Stylist and designer Irene Agbontaen reveals how she was quick to realize her “tall-girl moment” and the need for extra finessing to cater to her 5-foot-11 frame. She recalled it was during her South London secondary school days when it was announced that girls could wear pant.
“All the girls went out and bought Lycra stretchy, tight trousers,” says Agbontaen. “And I was like, ‘They’re all going to be ankle swingers.’ ”
“Brands think that just adding an extra five centimeters at the end of a garment makes it a ‘tall’ fit,they don’t actually take into consideration a woman’s frame.” Irene says further.
Irene Agbontaen’s role as a stylist over the years involves navigating shopping for herself and dressing leggy models, this as a result gave birth to the creation of TTYA, a line of wardrobe essentials tailored to the needs of taller women.
“I don’t shy away from trends,” “I feel like I can always wear what I want.
Irene did the great thing to reveal further that proportions are the key to pulling off even the most daring looks; this definitely explains the playful and fearless dresser she happens to be.
Finally, Irene Agbontaen’s revelations in this post is to tackle this fall’s major trends and share some of her time-tested styling tricks for dressing a taller frame.
Consider the tracksuit.
“Of late, tracksuits have been popping up on the runway, but they’ve always been popular in London. I like my tracksuits to fit oversize, and I like the sleeves to drop a bit longer. I tend to buy a lot of men’s tracksuits, but I make them feminine by wearing [them] with a sock boot. The good thing about men’s styles is that everything is kind of tapered and tailored, so the fit will still be a slim line. I usually get a men’s medium or a women’s large. I’ve found that it’s just about toying with sizes to fit your frame; that’s how I get around the struggle.”
Maxi dresses are a cinch—but be sure to make a statement with footwear.
“I’m still waiting for the day that I find a maxi floral dress to the floor—that is, unless I make one myself. Most of them will stop just on the cuff or above the ankle. But since that’s kind of in at the moment, I’ll wear them with a little sock boot or sneakers. In terms of fit in my torso, I tend to size up, nip it in at the waist with a belt, and pair it with a slouchy vintage boot to style out the shorter length.”
Embrace the midi length.
“Midis can be a funny one to pull off. Thankfully, it’s almost as if the awkwardness of things not fitting is on trend now, so it’s a lot easier to make things work. Some brands have specific fits now for our height—places like H&Mand ASOS, and of course TTYA. But if you can’t find that specific fit, you can get a regular maxi skirt, which will fit like midi length on a tall person.”
Try the velvet trend—just add layers.
“Velvet can be a tricky trend because you usually can’t find it to specifically fit a tall frame. And you’re definitely going to want to wear a lot of velvet for the upcoming holiday season. The best way to get around it is to layer. When I can get a velvet dress, I pair it with something that is tall-specific, like a turtleneck with longer sleeves to camouflage the sleeve length. Or if I’m wearing a velvet skirt, I’ll wear it with sneakers and an oversize sweater on top to play up the cropped proportions. For me, velvet is really winning.”
