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Making a statement, fashion or otherwise


The T-shirt is going through another transformation:not only are they going designer (see left), they're getting longer. For the past year, T-shirt makers such as Michael Stars, Splendid, James Perse and J.Crew have all been lengthening the hem on their standard Tees, even adding thigh-skimming versions that could be mistaken for mini-dresses.

The trend owes as muchto practicality - the need to cover up that strip of flesh that low-rise jeans leave bare - as it does to anything else. "Showing your stomach past a certain age is inappropriate," sniffs Holly Dunlap, the globetrotting designer behind the Hollywould accessories and clothing lines. Dunlap recently scooped up four longer-length T-shirts from American Apparel, which she wears either with jeans or belted over a pencil skirt.

Besides practicality, the long T-shirt is in part a consequence of the rise of its hipster counterparts, the skinny jean and leggings. As Yasmin Sewell, director of buying for London boutique Browns Focus says, with skinny jeans or trousers "it's the only length that makes sense". Sewell estimates that 90 per cent of the T-shirts Browns is selling are long-waisted.

Likewise, as Michael Stars designer Michele Knight-Fayette points out, the longer, leaner silhouette of the T-shirt complements this season's leggings and "coincides with the re-emerging of the 60s mod and 80s punk trends coming from London".

However, not everyone agrees on the long Tee's reference point, and that's due in part to its versatility. With leggings, it's very Edie Sedgwick, says Blair Voltz Clarke, a New York-based gallery owner and avowed fan ofthe long-Tee-and-leggings look. Belted with capris, it's very Brigitte Bardot. And layered under a cropped jacket or dress, it harks back to the late 1990s and Marc Jacobs' ill-fated grunge moment according to Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of the museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York.

No wonder Stephanie Solomon, fashion director of women's ready-to-wear at Bloomingdale's, says customers have been snapping up long Tees from brands such as James Perse, Generra and Iisli to pair with short cardigans and jackets and Norma Kamali leggings. "It's kind of like a uniform, like the new tracksuit," says Solomon.

And as with the tracksuit, some of the best models of the long T-shirt trend are Hollywood starlets. Think Lindsay Lohan, Mischa Barton and Nicole Ritchie; girls more frequently seen without oversized sunglasses and Balenciaga bags than without a long-waisted Tee. But just how appropriate is the style for the non-Lohan/Barton/Ritchie rest of us?

It all depends, apparently, on where the T-shirt's hem hits on the hip - and that, in turn, depends on who you talk to. Brown's Yasmin Sewell thinks shirts should "just cover the bum" to make legs look more slender, but designer Nicole Romano insists they should "fall in the middle of the backside" for a more flirty look.

Meanwhile, Rock Culture designer Andrea Victor, whose curvy frame and petite stature inspire her figure-flattering embellished Tees and tanks, advises customers to either look for long T-shirts that hit just above the widest part of the hip or have them shortened. "We get our pants hemmed everyday, why not our T-shirts?" shrugs Victor.

By contrast, Elizabeth Charles, whose eponymous boutique in New York's Meatpacking District stocks long tanks and Tees from New Zealand's Zambesi, says forget the tailoring, go for ruching instead. "It's very flattering and can hide a tummy." (Worried about getting the scrunching right? Choose styles with the gatherings sewn into the sideseams, like Michael Stars' best-selling ruched tank and new long-sleeve tunic.)

Another trick for pear-shaped women is to wear the long Tee under a soft, blousey top, says Alice Heller, the Los Angeles-based designer behind the Zooey T-shirt line. Those with small waists and curvier hips should try cinching the look at the waist with a wide belt, adds Sewell. Plus, don't forget the long necklace, says Charles.

Still, some are not willing to go to such lengths to make a style work. "They make my hips look bigger," moans Kristin Jones, a New York-based movie producer, who says she looks for Tees that accentuate her small waist and are just long enough to cover the tops of her low- slung jeans.

She'll have to look even harder next season, however. Rumour has it that the ubiquitous style is going to be banded and blouson.