Long Torso Styling 101: Best Clothes, Shoes & Accessories

People come in all different shapes and sizes, but also in all different proportions. Some, for example, have long torsos and short legs. Consider us your personal styling guides as we take you on a journey through finding the best clothes, shoes, and accessories for your body type, determining if you have a long torso, and learning which celebrities share your amazing proportions. We'll also share expert styling tips from image consultant and style advisor Jordan Stolch and wardrobe stylist and personal shopper Dina Scherer!

How to Dress Long Torso with Short Legs

Wear tops that end at the hips or higher up the waistline, and go for high-rise pants, shorts, and skirts that create the illusion of a shorter torso. Choose pants and skirts with vertical creases and pleats to elongate your legs. Lengthen your legs even further with heeled shoes that match the color of your bottoms.

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Best Clothes for Long Torso and Short Legs

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If you have a long torso, says Stolch, wearing a shirt "that goes past the hips will make you look bigger on the top [and] shorter on the bottom."^{[1]
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Jordan Stolch
Image Consultant & Style Advisor

Expert Interview} Avoid tunics or oversized tees. Instead, choose shirts that stop at or above your hips. You may also want to try out a crop top to break up the long line of your torso.
High-waisted pants, shorts, and skirts benefit people with long torsos in 2 ways. First, they add structure to your torso so it's not just one long line. Second, they make your short legs look longer by creating the illusion that your waistline is higher on your torso than it really is.^{[2]
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Vertical creases and pleats draw the eye down the legs and make them look longer, according to Scherer.^{[3]
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Dina Scherer
Wardrobe Stylist & Personal Shopper

Expert Interview} Much like a high-rise waist, these features create the illusion that you have long legs, even when you don't. The longer your legs appear, the more they'll balance out your long torso.
Darker colors—like black, navy blue, maroon, or emerald green—"visually… constrict but also lengthen" your legs, says Scherer. She says this is especially true if the dark color starts at the waist, like with a pair of high-rise pants, or higher, as with a sheath dress.^{[4]
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Dina Scherer
Wardrobe Stylist & Personal Shopper

Expert Interview} Lengthening and slimming your legs will, in turn, make your torso look shorter and create the illusion of more balanced proportions.
A jacket with 1 button, like a blazer, makes a long V shape down your torso, which will only make your torso look longer. Choose jackets with 2 or 3 buttons instead. You can even go with a double-breasted style to emphasize your torso's width instead of its length.^{[5]
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Best Shoes for Long Torso and Short Legs

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Matching your shoes and socks to your pants, dress, or skirt is an easy hack to make your short legs look longer. For example, if you're wearing black dress pants, opt for black dress socks and loafers. If you're wearing a black dress, wear black pumps.^{[6]
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Give your short legs a subtle leg up (pun intended) by wearing dress shoes or boots with a small heel or lift in the back. In a more feminine outfit, this might look like kitten heels or short wedges. For a masculine vibe, consider loafers or Chelsea boots.^{[7]
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If you have short legs and a long torso, knee-high boots (especially those with a chunky heel) are your friend. The shafts create an unbroken line from knee to toe, making you appear taller. Contrast this with the effect of an ankle or Chelsea boot, which can cut up that line and make your legs look even shorter. (Unless you're matching your boots to your outfit.)^{[8]
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Another way to elongate your short legs is to emphasize the length of your feet. To do that, look for loafers or flats that barely cover your toes at the end. You can also search the internet for "low vamp shoes." Vamp refers to the top part of your shoe. Low vamp refers to the way the top part of the shoe ends close to your toes. This style looks especially good with dresses and skirts.^{[9]
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Best Accessories for Long Torso and Short Legs

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Skinny belts look lost and out of place on people with long torsos. Instead, choose medium-sized or wide belts that take up more room on your waist. These bigger belts will lend you more structure and proportion.^{[10]
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If you have a long torso, a long tie is only going to make it look longer. Go with a slightly shorter tie instead to create balance. If you're wearing high-rise trousers or a skirt, make sure the tie ends no more than 3–5 cm (1.2–2.0 in) below the waistband. If you're wearing mid-rise bottoms, the tip of the tie should just barely touch the top of the waistband.^{[11]
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How to Know If You Have a Long Torso

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You tend to feel most comfortable wearing high-rise jeans or pants. Put on your favorite jeans or pants and look at yourself in the mirror. Determine if the jeans are high, mid, or low rise. Rise refers to the distance between your crotch and the top of your waist. The waistband of high-rise jeans sits higher on your waist than that of low-rise jeans, which sits low around your hips. You might have a long torso if you feel most comfortable in high-rise jeans.^{[12]
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- Similarly, you may have a short torso if you prefer wearing low-rise jeans.
- If you feel your best in mid rise jeans, your torso may not be long or short. Instead, it may be balanced.
Does it seem like no matter what pant size you buy, the legs are always too long and bunch up around your ankles? If so, that could be a sign that you have short legs and a long torso. This is especially true if you're tall because if your legs aren't long, your torso must be to make up for your height.^{[13]
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Your belly button is uncovered when you measure your torso with your hands. Stand up straight and look at yourself in the mirror. Place your left hand just below your chest area (or below your breasts for women. Next, press your right hand up against your torso directly underneath your left hand. If your right hand is above your belly button, you probably have a long torso.^{[14]
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- If your right hand covers your belly button, you might have a short torso. However, your torso can still be long if your rise (the distance between your crotch and your waist) is also long. Learn more about rise in the next step!
Put on a pair of knee-high boots and see where the tops sit relative to your knee. Most knee-high boot shafts are 15 inches tall, which is about the distance from an average woman's ankle to just below her kneecap. If the tops of the boots sit at or even above your kneecaps, that's a sign you have short legs. Short legs often go hand-in-hand with a long torso.^{[15]
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Your leg-to-height ratio is less than 45%. Stand up straight in bare feet and measure the length of your leg from your crotch to the bottom of your foot. Next, measure your height from your head to the bottom of your foot. Lastly, divide your leg length by your height. The result is the ratio of your leg length relative to your height.^{[16]
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Research source} For most women, their leg ratio is at least 45%. If yours is 45% or lower, you probably have short legs and a long torso.^{[17]
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- Example: Emily is 5'5" or 65 in (170 cm) tall, and her leg length is 28 in (71 cm). We can use the following equation to get her leg ratio: 28 / 65 = 0.43. Based on our calculations, Emily's leg length is 43% of her total height, which is below average. Her torso would be long to make up for how short her legs are and help her reach her total 5'5" height.

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Long Torso vs Short Torso

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A short torso has a low rise, whereas a long torso has a high rise. Remember, rise is the distance between your crotch and your waist. People with short torsos may have trouble finding tops and jackets that don't hang off their hips. When they wear high-rise pants, the waistband tends to stop above their waistline, making their torso look even shorter.
- Use the two-hand method to find out if you have a short torso. Place your left hand under your chest and press your right hand underneath it against your waist. If your right hand covers up your belly button, you probably have a short torso.^{[18]
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- Dress your short torso to elongate it with low-rise bottoms, A-line skirts, drop-waisted dresses, and tops with a V-neck collar.^{[19]
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  Research source} If you're wearing a suit, opt for a longer hemline, low buttons, and angled front pockets.^{[20]
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Celebrities with Long Torsos

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Female celebrities with long torsos include Keira Knightley and Britney Spears. There are lots of others, too! You might recognize stars like Jessica Alba, Olivia Wilde, Lucy Liu, Katie Holmes, Halle Berry, and Emily Ratajkowski. These famous people are known for their acting and charity work, but also for their impeccable style.^{[21]
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Male celebrities with long torsos are Matthew McConaughey and Michael Phelps. This Oscar-winning actor and Olympian swimmer may not have much in common, but the one thing they do is their long torsos. Other male celebrities you may recognize that have this type of proportion are Paul Rudd, Aaron Paul, and Josh Brolin.^{[22]
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Is having a long torso considered attractive?

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It's all in how you style and flaunt it. If you wear tunics, low-rise pants, and other clothes that emphasize your torso length while minimizing your leg length, your outfit may be a little off-putting. That's simply because your outfit lacks balance. But with the right clothes, shoes, and accessories, you can pull off a sophisticated, well-balanced look that works with your unique body type.

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Final Thoughts

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Embrace your long torso and short legs with thoughtful styling. Your body's proportions are part of who you are, and they're amazing! Rather than cover up your lanky torso, enhance it with tops that end at the waist or hips, a medium or wide belt, and a shorter tie. To elongate your legs, wear pleated or creased high-rise jeans, trousers, and skirts. These tips, inspired by our styling experts, will help you rock your unique proportions!