How to make 90s style work as a short man

Ah the Nineties, they were not a good time for me fashion-wise. Arguably, they were not a good time for anyone fashion-wise, but such is the cyclical nature of style that what was considered cool in 1994 is now back on high-streets and Instagram accounts to world over.

I have largely shied away from getting too involved with this trend. Fads and fashion cycles are difficult to navigate if half of the cuts and looks don’t suit your stature, and the Nineties’ dedication to long and loose can tend to make the shorter ones among us look a bit like a bag of washing.

But if you are minded to dip your toe into the pool of fashions from the days when the Spice Girls, Oasis and Paul Gasgoine were the height of cool, then I have two simple tips:

1. Size over everything
2. Buy original

I have said before that ‘loose-fit’ is a difficult one for the smaller among us. You can often achieve the look buy buying clothes many would consider fitted, but there is a different between oversized and not fitting.

When it comes to the Nineties, loose is the look most clothes go for, so personally I would recommend getting items which are created in this cut and then buying your normal size. I recently picked up a great Ralph Lauren pullover on eBay which is designed loose in the body and tapered with elastic at the bottom. But it is also short in body and sleeve, so I am not drowning in it.

If you try and buy a normal jumper in a size or two up you often end up with something very long, which swamps you. This is fine if you have the height to carry it off, but us small folks do not. We look like we borrowed our parent’s clothes. It’s not a good look.

Seocndly, where possible, buy items from the period. They usually run a bit smaller than their modern counterparts, so they will fit better. What is more, if you are patronising thrift shops or Vinted, you will find items which have been through the wash and settled in their final form. There is nothing worse than getting loose fit right and then it all being ruined by a wash.  And hey, original is always best, right?

So, by all means do the Nineties look. It’s comfy and, done right, it’s pretty cool. But buy for the look.

Want more of this type of thing? I have created a dedicated ShortManStyle Substack, drop by and see what’s going on.