In Short, Men's Clothes have come a long way- but would you say some things have come too far?

I'll admit it: I am a regular and avid reader of men's magazines.  Esquire. GQ.  It goes with the territory since my job requires I be "up to date" on the latest styles and trends.  But, the MORE important part of my job is to be able to adapt those styles and trends to real life and create clothes real men really want to wear and CAN wear, with comfort and confidence- and of course, in the correct sizes and fits. 

It's not uncommon, of course, to see a few "outlandish" things, that are actually kinda' cool and slowly you start to see them worn "on the street."  For example, I love that this season seems to be awash with bright color- from jeans, to socks, to hats- you name it.  For most of us though, these "trends" are incorporated in our wardrobes in more subtle ways.  A bright colored tie, or a T-shirt that pops worn under a more neutral V-neck sweater. Check out some examples below.

Orange & Blue- great for Spring (and fans of a certain Florida team...but I won't pick sides!) - available in short and tall tie lengths at ForTheFit.com

A bright, Spring-worthy trio of shorter-length ties, available in short men's clothing sizes at ForTheFit.com

It's Spring!  The latest trend: make it POP!  Try pairing a bright colored top with an equally Spring-hued sweater in a light silk, suitable for the season  (featured above: short men's proportioned fit top in Grass Green, 23.98, and silk blend short men's sweater in a perfect sky blue "Azure", 49.98; tall men's shirts are available,too.  Try our essential Tees and Polos in Tall Men's Clothing  Sizes, 8 colors from $16.99

But every now and again, a new trend surfaces that leaves me scratching my head.  Take the new "man bags" flooding the marketplace.  Oversized, Mary-Poppins inspired things with straps so short they require the bag be carried by hand.  Beautiful leathers and charming shapes abound, I grant you- but really?  They seem uncomfortable and conspicuous to me.  Modern life requires wheels to move swiftly through the airport.  Easy to open bags from which you can swiftly remove your laptop at security checkpoints.  A bag you can sling on your back or shoulder so you can also manage the newspaper, coffee mug, phone, keys or other slew of items you need both hands to handle at any given time.  Theses new (or old?  they are vintage inspired!) bags just don't seem practical.  Then again, I am not a man and perhaps you guys have been limited to messenger bags and backpacks for far too long.  Are you ready for a change? In short, men's clothes has come a long way, but would you say it's gone too far?  I'd love to hear some opinions- what do you all thing of the new men's "travel" bags and overnighters?

Yours through thick, thin, (and  tall & short men's clothing!)  =)

-Consuelo Bova,
CEO, ForTheFit.com for short men's clothing and tall men's clothes- slim or stout

Celeb Style Report: Oscars 2009, a Short Walk Down the Red Carpet

Look no further than the nearest Red Carpet for exemplary Short Men's Fashion "Dos" (and some serious "Don'ts," too). It is especially important for shorter men in the entertainment industry to look sharp and confident at these events and make the most of their height. Some tips for looking smart (and walking tall) at your next evening event, garnered from observing some of our favorite, shorter male celebs:

1) Anthony Hopkins (5'8")

The Clothes: a two button, properly fitted tux (see it HERE)

The Lesson: DO choose a suit or a tux with lapels that start lower, since the longer V-shape can lengthen the look of the torso. A four button suit adds too much unflattering bulk to a shorter frame

2) Emile Hirsch (5'5.5")

The Clothes: Long, slouchy pants worn on the red carpet make him look shorter (see it HERE)

The Lesson: DON'T wear pants that are too long. Uncuffed suit pants should be just long enough to create just a small break in the front crease. If there is no break, your pants are too short. Multiple or deep breaks mean your pants are too long. Also, the hem should slope toward the back. ForTheFit.com offers advice and actual photos of great fit, click here. Get your trousers hemmed by a professional, or buy pre-hemmed trousers in your exact inseam (no additional tailoring time or charge) and even in short-rise styles, at shorter men's specialist, ForTheFit.com

3) Sean Penn (5'8")

The Clothes: Sean Penn wore all black on Oscar night, with a slim patterned tie for added style and visual interest (see it HERE).

The Lessons:

DO try a monochromatic look at your next formal event. Wearing the same color head-to-toe helps visually lengthen the body to make you look taller. Plus, an all-black suit, shirt and tie ensemble projects a high-fashion and high-powered image.

DO keep the width of your tie thin and the knot small. Looking taller can be accomplished by creating vertical lines wherever you can. A thinner tie guides the eye down the line of your body and a small knot will keep the tie from looking too angular. Also, be sure the length of your tie is right for your body; it should never fall below your belly button.

Black shirts with a trim fit and skinny ties available at FortheFit.com.

* All heights are provided based on estimates available at CelebHeights.com. They are offered for entertainment purposes only and we cannot verify their accuracy.

If the sock fits...": The Do's and Don'ts of this highly Misunderstood Men's Accessory

...then buy it in every color!

Men don't often give much thought to their hosiery purchases, until of course it's halfway through some insufferable meeting and you notice your socks are slipping and your feet hurt from the misplaced seams- or perhaps on a walk, when you stop to adjust your socks every few steps. Sound familiar? Then read on!


FIT & QUALITY: Stepping in...
Half Sizes, Widths...when buying shoes, you look for a perfect fit. Yet, socks are only offered in these wide ranges that suggest that you can wear the same footwear as a man who wears a shoe 3 sizes larger than you. The retail industry has determined that the "average" shoe size is 10-12 and creates socks accordingly. However, if you were smaller than a 10 or larger than a 12, you may find fit to be a problem. Men with smaller feet often shop the boy's department for dress and casual socks, finding the low price irresistable. But the quality is poor, so socks have to be replaced with such frequency that any savings disappear. Others simply buy socks that are too large and tuck under the toe, leading to foot pains, itching, or just plain discomfort. Former shoe salesperson A. Bridge reveals, "I can tell you that no matter what those sock packages claim, men under a size 8 won't fit into a 10-13 sock size without rolling or tucking – and they aren't happy about it. Also, Men with larger feet shop store after store looking for socks with heels that actually reach the end of their foot."

Instead, find socks that fit your foot. For larger shoe sizes (13+), try specialty retailers, such as
JayStevens.com, which offer socks in larger size ranges. For smaller feet (shoe size less than 10), FortheFit.com offers premium Men's socks in size small, to fit shoe sizes 5-9.

Quality matters, too. The hallmark of quality socks and hosiery are the seam, material and workmanship. Face it, men's socks get used and abused- you literally walk all over them. Invest in quality hosiery that offers a hand-linked toe-seam for an exceptionally smooth join, and premium fibers (which hold-up better wash-after-wash, wear-after-wear).

STYLE: Stepping Out
Now that you've found socks to fit you, here are a few style tips to make sure your feet don't offend...

• The color of your socks should match the color of your pants, not your shoes. However, the color is preferably not exact unless you wear black pants.


• Your sock drawer should include at least two each of the basics: black socks for dress, blue for jeans, a color close to khaki and athletic socks


• Athletic Socks are for the Gym only. Period.


• With shorts, wear nothing higher than an Ankle sock. With long pants, wear socks high enough that you expose no leg when you sit.


• Colorful and patterned socks are great for adding a little extra pizazz to your wardrobe, but keep this in mind: the more colorful your outfit the more toned down your socks should be. Avoid looking like you stepped out of a work by Andy Warhol.


• Socks + Sandals = Oil + Water - they never go together.

This election season, Vote for ForTheFit.com

If you love shopping at ForTheFit.com, please help us spread the word about this great store!

We've entered ForTheFit.com in a contest recently & would really appreciate your support. Your vote counts, and winning means a lot of great publicity for our company, which means more people can enjoy all that ForTheFit has to offer!

You can vote 1x per day, every day- so please vote as many times as you can remember. It's really easy, just ...


Thank you so much & Best Regards,

Consuelo Bova, CEO
ForTheFit.com

Congratulations to the 2008 Short Man of Style...

We are proud to announce that a winner has been selected for this year's Short Man of Style competition. Sponsored by ForTheFit.com, National Short Man of Style Month occurs each year in June. As part of this yearly celebration “of men under 5’9” who stand tall & look great,” ForTheFit.com sponsors a competition to seek out the Nation’s most stylish shorter man. In addition to fashionable and under 5'9", he should be an over-achiever in life- i.e. with family, friends, career, and community. Contestant’s had to send in a photograph of themselves looking their most fashionable, as well as a short essay explaining why they were in fact this year’s best choice for National Short Man of Style. The grand prize, a new wardrobe from ForTheFit.com worth approximately $750, generated significant interest in the competition and picking a winner this year from the many qualified entrants was a tough job.

So who won? You'll need to visit www.ShortMenofStyle.com to find out! (or check back in a few weeks- when I'll profile him here on my blog).

- Connie

For more information visit www.FortheFit.com and www.ShortMenofStyle.com.

As SEEN In... ForTheFit.com and Short Men's Clothing have become quite the hot topics!

First of all - today is June 1st, so HAPPY "SHORT MEN OF STYLE" MONTH! Remember to celebrate by looking your best the whole month long! Also, have you entered yourself in the National Short Man of Style 2008 competition yet? If not, you have 2 more weeks to enter for a chance to win a whole new wardrobe from ForTheFit.com. For details, read my last blog entry, or check out the official contest website at ShortMenofStyle.com

It has been a busy few months for short men's clothing in general, and ForTheFit.com in particular. We have been quite lucky to be featured in some phenomenal publications and to help generate some interest and awareness to this issue of short men's fashion.

Most recently, in response to a reader question in the popular "Ask Teri" fashion column of the Wall Street Journal, our own C.F.O. Jeff Bova was interviewed by Teri Agins. To read the question & answer, click here:
Ask Teri: Finding Clothes that Fit Well.

There has also been a lot of interest in me personally in my roles as CEO of men's e-tailer ForTheFit.com, wife and mom. On, May 22, '08, Entrepreneur.com's "WomenEntrepreneur.com" featured a great, enriching story by Lena West full of great tips about how to escape overflowing e-mail inboxes using some simple methods and new technology. She even included some of my own simple methods for managing the sometimes overwhelming contents of a CEO's inbox. Click here to read Escaping E-Mail Overload by Lena West. There are a few other stories in the pipeline, I'll post when they are published.

Our products themselves have also received some great press. We have added some earth-friendly, eco-fashion proportioned for the shorter, slimmer man. Customer's have responded quite favorably to our Alternative Apparel T-shirts and Jackets, and so has the Press. Our Eco-Heather T-shirts from Alternative Apparel were featured in Lisa Neff's May 3, 2008 article Earth Duds for Earth Day in the Chicago Free Press. This came on the heels of a feature about our women's and men's short-length (inseam) sweats and athletic pants in the Orlando Sentinel's Style Section, Fashion Focus: Dress Up, Dress Down by Jean Patteson.

Also, CNN recently ran a story about short men's fashion, which was picked up on the wires and published in papers throughout the country. All in all, it has been a phenomenal few months for shorter men's fashion and we are so pleased. Thank you to the reader's and viewers out there for their interest and to the members of the press for their help in bringing this topic to life and raising awareness!

- Consuelo Bova,

CEO, ForTheFit.com

February Finds...

me staring at order forms and trying to make some final decisions about the many exciting new products we've come across for our customers while scouring the apparel markets.

Anyway, I promised a preview and here goes:

* New Short Rise Trousers - We've stumbled across some great new casual pants that feature short rise and shorter inseam. Besides the usual Khakis and dress trousers, this fall we'll be adding a wide variety of casual men's styles so you can take that basic wardrobe to the next level! We're adding a couple of new brands too- all of which offer trimmer, more proportioned fits for the shorter man.

* New Denim - We haven't decided yet- but it looks like we have as many as two new brands joining our lineup. Both offer true short-rise styles (as opposed to low-rise), and FACTORY FINISHED shorter hems. Never mind the premium denim quality and up-to-the-minute style!!! Score!

* NEW Short-rise shorts for spring in various styles and colors

That's not even the half of it... I'd tell you more but then it wouldn't technically be a preview so much as the full story! Anyway, it will be an exciting Spring and Fall lineup for ForTheFit.com and we look forward to sharing this new merchandise with you as it arrives (I'll provide any interesting background stories then!).

Best,

Connie

For the Love of Clothes...

As I write this post, I'm on a plane to Las Vegas to celebrate Valentine's Day with my husband the usual way- we're off to Market to discover the latest & greatest in Men's apparel. 'Vegas is home to some of the largest apparel markets and conventions for retailers in the U.S., with bi-annual shows in February and July.

The annual shows are actually a stressful time for Jeff (my husband and C.F.O. of ForTheFit.com) and I. Why? Because we are not your average menswear store. We are a specialty retailer- specializing in Short Mens Clothes. We head to market in search of the best labels, up to date styles, quality casual and professional attire- proportioned to fit shorter men. The problem? Shopping industry markets is not much different from shopping your local department store- options can be limited for those with slimmer builds, short inseams, or overall shorter in height (i.e. under 5'9").

The frustrating thing is that we estimate that there are at least 14 million American men who fall into this category and want attractive clothes to wear. So for them, I pass up a real Valentine's Day every year and walk the endless men's market mazes housed within the various Las Vegas convention centers. I consider myself to be their personal shopper- seeking out brands that cut their wears to the right proportions for smaller men, convincing popular labels to make special size runs for us, and finding other quality manufacturers to do our custom work. Sounds easy enough, right? If only! But it's worth it because we've been at it for nearly 3 years now and I frequently receive messages from customers excited that for the first time, they are enjoying great fit and style- right off the rack. Love that. The stress of forcing change in a pretty static industry… not so much.

So if it is so stressful, then why do I subject myself to this mission every year? For the love of clothes, (and my business partner, of course,who keeps me laughing even in the most stressful of times!). Though our job is not an easy one, I would be lying if I said that we don't have any fun at market. There's a certain thrill to the "Sneak Peek" at what's coming to stores near you (and online!) in the upcoming months. There's an even greater thrill when I score these same styles and the best brands for my customers. I look forward to reporting back soon on our market finds and things to look forward to in the world of short men's apparel for Spring '08. Happy Valentines Day to you all,

Connie