When Fashion Isn't Made for Every Body | The Unique Struggles of Finding Tall Plus-Size Clothing ft. Melanie

Tall women have had their struggles with the fashion industry for the past few decades, which tends to come as a bit of a shock for some people, especially since models are tall, whether they're walking down the runways IRL or appearing in photos modeling clothes for some of our favorite brands. Well, more times than not, those models are short tall nowadays. But that's a different episode for a different day. But it's not uncommon for a tall girly to go into a store and not be able to find pants, tops, dresses, shoes even because they're either too short or too small, and this frustration has led to many tall women starting their own clothing brands for tall women to help solve this problem. And today I will be interviewing one of these tall women. I will be interviewing with Melanie, a fellow tall girly and co founder of Ladies of Leisure, which is a clothing brand specifically for tall women. We're going to be talking about the story behind the brand, many of the fashion struggles that a tall women face, and some of the unique gaps within tall fashion. So without further ado, let's get into it. Good morning, everybody. You are currently listening to a Tall Girls podcast hosted by a tall girl named India. Today, I am joined by a very very special guest. Her name is Melanie. Hi, Melanie, Hello, everybody, how are you doing today? Super duper I'm so excited to be here. Thank you for inviting me. Of course, it's honestly a pleasure to have you here. And you know this is where I ask please introduce yourself to the audience. All right, Well, I am a tall girl and I currently live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I'm a mother of five and I have started this year a Tall Girl brand, which is why I'm on this podcast. And I am five eleven and one quarter. I love the specification of one quarter. Honestly, that is extremely important for everybody to know. It's good to have like the exact details. But yeah, you mentioned that you're a tall girly standing at five or eleven and a quarter. Please tell us about your experiences growing up as a tall girly, the good, the bad, the ugly. What was that like for you? Well, I'm fifty one now in twenty twenty six, so I was born in nineteen seventy four and when I was in middle school, so this would have been the mid eighties. I was the tallest kid in my whole entire school, even taller than the boys. So I remember very clearly. We moved from Utah, where I was born, to San Diego area, and I remember being in eighth grade realizing I was the tallest person the whole school. And when all little girls stand in a little circle, you know, at recess to talk, I remember sticking one foot forward and bending the hip to try to lower myself two inches so I wouldn't appear taller than anybody else. It was very conscious of my height, because when one is in middle school, I think universally this is true. One wants just to fit in and not stand out. The last thing you want to be is different for any reason whatsoever. You want to have the same little outfits everybody else is wearing. My daughter right now is thirteen, my oldest daughter, and when I see her with her friends, they are all identical, like whatever shirt is it a V neck? No, it's a square, a square neck shirt with these little shorts. Like they all want to look the same, so nobody can tease them about being different. So they don't want to have their own individual style. They just want to blend in. So nobody will tease them, and being the tallest in my school when we moved to a new city, a new state, and I didn't know anybody, it was quite honestly the hardest year in my entire life, but not just because I was the tallest in school, but also because all of the what was cool or not to cool in middle school was completely different between Utah and California. So it was a tough year trying to figure things out. But I have a distinct memory, as I said, of just popping out a hip, one leg forward and just getting down a good two inches so I could match everybody else. I even tried out for the basketball team and the volleyball team, but since at that time I had never played anything, I didn't have skills, I didn't make either team. And you think they would have taken the tall schirl the whole school, but that's how bad I was. And then the gym teacher noticed that I tried really hard in jim and so he told the basketball coach, please just take this girl. She's trying so hard. And this doesn't have to do with being tall, but I'm going to say it because it's coming into my mind, because I didn't know any thing about sports. The very first time we were in a what do you call these games where it's like a scrimmage, a preseason game. Yeah, like a scrimmage. I guess, yeah, we're. Scrimmaging another team. The coach pupped me in. I definitely didn't belong on that team because somebody passed me the ball and I was like, oh my god, what do I do? What I do? And I shot it up straight in the hoop. I was so excited the very first time I touched the ball in a game. It went straight in, and then everybody said, no, that's the hoop for the other team. We had to go down there like that's how bad I was. So anyway, eventually I did learn to play some sports, and I became I started playing volleyball my sophomore year of high school, and I played Division one volleyball at Colorado State in the nineties, and then I was a professional volleyball player in Switzerland after that. So I did develop some skills eventually, because I had the height and I had athletic ability, but just took me a while to get there. But this brings me to a story I'd love to tell you about being a tall girl in college. This now is in ninety Let's see, I was in college from ninety two to ninety six, which sounds like the old one days for all of you young ladies who probably listened to your podcast. But at that time, the internet didn't, I mean, the internet didn't exist in the sense that we have it now. It only I think it technically existed, like between universities or something like that. But if I wanted to go shopping, my options were whatever was them all. And I have very very long legs. I know, as you're well aware India, that proportionally, even if two women are the same height, somebody could have a longer torso and somebody could have longer legs proportionally to each other, even if they're measuring the same height. So my torso has always been regular lengths to or so with just extra long legs. And I remember going into the gap in the mall in college and trying on pants, and I was an athletic girl, I was in shape, but the pants were, you know, a good six inches above my ankles, high water pants, and it was cold in Colorado, and they would even cover my little inkles, and I remember crying in the dressing room, crying because there was only one length of pants. There literally didn't exist when I was in growing up, did not exist different ensems Nowhere could you buy them. It's not like now we might say, oh, we can buy them, but they only come in this one style of pant, you know, like four here are five cute colors, but if you want a long enseeame, you just have to pick from these two colors. Like it's still more limited, but then it didn't exist at all. And one volleyball player on my team, she came for a year from France, and she was wearing the most fantastic pants and they were jeans with like a print of flowers on them all over. And she was even taller than I was. She was like at least six foot and a half and beautiful with a gorgeous French accent. And I was like, where did you get these pants? How come your jeans are going all the way down the lowest pants I've everything, like all the way touching almost touching the floor. It's so amazing your style and you're so cool, and how did you get pants like this? Like where did you find them? And she told me that her mom, she was from Nice in the south of France, that her mom had a friend who owned a boutique, and that they simply bought two pairs of pants, cut the fabric off one and attached six inches onto the bottom of the other ones, and that her mom had a seamstress who knew how to do this, and therefore her pants look correct like they were supposed to be. So that's what it took for me growing up to have anybody their ankles covered. Those are some of my. Yeah, that is hilarious, honestly taking two bears of pants and just making into one, and that basically it's kind of the tall girl experience. I mean, most pairs of pants is like it looks like half a pair of pants on us when we put it on, even as you said, with the pants from gap six inches above your ankles, literally half a pair of pants. The thank you so much for sharing your experience is definitely, I will definitely say, like a very standard tall girl experience, even down to when you do like the little hip things, you could be like an extra inch or two shorter than your peers. You know, that's something that all of us have done. That's something that I have definitely done and now I have posture issues partially because of that. But you know what, it's okay. We're still working on it, and we're standing tall today and that's what matters now. I do want to ask, was there anything involving your height? It could be a question, it could be a comment. Was there anything involving your height that you absolutely hated hearing? Oh? My god, Yes, there's one thing. And I do not know if people still say that today, because, as I said, this was like the last century when I was growing up. But the thing that people said was how's the weather up there? As if I was in a different atmosphere. And I thought that was like the stupidest thing in the world to say, and it wasn't even funny. And that is something I heard a lot. Is that still a common thing? I do people your generation ever hear something like that? Oh? When I was growing up, I definitely heard a lot of that. But I think I will definitely say it's decreased, especially when the younger folks, my younger listeners and followers contact me and tell me about their experiences. You know, the thing that's like six seven Nowadays, a lot of people are saying, oh, six' seven because of their height or calling them like the twin towers and. Stuff but you, know every once in a while you hear a, house a weather up there type of, situation or, oh like do you play? Basketball or are you like the center for The lakers or, something and it's just is. Terrible and the fact that people ask these questions is, like what are you doing with your? Life do something else with your? Life besides saying stuff like. This exactly SOMETHING i will tell you on a positive, note my favorite time being a tall, Girl so this happens to me, occasionally and the Time i'm most happy is When i'm. Tall by the, way my husband is six or, five and WHEN i don't go out very often but we for ourselves at music vians be standing up and this is the one Time i'm, like ha ha ha, HA i am. TALL i can see over all of you. GUYS i stretch up another two inches AND i have like a clear view of the. Stage and this is the only Time i'm just like unabashedly proud to be, tall or not, proud but proud to be tall, always but, joyful like this is the one moment in. Life i'm, like, yeah this moment was made for. ME i can see over all of your, heads clear view of the, stage and this is what brings me. Joy, yeah being tall definitely has its, benefits including being in large. Crowds and LIKE i said before we even started, Recording i'm gonna be going to a concert in a few, weeks and let me tell, you being tall and being able to see you up on that, stage that's definitely a great advantage to. Have and you, know there's a lot of great advantages to have when it comes to being, tall even when it seems so bad at, first because you did talk about how you struggled to find pants that were long enough and so, forth and even share the story with your friend making two pants into one pair of, pants and that eventually led you to starting your own, Brand ladies Of. Leisure can you share the story behind the brand and what inspired you to start? It thank, You thank. You. Yes, so not only WAS i unable for most of my life to find things in long, LENGTHS i lived In europe for nine. Years after, UNIVERSITY i moved To europe and probably in the last, well, GOSH i don't know how many, years ten years fifteen. Years i'm not sure how long it's been exactly that some brands Like gap might have tall. Sizes so, yay that's so. Great you got another couple inches in your torso you got another couple inches and lengths in other things you're, having and that's really. Wonderful BUT i WHEN i lived, abroad there were no options over, there and recently there, are but those are more. Basics and WHEN i had five, CHILDREN i gained a lot of, weight and since Then i've you, know whatever weight fluctuates with for moms with babies and stuff and going up and. Down so even WHEN i did gain some weight after the, KIDS i would, Say, okay let me find a cute little summer dress On gap that's. Tall, nope it only goes up to size. Sixteen AND i was a, twenty SO i couldn't even get tall and plus size at the same. Time it's like the tall only went to a certain. Number AND i understand now why this. Is it costs a lot more money for brands to make multiple. Sizes so every different skew they have code they have on their, clothing every different size and color has to be, produced kept track of sold and the more skews they, have the harder it is to sell all of those random. Sizes and SO i understand business wise why a company might need to limit what they're able to make and, produce because that's a big investment to do all of those. Things BUT i did find it frustrating even on lands, end who has some tall, sizes they have some plus. Sizes the same thing, again IF i WHEN i was a plus, SIZE i needed a tall couldn't find. It SO i felt, like, WELL i did. GROW i learned to sew in. COLLEGE a girl on my volleyball team taught. Me we were making like little quilt pillows, together and another friend taught me how to sew. Curtains SO i really enjoyed sewing and very Good. INDIA i like to, Say i'm very good at sewing anything that is a, rectangle like if it's a, blanket if it's a, CURTAIN i can just make it if it's. Straight but SINCE i knew how to work with fabric a number of years, ago WHEN i was still a tall, lady and also at that time of plus sized, LADY i was struggling to find things that would fit my. Body and ALSO i don't know what the right word is a mature. Woman AND i want to have clothes that blow nicely for somebody my, age somebody your age is going to look great in Like i'm showing their mid drift and cute little young outfits and. Stuff AND i just wanted, long flowy things that fit my style for the AGE i. Am and it couldn't find, anything literally, Anything AND i, thought how hard is it to make a dress that will fit my body no matter how much WEIGHT i gain or? Lose and how hard is it for a brand to make a dress that looks exactly the same on the person whether they're five to six or six, Six, Like it's not an. Impossibility it's just fabric and some. Measurements SO i started buying lots of fabric to practice with and drying and cutting and draping on my own, body AND i was, like there there has to be a way that something can look good no matter how the body increases or decreases across. Time and why can't it go exactly WHERE i want to my? Height why can't the sizes be just how tall you are and the dress fits you no matter? What and, so working through, THIS i invented literally invented the circle, dress which has never existed anywhere in the world Because i've researched it over and over and. Over i'm wearing it right. Now you can't quite, see but you could check out links to our Website ladies Of leisia dot. Com so the circle dress because it's not a rectangle like a calf down that list looks. Baggy it's cut of eleven yard of the fabric that are in a circle and will drape over the. Body so the same, person if you are six feet, tall you buy a dress in a correct length for your. Height it doesn't matter if you are gain, weight if you go through a, pregnancy if you lose, weight, Whatever it's always going to fit you until you're like ninety years. Old i've been told that very old people like start shrinking a little, bit then you might have to have. It but until you get to that, point it's always going to fit you no matter. What SO i invented the circle, dress AND i insisted that all of the all of the, sizing there's no like, small, medium larg or. Whatever it's literally how many inchests do you want your dress to be from the shoulders down to your, Feet so it's like fifty, six fifty, eight sixty sixty, two sixty. Four as tall as you, are we can make a dress that length and you're gonna look gorgeous in. It so that's how it all came. About AND i always say to PEOPLE i heard this. SUMMER i don't know who said, originally out of pain can come a. Passion so these pain points in my, life if somebody hasn't lived, them they don't know. Them they have absolutely no idea why we tall girls are, like, ah it's so hard to find pants or you, know but once you've had this pain point of tears in the dressing, room then that creates inside of me a passion to solve that problem so other people don't have. It so from pain comes, passion and that's How ladies Of leisure came. About oh that. Sounds so LIKE i love the little. Ending from pain comes, passion that's so. True like with you starting your brand or even me starting this, podcast the ultimate goal here is to make sure that tall women get what they, need whether it's clothes that fit their, length or maybe a little confidence boosts or self esteem boosts and so. Forth and you know that's the whole that's the whole point of what we're. Doing and you, know it's great to hear how you started your journey With ladies Of, leisure and it's great to hear that you also know how to sell and that you're super good at that. Too we love special talents and so, forth and how that's even helping you with your. Business and that was also a very interesting point that you just brought up earlier about you, know you still had your weight from pregnancy and so, forth and being, tall and that definitely shows to a larger issue about finding tall plus sized, clothing because plus sized clothing is now at least becoming like a little bit more diversified and becoming more out there and so, forth but tall, clothing tall clothing is not i, guess the most out there or the most. Popular so when you have tall plus sized women trying to find, clothing that's definitely one of the main struggles That i've heard many tall plus sized women say they have a hard time finding clothes that actually fit their. Bodies AND i wanted to, ask, like do you think that that's maybe like one of the gaps that you personally see in tall. Fashion do you think that there are any other gaps or issues within tall fashion that you've seen that can be solved By ladies Of leisure being part of that. Solution, yes SO. I think so much of your. Question it's absolutely true finding tall that are tall and plus size clothing together that's even rarer than finding plus. Size, now there's lots of plus size brands out, there thank, goodness there's a number of tall brands out there, also but finding ones that overlap to the right, extent this is still a little bit. Difficult and it also has so much to do WITH i think the age and the style of the. Person it is a little bit easier to find basics or some stuff that's super trendy and really. Young SO i actually think if somebody is your age and you, know up to date with a, fashion there are a few brands that do a pretty good job of having tall and plus, Size BUT i think it's harder for somebody like me who's older and doesn't necessarily want the trendiest outfits out there, showing you, know AS i said, before the middrift or too much leg or whatever like. That so and OFTENTIMES i do find, things but then they're sold, Out So i'd be, like oh my, gosh this is so. Cute oh thank, god you made something and it is the right length and it's the right, size and you only produced fifty of them and they're all, gone you, Know SO i, WOULD i, Know And i'm sure you're you're watching your face to. React, India i'm sure you've experienced the same thing where you're, like, ah there's something THAT i, like that's for, me that's in my price. Range it's good color on my, skin that's everything. Perfect but it's the one size completely sold, out and they have plenty of the other. Sizes SO i always thought this to be true. Too WHEN i was shopping for. Shoes i'm a forty Two, EUROPEAN i mean eleven In american, sizes and or ACTUALLY i would say more of a forty, three but everybody's trying to convince me i'm a forty two so they can sell me something WHEN i live In europe AND i just squush it in. There cinderella, Style cinderella's sister. Style you. Know just last, month somebody's, Like i'm sure these are gonna fit. YOU i, was you, know back visiting In, europe and they're, like just try them. On this this is like, raffia it's. Stretches just try them. On AND i was, like you want your commission so. Much you want me to feel Like Cindra OLA's, sister like really. Squeezing. Amn SO i remember so many times growing up and, oh do you carry a size? Eleven we absolutely. Do what do you have in? Stock? Oh, well we sold the four pairs we ordered and we don't have anything. Left so why if they're the very first size sold out forever and ever and, ever why don't you just make more and larger sizes like? You people want, them people need, them and this whole whoever's making decisions on how much to or of each, things they absolutely do not have large, feet or they would order. More you know what'd be. Fun why doesn't somebody, Say, okay we order so many in all these different sizes than, colors let's order more of these and if we don't sell, out we'll put them on sale like we do all those other. Sizes LIKE i don't find on sale in my size because they're sold, out you, know so. Quickly but that would be a nice thing to experience where a size the love is actually on sale as opposed to be the first thing sold out on a. BRAND i, like, yeah that's definitely the sold out part definitely got me because it's so annoying about how many brands are, like, yeah there's not that many tall, women so there's no point in trying to cater to them and so forth and so. On but then it's like it sells out very quickly because it's not just tall women buying. Them it's shorter women apparently are also buying these clothing items because they want clothes that are more oversized or a lot of above average girlies or maybe like FIVE ec girlies and so. Forth they have longer, limbs so they need the tall sizes as, well you, know so kind of taking that into, consideration and the brands don't take that into consideration, actually so you, KNOW i used to get very annoyed by, it but you, know there's amazing tall brands like you that exist. Now AND i also did kind of wanted to like sidetrack before we get to our last, question ask a little bit more about the dress that you're actually. WEARING i know the audio listeners are not going to be able to see, it but for those who are tuning into the, video maybe you can like stand up and maybe show us a little bit more and like tell us a little bit more about the design and the fabric, maybe. So as you can, see this is a plastic, print and what that means in fashion is that it's not an overall. Print the print is placed to fall exactly on the body in the right, location as opposed to an overall print that just has like small flowers. Everywhere that's absolutely. Stunning its censures at the waist in, back BUT i don't have it coming through the, back so you can't. Tell but it has the option. To sense yes to the front right the kate. Like and the belt can be cinched at the front or it can gather in the back. Also but it's meant to be very, flowy and because it's a, circle it's falling on the bias and hugging the body. Beautifully whether the body is you, know a little more fluffy or a little. Slimmer it looks great on all shapes of. Bodies so that's HOW i designed. It and that is the circle dress In Jardie. Nocturne that is you could see on the website if you want. It that is absolutely that dress is absolutely. STUNNING i love the, PATTERN i love the, detailing and so. Forth thank you so much for talking about your brand and talking about the gaps that you see in, fashion in tall fashion Even AND i do want to get to our last. Question what is one piece of advice that you would like to give to the tall girlies who are listening to this right, now who may be struggle with their self esteem because of their. Height this is such a good question that you close. With i'm really glad you ask. It i'm thinking now WHAT i would say to my eighth grade self or my high school self and the one who, was, like you, know slouching down two inches not to stand, out and IF i could give her any advice the thirteen year old, ME i would, Say Melanie, DARLING i know it's hard to look different in any capacity from the other people around. YOU i know it's hard with peer pressure to fit. In we are designed as humans and creatures to belong to a tribe and the only way to stay surviving in that tribe is not to get excluded from it and cast, out and we all conform to fit in for. Safety but that's an instinct at a survival level that we have as. Humans AND i would say to, you, Darling, melanie thirteen year Old, MELANIE i would, say you were given this height By god for a reason you might not yet. Understand and if you can look at it through a spiritual lens and, say my life is still. UNFOLDING i don't know all the beautiful possibilities it's going to. Bring but If god gave me these, inches it's for a. Reason and IF i can walk with grace and love in my heart and Trust god's, plan that's ALL i need to know right now in my thirteen year old. Mind nothing. ELSE i don't have to have anything. Else i'll figure. Out, plus when you get older and you go to bigger schools where there are more, students they're going to be more tall, people and the guys are going to catch, up and it's it's going to be. Okay and you can absolutely find a tall boyfriend later when you need. One don't worry about. It and As i'm talking to, Myself i'm just going to say all of this to my thirteen year old, self believe it or. Not, melanie thirteen year Old, Melanie you're going to get to the point when you're in your twenties living In, europe and you're so confident in your. Height you're going to be wearing two and a half to three inch heels and you're going to date a guy who only comes up to your, shoulders and you are proudly going to walk down the streets Of athens looking like a million bucks Sash hane everywhere you, go feeling fabulous because you will have learned something you don't know. Now at. Thirteen you will have learned how to be fully present in your body and love What god gave, you and you'll grow in your. Confidence and that comes with getting out of middle. School that's WHAT i would say to my thirteen year old. Self so, basically we just need to out of middle. School it gets better After that's so that is literally so. True. Though patience is very important and even as you, said like you're given it for a reason that you may not find out till you're like older and later in, Life like you started literally a brand for a tall woman later in. Life so it's, Like i'm pretty sure thirteen year old you can, imagine you, know having started. That just like with, me thirteen old me didn't THINK i would be starting a podcast to help tall women and. Stuff so that first of, all that was very. Poetic thank you so much for, That but it is also such great. Advice please please please tell us where we can find, you where we can find your brand on the internet so we can check out your pieces and so. Forth thank, you thank. You So ladies Of leisure is spelt like it, sounds but with hyphens in Between ladies hyphen of Hyphen leisure dot. Com AND i Have I'M i Have instagram AND i don't use it very, much But i'm starting. To this is SOMETHING i haven't told, you But i've. Launched, Well i've wrote a book a few years ago about, hospitality And i've just launched my, Website melaniewolf dot com and that is Where i'm sharing everything about my. Book Something i'm passionate about besides making tall ladies beautiful with dresses that tickle their toes all the way as long as they want. Them besides, That i'm passionate about sacred. Hospitality And i've written a book WHERE i share EVERYTHING i learned living, abroad and it is about how to welcome guests into your, home focusing on the intangible energy we have together and, togetherness making that a priority over the physical items that we. Have i've recently learned in our culture are the most, important like the table setting and the food and everything that's instagram. Levele So i'm helping young women learn to revert to focusing on the spiritual togetherness aspect of ancient sacred hospitality instead of focusing on just what we can look at and take a picture. Of so my website is melaniewolf dot com AND i wrote a book on, that and so My, Instagram i've been told by my publisher THAT i have to start posting things On, Instagram so TECHNICALLY i exist, there but hopefully the worl will be something up by time you edit, this and that My instagram is The Melanie. Wolf so t h E e The Melanie. Wolf got? It thank you so much for sharing your. Links of, course all of that is going to be in the Description ladies Of leisure and melaniewolf dot, com so that book and check you, out check your book, out check your pieces out and so. Forth And i'm gonna do a quick little plug for myself at A Toll girls podcast literally Everywhere, instagram TikTok pinture With, YouTube, Google i'm. Everywhere y'all know this by. Now and thank you so much Again melanie for joining me for an episode. TODAY i really do appreciate it AND i really enjoyed. This thank, You. India it's been a complete joy to spend this time with. YOU i hope we're able to stay, connected of. Course and until then we will catch you guys in the next. One good night and, goodbye bye, bye. Everybody