Colors are in this season and they’re popping up all over the place… even in denim! Celebrities like Rihanna and Fergie have been spotted rockin’ colorful jeans in magazines and models have been strutting them down the runways. I’ll share with you the secret to sporting this stylish trend and looking fabulous!
Blue jeans will never go out of style. Whether they’re boot cut, straight leg, flared or skinny, denim is here to stay! But why stop at blue when there are so many colors in the rainbow? This season jeans are showing up in a variety of colors. Vibrant red is taking the lead and they’re easy to dress up or down.
Here are a few of my style tips for wearing colored denim:
- Pick the right length: Most colored denim are skinny jeans, but I’ve also seen them in boot cut and straight leg styles. Pick the length that compliments your height.. You don’t want to be wearing floods and have a brightly colored fashion faux pas!
- Play with patterns: Wear red denim with a leopard top or coral denim with a flower print top. As long as the pattern contains one similar color to the denim you’ll look fashionable and fierce.
- Structured blazers: Pair your denim with a blazer to create a polished yet fun look. A light colored top with a black blazer goes great with red denim.
- Neutrals: You can’t go wrong with light beige jeans, a white top and a funky scarf accessory.
- Color blocking: Color blocking is still very in and works well with this trend. Pick two colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel and you’re guaranteed a perfect match. Royal blue jeans and an orange top go great together.
Now go on and be colorful with these tips in mind! Have fun with it and never be afraid to be daring with your style. Fashion Trends.

New MAXI Dress

It's impossible to imagine sunny summer days without the light, breezy and comfy maxi dress. This is an essential item for the warm season due to its versatility and practicality. When choosing the most flattering maxi dress you need to pay attention to its length and go for one that is long enough !!!! When the temperatures rise, the saving solution comes from a long, very long dress made from delicate fabrics. Therefore, the maxi dress is not just an appropriate choice for formal, but also for casual, daytime outfits. Spring/Summer 2012 bring beautiful bold solids and prints, perfect for an effortless style.
We will be receiving our first MAXI dress in store next week in a beautiful solid navy and a wonderful Peacock Feather print. Come on Spring !!

We are so excited to have 6'2" Author/Speaker Katherine Smith as our next 'Women of Height'. She is a true inspiration for tall women everywhere !

The Summer is almost over !!!

I can’t believe how quickly this summer has flown by. My 20 year class reunion has come and gone. My youngest sister got engaged and married. I turned 38 in June. Stores are starting to bring in their fall and winter lines…I’ve been so busy with life that I’ve barely had a free moment. I feel like I looked up and it was mid-August.
It’s been an odd, but interesting summer. I had challenged myself to grow this summer. I had big plans of what I thought I would accomplish. I was going to take a French class this summer, I was going to go camping, and I even had thoughts of starting that workout program I’ve been meaning to get back to. I haven’t done any of it. In fact, I’ve been so busy focusing on my work, I haven’t focused on myself one bit. I even had bought 12 microdermabrasion sessions (I got a really great deal!) and I haven’t even used a single one!
So what’s the big deal? Well, I’ve realized that when I lose myself in work, I’m not as happy as I could be. This means that I haven’t written as much this summer as I would’ve liked. I haven’t made as many plans as I normally would. I haven’t traveled or visited friends like I need to and I haven’t pushed myself out of my boundaries like I do in the summertime. I also haven’t been to the beach nearly enough.
Typically I have 10-15 funny, TALL stories to share by this time in the summer because I’ve been to so many ‘events’ or small town fairs but not this year. I’ve been a bit of a hermit. So here’s what I’m going to do.
1. I’m writing about it because I know this happens to everyone. Just because I’m tall and usually outgoing, doesn’t mean I’m immune to becoming a hermit once in a while. The trick is to get back out there and keep doing what makes me happy.
2. SHOP! That’s right, I need to shop. Okay, let me back up. I need to do something I enjoy and I happen to enjoy shopping, particularly online. In fact there are some new arrivals that need my attention at LongLegs.ca
3. I’m signing up for some classes this fall. I’m nervous, but I’m doing it. I’ve picked out 2: a French conversation class and a beginner yoga class. They meet once a week and it’s for adult beginners. I like to think I’m smart, but I have lots of learning left to do.
4. I’m trying not to stress about it. I’m a bit of a worrier so the less I can worry, and the more I can actually ‘do’ is so much better for my own psyche. At work I’m a go-getter but at home I’m a no-getter. What’s wrong with this picture? It needs some attention.
5. And last but not least, I’m making a list of everything I want to finish before this summer is over. I like to feel like I’ve accomplished something and checking things off of a list is an action that gives me that feeling. I’ve started my list and it’s not going to be too long because I don’t want to set myself up for failure, but I’d better get moving or I won’t finish it all.
So, now what do I do? It’s time for me to get to get to work on myself. I’ve got appointments to make, classes to sign up for and items to cross off my list! Summer isn’t over yet and there’s still time to make this a productive summer. Who is with me???

Jennings Girls in Oregon...Living TALL

Recently I had the most wonderful visit from two of my sisters and one of my nieces. It was my older sister, Heather and my youngest sister, Hilleri along with Hilleri’s daughter Baileigh. Man, did we have a nice time! Baileigh absolutely loved playing with my three cats and I had the opportunity to take my sisters to some of the beautiful places around Oregon.
We visited the children’s museum, we had margaritas on a patio in downtown Portland (yes, sometimes it IS sunny here), and then there’s my favorite thing we did, we went to Seaside and stayed in a hotel directly on the beach.
We ran along the beach, we dug for shells, we got our feet wet and Baileigh screamed with delight as she chased the ocean. It was a magical day and it was wonderful to be with my family. I love being around my sisters because we always have such a great time.
Of course I have to bring up the whole height thing because when you have 3 six footers walking along Seaside you can be sure we were noticed. It was brought up so many times with us shopping and especially when I rode the carousel with Baileigh. My feet were hanging off my horse and I could touch the ground. People love to point out the obvious and it’s so much more fun when I’ve got my sisters right there to help answer any questions in the most hilarious way possible.
I can remember back when I played sports in high school and college and I was always surrounded by tall women. It’s a very comfortable feeling for me. I could almost advocate only hanging out with people over 6 foot if my shorter friends weren’t so darn witty and funny. My wardrobe would double, I’d never have to bend over to hear anything every again, and I would always feels safe traveling in a pack of tall women (we appear to be much tougher than we are sometimes). But I couldn’t give up my short friends because they mean too much to me. I guess it’s a good thing that some people don’t ‘see’ height. It’s just not that important (unless you are trying to get noticed, of course).
Thanks for visiting me sisters. It’s your turn next Heidi!! (she’s the one that didn’t make it this trip)

Girl, you must be at least 7 feet tall !!!

Although my blog is titled “Loving Your Long Legs”, I will be the first one to admit that being tall isn’t always awesome. Like all great things it comes with its challenges and, the other day, I met one of them.
The other day, I was working a shift at my job as a “beauty advisor”. By “beauty advisor” I mean that I sell makeup to unsuspecting customers in a big box retail store. My job consists of standing on my feet all day wearing a shocking amount of makeup while I make casual conversation about bronzers, smooth wrinkle erasing (“I promise!”) creams and lotions on the tops of my hands and say in a sing-song voice “Would that be everything today?”. Needless to say, my employment position can be somewhat on the tiring side. That day, in particular, was particularly frustrating as I was assigned to a brand new, just-launched makeup line for teens. This would be fine, except that I work in a mall near several old age homes and our mean age demographic is about seventy-five. MAC who??
So there I was, hunched over the makeup counter, my six foot frame begging to be stretched back into its proper height, when a little old lady came strolling past with her husband. Being the excellent sales person that I am (*brushes shoulders off), I smiled sweetly and asked if there was anything I could help her with. Instead, this woman looked up at me with an expression that could only be described as confused and somewhat disgusted and said “My god, girl, you must be at least seven feet tall!!”.
I winced as the other makeup girls surrounding me stifled their giggles. But, being that I have been six feet since the age of fourteen, I was less than phased by her observation and said calmly and assuredly “Actually, madam, I am exactly six feet one inch. If I was seven feet I would have trouble fitting through a doorway and would be peering down at you from this height”, I placed my hand about a foot taller than my head and smiled again.
Now, normally that would be the end of it. The little old lady would simple say “Oh, dear, you are absolutely correct. My mistake! And, by the way, you look beautiful”. But, this time, the conversation went a little something like this:
Me: *Placing a hand a foot taller than me and smiling*
Little Old Lady: Oh well, girl, you are crazy because you are a hell of a lot taller than 6’1’’. In your dreams! *Stomps off
Me: *Shell shocked
I couldn’t believe it. I was incensed! My face was hot with anger. At that moment, a colleague of mine who had overheard the whole conversation came to my aid.
Colleague: Oh don’t worry, Anastasia. These things happen all the time in retail. People seem to think that they can take out their anger toward the world on us. Just let it slip off your back.
Me: Are you nuts??
Colleague: I’m sorry?
Me: I’m not mad because she yelled at me. I’m not even mad because she didn’t buy any product (which she needed, by the way). I’m mad because she didn’t believe me when I told her my actual height!! She got my height WRONG.
Colleague: *Confused
This isn’t the first time someone has guessed at my height and gotten it wrong. I have gotten everything from five eleven to, well, seven foot three if you must know. And, no matter how tall or short someone guesses I am, I am just as annoyed at either. Believe me, I get enough “tall girl questions” per day to have sort of become immune, but this seems different. After reflecting on it a bit, I think it comes down to pride.I am proud of being exactly six foot one inch. Although it can be backbreaking, I really do love my height. I can’t imagine myself being an average 5’5’’ or even a “tall” (ya right) 5’8’’. Even though it comes with baggage, I would not be the same person if I was shorter or taller. I love being tall because it makes me who I am. When people make assumptions of how tall I am, I not only feel like they are making assumptions about the length of my body, but that they are making assumptions about who I am as a person. That little old lady was prescribing a height for me that she thought fit. She was telling me what I was and who I was. She was wrong. Six foot one inch fits me just fine and I am so proud of it.

Why I can't stop talking about being tall !!

If you would’ve told me 20 years ago that I would be writing about being a tall woman, I would’ve laughed in your face. Twenty years ago I was a senior in high school trying to figure out how to handle growing up and being tall in a world that wasn’t equipped to for me. You see, this year is my 20 year anniversary of graduating from high school. In fact, in about a month I’m going back to Northern Iowa to see as many of my graduating class as possible. Considering that I graduated with only 35 people, I hope to see all of them.
20 years ago I did everything I could to hide from something that was so obvious to everyone around me. I was 6’4” and taller than most guys. I didn’t know how to handle it and I had a lot of anger because I never knew how I was supposed to act. So…I did nothing. I pretended that my height wasn’t there and went on with my life. While that was probably the best thing I could’ve done, it took me a long time to get rid of anger.
The anger was there because of what I called ‘the couldn’ts’. I couldn’t find clothes that fit, I couldn’t blend in, I couldn’t control the anger because I wanted to be anyone else but me. I put so many limitations on myself and it wasn’t until a few years later that I realized how lucky I was.
“Just once, let a guy taller than me ask me out on a date,” was a common thought of mine but it never happened. At least I was lucky, because my family was tall and I suppose they could relate on some level but I was so much taller than everyone else. I stood out no matter what I did and although my family was a great support for me, I wished I could’ve talked to someone or had somewhere to turn.
So now, 20 years later here I am. I share my stories in the hopes that they might help someone. I know I wish I had someone like me to talk to 20 years ago or at least I wish there would’ve been the plethora of resources available that there are now. I’m a lucky girl and the best part…I know how lucky I am. I hope you do too.