Often, off-the-rack suits will not suit the shorter man. Some shorter men have wide shoulders, and hence will need to purchase a larger jacket which is unavoidably longer in length, making the short man look even shorter!
Shorter men should steer clear of longer jackets, trousers with cuffs, and plaid patterns that have horizontal stripes as well as vertical. Darker colours and Pinstripes should be in your wardrobe, as they will make you look taller. One and Two Buttoned suits are better for those shorter in stature, as too many buttons make it appear as though there is too much going on in a short amount of space.
With shirts, generally they should have longer pointed collars as opposed to the wider English cut collar. This is once again to visually elongate the body with more things being vertical than horizontal.
Johnny Depp provides us with a prime example of what not to wear!
Johnny Depp - Oversized Suit
It looks terrible and he is only saved by his movie star good looks. He is wearing a double breasted suit – there’s nothing wrong with that if it was well tapered, although it is a dated look – with the majority preferring the sleeker single breasted suit.
What else is wrong with this look? The jacket is way too long and too big for him – the bottom of the jacket should reach the mid thumb knuckle. The sleeves are too long and don’t show any shirt cuff. The pants are too baggy and long and don’t sit properly on his shoes. All in all, the suit makes the 5’10″ Johnny Depp look like 4’11″ Danny Devito… well ok, maybe not that short, but you get the picture.
Let me stray off topic for a minute - the worst thing about this look are his homeless-man shoes. No further comment.
While some may argue that this look is part of Johnny’s style and he can pull it off, I would argue: Umm… No. He Can’t. And the rest of us shorter men should definitely not try to emulate this look at the risk of looking sloppy and unprofessional.
Stay tuned for the next instalment of ‘Suits for Different Body Shapes’ – Part 4: The Larger Man