Happy Sunday to you all!
Another Sunday another post. This week we are chatting with the lovely Holly Renee Burt. Although we had already connected on social media, I was excited to finally meet my Tall Sister Holly at the most recent ‘Long Tall Sally’ pop-up shop in NYC. We were able to chat and connect and what a sweetheart she is! Bubbly and energetic I admire how she has handled being thrown into the spotlight. I can’t wait for you all to get to know Holly better, lets meet our tall sister!
What is your full name?
Holly Renee Burt
How tall are you?
6’5 and all legs
Have you ever struggled accepting your height? Please share your journey.
Oh yes. I think every extraordinary tall girl goes through this. I think the most trouble I’ve had with people overly recognizing me for my height was in middle school. I say this because preteens don’t have a filter and blatantly say “Wow your like, really tall” *no shit*. I was always very outgoing during my childhood and teen years so finding friends was no problem, I actually hung around the “cool crowd” but that was not always good on my self esteem. Watching my friends get asked to the dance or on dates was not always easy for me because guys back in those days of my life were not into the tall lanky girl.
“Everything gets better in college.” I tell this to young girls all the time that reach out to me. You will grow into your body and blossom into a tall elegant tulip.” – Holly Burt
I would actually always get asked to come on the dates with my friends to basically make things less awkward because I can blabber on for days and most of these boys were my friends. My one piece of advice for young tall girls growing up with the same stigma is this: Everything gets better in college. I tell this to young girls all the time that reach out to me. You will grow into your body and blossom into a tall elegant tulip. Now, the tables have finally turned and my dating game is on point. I now get to decide who I date whether it is short or tall (usually tall because who doesn’t love a handsome tall gentleman). My acceptance of height was based on if guys liked me or not, which is a horrible thing to do. Sadly this was my ideology in my early teens.
“A lot of the networks I have been affiliated with since I was “crowned” (love that word) want to put a telescope into my life and how different it is to live compared to the average sized gal. Some of it is dehumanizing.” – Holly Burt
What is your current occupation and how has your height influenced your career?
I am a full time student in my junior year that already has a bad case of Senior-i-tis. I quit my day job as a waitress when I was pronounced “America’s Longest Legs”. I’m now paying my rent on solely “leg gigs” and freelance graphic design. My height has influenced my career by employers definitely not being able to forget me; I stick out like a sore thumb. Ladies, this can be a good or bad thing! Your potential employers can remember you from something you may not be proud of, so BEHAVE 🙂
You made history this year when you were crowned the woman with the longest legs in America; can you tell us more about that experience?
The “crowning” of Americas Longest Legs has literally flipped my life in a complete 180- for the better and quite bizarre! I didn’t realize how many people cared about long legs until my feature hit 2 million views and opportunities arose from left and right.
A lot of the networks I have been affiliated with since I was “crowned” (love that word) want to put a telescope into my life and how different it is to live compared to the average sized gal. Some of it is dehumanizing. For example, one broadcasting network wanted to get peoples reactions to my height for their feature. They thought the best way to do that was to put me in 5-inch heels and booty shorts in the middle of Times Square on a busy day. I think you can do the math of what happened next.
“Do not slouch, embrace your height, stay healthy, and rule the world! “ – Holly Burt
Please give us a glimpse in the life of Holly; what have you been up to since your newfound fame?
Life has changed pretty drastically, but it is starting to get more ‘normal-ish’. I was taken by surprise when the initial Barcroft feature of me came out. I didn’t realize how many people were interested in long legs! I mean, I knew my legs were long, but I guess I didn’t realize they were thaaaaaat long. I just got done filming last week with TLC for a primetime documentary looking into ‘Americas Tallest Teens’ that airs next fall.
Before that I was doing stuff with Alloy for Spring Fashion Week, before that I did a video feature for Prosebien (German broadcasting Network) during my 21st birthday weekend. Now I’m working with various brands, one of them happens to be Long Tall Sally, which has been ultimately the best brand to work with! I used to have a pretty ‘eh’ wardrobe but now I’m stocked, I even have 6 pairs of heels! Before the ‘Americas Longest Legs’ feature came out I didn’t even own a pair of heels. In the midst of all of that I am still a full time student. A normal day would look like this: Workout for an hour and a half, homework, emails (depending on what’s popping with my legs), school, food, glass of wine.
What is a unique quality or interest that you have, that no one would guess?
I haven’t been to a movie theater in 3 years because my attention span is equivalent of that of a squirrel who drunk 10 cups of coffee.
Who or what inspires you?
My family. They are the best and they know what is best.
My mom: I go to her if I’m sad or homesick, because she is kind and gets me. “She’s a cool mom”
My dad: I go to him if I ever need advice on a major decision, he is like my life guru and even though I’m about 1000 miles away, he’s always watching….
My sister: Always down to grab a beer and talk shit.
My dog: Always a shoulder to lean on. He is cherished in our family.
What are your aspirations for the future? In a perfect world, where would Holly be 5 years from now?
I aspire to be a graphic designer able to solve problems through design. Hopefully living in the city or traveling abroad, working at a design agency would be absolutely fabulous so I can be working on multiple projects at once and never having to constrain my design choices to a corporate brand. All while having the longest legs in America, I should really start putting that on my resume…
Do you have any words of advice for our Tall Sisters?
Do not slouch, embrace your height, stay healthy, and rule the world!
Thank you so much for being so open and honest with us Holly! Have a great week everyone!
Xoxo