Recently we caught up with Canadian based Paul Marlow to chat about all things tall. Paul, or Tall Paul as he goes by online, much like us was fed up with the lack of stylish clothing options available to the vertically gifted. This led him to start tallpaul.ca – a blog filled with fashion, style and clothing tips for guys over 6’3″. He even recently gave our +2 range a review, which is well worth a read.
[Plus 2] You must get sick of hearing this but how tall are you?
[Paul] Haha, not at all. I do it to other tall people and even short ones. It’s just the way life is!I am 6’7.
Speaking of which – what’s your favourite response you have given/heard to the age old annoying question above?
When I was younger, I used to roll my eyes and come up with a quip to answer that question. But my reply to that question has changed as I’ve gotten older.
I just smile and tell them my height, followed with a “Yup, im pretty damn tall.”
There are probably two reasons why the person asks it.
- They are jealous.
- They honestly have not been around many tall people, and it’s a pleasant interaction in their day.
Neither of these people deserves some sass.
What was the final straw in you deciding to start a Tall Clothing blog?
I’m 37 and have had this idea since I was at least 25. There was no real ‘final straw’ due to a clothing stressor or such.
In my teens and mid-twenties, I struggled immensely with feeling comfortable in my clothes, but I found my confidence in my late twenties.
It took so long to start my blog because I did not understand how to get it seen by the masses to help all the tall men in the world. That changed in the last two years as I taught myself SEO, and here we are.
What do you find is the hardest thing to shop for as a tall person?
Dress pants, hands down.
You can fake a pair of jeans, a t-shirt or top for a while and get away with it. Or just go for the ‘Sunday afternoon at home’ look and call it a day.
But when dressing up, you have one goal: to look like a million bucks. A dress shirt can be fudged a little bit (it’s not fun to do, but it’s possible), but the slacks are either a YES or NO. There is no middle ground, and they are not easy to tailor if you don’t have enough fabric to work with.
Most people probably assume you play basketball.. but your website says you got drafted to the Toronto Blue Jays 😮
Tell us about that experience?
Actually, I did play basketball, also soccer for many years. I had a go at rugby in 8th grade at second row and had my highlights, but mostly I remember getting laid out every game as I was a bean pole at the time.
As for baseball, I got Drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in my senior year of high school. I didn’t sign and instead played 4 years of college ball in Texas and Louisiana.
At LSUS in Shreveport, Louisiana, I got asked to play basketball in my final year of college, making me a two-sport athlete that season.
We recently sent you some of our clothing range to review. How did it stack up to other tall clothing brands you’ve worn?
Thanks again for all the swag!
The t-shirts blew me away when I tried the first one on. I actually thought it was too big, haha.
After wearing it for a few hours, I realized that the tee was actually the perfect length. I just hadn’t worn a long enough t-shirt in years that my current shirts to compare it to were actually all too short.
Haha completely understand. It’s a short persons world, we’re just living in it!
Did the trackies we sent fit your long legs okay?
Ya, they definitely did. They will be great for Sunday morning football.
Just realized trackies are probably called sweatpants in Canada…
We probably have a bunch of lingo that may differ from Australia to Canada.
Let’s have some fun 😛
What would you assume the following sentences means?
“Chucked a sickie and hitting the frog and toad to the beach. Have my fave flannie and thongs packed. Jumper in case it gets nippy and esky full of Sangers and cold ones for the barbie.
Lol, I just did a triple-take reading this one.
Like I do with guessing people’s ages, Im not going to give myself an opportunity to say the wrong thing.
All I can say is that I will be very lost and speechless when I finally make it over to Aussie one day.
Very polite of you. You’ll always be welcome for a barbie (BBQ) when you visit. For the records, the Australian – Canadian translation goes something like this:
“Have called in sick to work and will be driving to the beach. Have my favourite flannel shirt and flip-flops packed. Sweater in case it gets cold and a cooler full of sandwiches and beers for the BBQ.”
Speaking of lingo… Do you think there is a certain stigma attached to the “Big and Tall man store” that Tall guys are trying to avoid?
I wouldn’t say there is a stigma.
Shoot, if something fits, I’m not gonna turn it down because it came from a particular place. We don’t have enough choices to be that picky.
But I will 100% say that a “Big and Tall man store” up until this time has created clothes for Big men and left out the Tall man.
So there is no point in going to a place if they don’t make clothes for you.
Amen! What’s the most common question you hear from tall guys about styling/fashion?
“Where can I get a cheap suit?”
There is no such thing as a cheap proper fitting suit for a tall guy. Invest in a bespoke suit, and it will last you for the rest of your life. Not to mention the insane amount of confidence a well-cut suit can do for you.
Any pro-tips to everyday ‘tall people problems that you can share with us?
Ya definitely.
When you find a clothing brand or a line that a company does that fit you well, invest a bit of money into buying a few more pieces from them. Add some extra colours, go for a change in the style and give yourself some variety with a piece of clothing that you know works for you.
Think long-term, not only for your clothes but also for your happiness.
Secondly, something I promote throughout all my businesses and platforms that directly correlates with the clothes we wear is to get active and exercise often.
Being active 5-6 days a week will change your body composition to fit your clothes better. Whether you want to lose weight, gain weight or even stay the same, there will be a positive outcome on how your clothes sit on you.
But more importantly, it will help your mental health, which can be tricky for us tall guys.
I know I had my struggles with how I looked for many years.
Thanks for the tips mate. Could you tell us more about your ‘Never Alone’ project?
Growing up, I had constant anxiety about my height and the expectations I felt it put upon me in society’s eyes.
Stress, anxiety and depression were feelings I knew well from my teens to twenties.
In 2017 all that compounded with C-PTSD from a bad breakup and my father getting Parkinsons and dying from cancer, all within 12 months, led to my mental breakdown.
It took me 3 years of therapy, introspective personal growth and a whole lot of personal failing (only to find areas of success and growth from these failures) that led me to start Never Alone, a mental health help website.
It took a backseat in 2022 as I put all my effort into growing the Tall Paul website from scratch, but in 2023 It will be on my work desk once again.
I plan to make it a website that not only gives confidence to those struggling but also gives away free therapy sessions to anyone who wants to try therapy for the first time.
Finally, we loved seeing you style our range of tall tees. What colour would you like to see next?
I would love to see some fall oranges, browns, and spring colours that bring a little pop to an outfit.
Will see what we can do! Thanks so much for your time. [end of interview]
If you’re interested in following Tall Paul’s journey and seeing more of his tips when it comes to tall person fashion, guides, travel and much more you can head over to his website or Instagram. Also check out the recent video review he gave our range of tall tees below…
