Jeans are available at select Macy’s Stores and over 600 retail stores in the United States and overseas with plans to expand into South America. For international customers, check out the website and give them a call and PZI will endeavour to supply any customer in any country.

http://www.pzijeans.com/

Evening Gowns for Tall Girls: What, Where & How?

2009-03-16T16:16:19.000Z

Here we are in the midst of Awards season with the Golden Globes behind us and the Baftas and the Grammys this weekend. The media is full of ‘Best’ and ‘Worst’ dressed lists with Hollywood actresses parading in some seriously glamorous gowns which, for us tall girls seem purely aspirational. Whereas the high street is providing an ever increasing choice of party dresses and evening gowns for your average woman, tall women are left out in the cold wondering if this is one area of fashion where we fear we may never tread.

I was recently reminded of the near catastrophic stress caused by my need for a full-length evening gown last year. The joy of hearing of my brother’s engagement was swiftly followed by a panic about what on earth I would wear to a very glamorous, Spanish (or maybe ‘Spanglish’) wedding.
At 6ft2, evening gowns have not featured highly in my quest for clothing to fit my amazon stature. My years of searching for jeans, suits, shoes and t-shirts have been fruitful, however, it is nearly 9 years since I had to wear an evening gown so I really didn’t have any clue where to look.

On previous trips to New York department stores, I knew I had seen evening dresses what would fit me far better than anything I could buy on the high street here in England. There is something about the American cut and fit that suits us tall girls and women better than anything here in the UK. Unfortunately, I wasn’t going to the Big Apple before the wedding: what was I to do!?

With two good friends for moral support in tow, I set upon Oxford Street one Saturday. I recalled the ‘Designers at Debenhams’ range used to have some great styles – I should emphasise ‘used to’. Their cut and fit, even girls of an average height (5ft 7 or so), was appaulling! Monsoon (too short), Long Tall Sally (frumpy), Karen Millen (might fit my left leg at a push) were equally disappointing. I even ventured into some of those old-fashioned evening dress shops run by frighteningly matronly, middle-aged women who seem to intent on making you look like an extra from Dynasty circa 1989. Everywhere I tried the gowns were not only badly cut, with cheap fabric and frumpy designs, they were also on average about 8 inches too short - guaranteed to make you look like the hillbilly sister from down on the farm. At this rate I was going to make it on to the ‘Worst Dressed’ list at my brother’s wedding!

Convinced I would be ex-communicated by my big brother if I didn’t manage to pull something off (he works in sports media, darling, hence he has the most fashionable and sophisticated friends), my thoughts turned back to the US. How could I get a dress from an American brand here in the UK? Then I had an idea. Bridesmaids dresses! If you’ve never been to an American wedding, you’ve probably seen them in films. Far from dressing their best friends in grown-up versions of child pageant dresses, as we seem to be rather fond of here, their bridesmaids and maids of honour wear dresses more akin to film premieres than ‘Miss Junior Oklahoma’.

I hunted down all the stores in West London who sold two brands in particular: Dessy and Watters. Both of these brands have several ranges, totalling hundreds of styles in a massive array of colours.

If you’ve never ordered from a Bridal Shop before, this is how it works:

- These dresses are made to order in standard sizes. Shops have many different styles, all in a different colour variation so don’t expect to get to try on the style you want in the right colour.

- You choose a style, and then a colour. The staff will advise you on the size required.

- You can choose to have up to 6 inches added on the skirt of the dress (which I needed).

- Once ordered, your dress will arrive between 6-12 weeks later.

- On arrival, it is best to try the dress on with a seamstress present (any good bridal shop will have one they use) as usually, they can suggest ‘nips and tucks’ to the dress to make it truly fit like a couture gown.

In the end, my gown cost £160 plus £40 for the seamstress’s alterations. Plus, I think I avoided all the usual pitfalls for tall girls - my dress was a lovely, amethyst halterneck number in chiffon and matt satin which was full length, even with my 4 inch silver high heels (from Amazona Style). I felt like an Oscar-nominated starlet!

So, before the wedding season sets in, your next black tie invitation or your invite to a film premiere with Will Smith (I can dream!), why don’t you plan ahead and check out what‘s on offer from those US dress companies. Almost guaranteed to make you look like a film star!