My mom has shrunk also and my mil has always been petite. I’m short also.
When I went to visit her, we bought her some pull on jeans at Dillard’s in the petite department. It’s hard because jeans these days have a lot of stretch and she didn’t want them too tight but then they stretch…
I buy my mil clothes at talbots in the petite department. She can find quite a bit there but they’ve closed many of their stores so if something I’ve sent her doesn’t fit it is not easy to exchange. She like t shirts that do not have a cap sleeve.
My mom used to really like the zenergy brand clothes from Chicos but told me that things don’t wear like they used to. My mom is hard because she throws everything in the dryer. Ugh! My sister bought her some really nice tops from Talbots and then mom complained because she threw them in the dryer and they shrank! I think the travelers brand clothes from Chicos are nice also.
If you have a Bon Ton or Younkers or whatever that department chain is called where you are, they have a nice petite department for the older customer.
I finally talked my mom into getting petites. She used to be 5’7" and was never tiny but now she really does need something that is shorter waisted and with shorter sleeves. It really helps. She does a lot of Lands End which you can order online and also buy at Sears.
My 91-year old mother-in-law is a fan. My sister-in-law, who I doubt had ever previously entered a JC Penney, took her there to shop for elastic waist pants.
My grandmother is currently searching for short sleeve button up tunics for the summer. She wants it to button all the way, and she wants her butt covered. She’s also fairly petite/shrunken at this point. It’s quite the needle in a haystack.
Yup, ditto to Bon Ton and Land’s End. During the 5 years mom was taking care of my dad post-stroke, her (and his) entire wardrobe came from Land’s End. He died in December and just this week she ventured out on her first real in-store shopping expedition. Where to? Bon Ton and Macy’s!
In the winter, I notice my little Mother wearing some really nice classic sweaters, all of which came from Gap kids for my now twenty-something DD back when she was in middle school. They were worn by a 12 year old and an 80-90 year old, all successfully.
My mother was comfortable in Petites clothing from BonTon and Sears. At Sears a brand I found she liked was Laura Scott. A few tops from L L Bean, also.
Age is kind of an attitude and just because a woman is in her 80s or 90s doesn’t mean they don’t like looking fly. Granny shouldn’t dress like a tramp, but they don’t have to wear old-fashioned lace up black boots either like Mother Superior wore yesteryear.
Lizard, it is really just the change in body that is the difference, for example, being a petite when you weren’t a petite before. Or looking better in tops and dresses that conceal the upper arm ( heck, I’m 57 and slender but my upper arms are certainly not a thing of beauty.). Lots of the thinner knits/jerseys emphasize rolls around the waist, so different fabrics are needed.
Maybe zippers in the back aren’t the best anymore if no one is there to help with them.
It’s not really a question of desiring a little old lady style. It’s a matter of finding a flattering fit in a little old lady body.
We have some really nice salvation army stores by us. Although, we have donated so many of her old clothes, I’m afraid she might spot something that was hers.
