E-Mail This Article to a Friend She wore an itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny, yellow polka-dot blazer ... ... and she was very en vogue BY NINA SCHWARTZ

Here in America, we do things big. Big trucks, big breasts, big steaks, big hair, big televisions. We eat a lot, we spend a lot, and we yell a lot. McMansions — the apt term for enormous and hastily constructed houses — are cropping up all over suburbia. We supersize, no matter what the item in question. Our national motto should be "The Bigger, the Better."

But everything shrinks with age. Observe the cell phone: once laughably large and cumbersome, it has grown smaller and smaller, and will no doubt one day dwindle to nothingness, which will then be the last word in cool. Or consider my teeny little grandmother, who used to stand 5’6". In the 1980s, everyone who was anyone (or who was simply misled) wore her blazer oversized, to the knees, and enhanced by massive shoulder padding. Now, 20 years later, blazers too have shrunk. Not only are they cropped and extra-tailored, but the sleeves now stop at mid-forearm — a look that’s cute in an awkward kind of way. They’re not meant to be worn as jackets, necessarily, but rather as variations on the cardigan, to make winter a little more interesting.

Of course, tiny things can be expensive. If you’re in the mood to splurge on some luxury items, try Mint’s girly shrunken blazer ($395) in gray pinstripe with light-pink piping, available at Louis Boston. Or how about a brown tweedy number ($285) with a round, open neckline, offered at Intermix? Neiman Marcus is showing a shrunken blazer by Vince ($325) with an extra-long-sleeve shirt underneath to emphasize the jacket’s shortened sleeves, while Saks Fifth Avenue offers a Marc by Marc Jacobs lavender-velvet blazer ($378), cropped high with a ribbon trim around the waist for more elegant appeal.

Tiny things also can be moderately priced. Express has some shrunken styles ($158) in wool with a belted waist and short sleeves, available in pink or gray; in brown-and-pink tweed with velvet trim; and in gray tweed with sequin-and-bead trim. Bebe has several options, the most appealing of which is an ivory-polyester blazer ($169) with contrasting stitching and darting for an extremely tailored, feminine touch. Banana Republic, making a concerted effort to keep up with the fashionable Joneses, is showing shrunken jackets ($149–$218) in a variety of fabrics, many of which feature pretty velvet trim. And Jasmine Sola has several interesting interpretations on the style, the star being a pink-polka-dot-and-jacquard blazer ($198) with silk paisley lining.

Finally, tiny things can be and often are pretty cheap. Players of Newbury Street has a Do & Be blazer ($59) in blue or pink tweed with fringe cuffs and lapels. Jasmine Sola has an adorable corduroy jacket ($48) in either pink or black with little bows on the three front pockets and an ornate floral lining, and Urban Outfitters has a vintage menswear cotton waistcoat ($58), either in black with an olive grid pattern, or in maroon with a pink grid.

The shrunken blazer makes it easy to look like a 10-pound sausage in a five-pound bag. To wear this style well, stick with thin sweaters, cotton T-shirts, or nothing at all underneath, if you can get away with it. And remember, the blazer is the only abbreviated article of clothing in use here. As convenient as it would be, this new style isn’t an excuse to make use of all the stuff you’ve mistakenly shrunk in the wash. Next time, try the gentle cycle.

Where to get it:

• Banana Republic, various locations; www.bananarepublic.com

• Bebe, Copley Place, Boston, (617) 267-2323; CambridgeSide Galleria, Cambridge, (617) 225-0800; www.bebe.com

• Express, various locations; www.express.com

• Intermix, 186 Newbury Street, Boston, (617) 236-5172.

• Jasmine Sola, 37A Brattle Street, Cambridge, (617) 354-6043; 344 Newbury Street, Boston, (617) 867-4636; www.jasminesola.com

• Louis Boston, 234 Berkeley Street, Boston, (617) 262-6100; www.louisboston.com

• Neiman Marcus, 5 Copley Place, Boston, (617) 536-3660; www.neimanmarcus.com

• Players of Newbury Street, 251 Newbury Street, Boston, (617) 266-1718.

• Saks Fifth Avenue, Prudential Center, Boston, (617) 262-8500; www.saksfifthavenue.com

• Urban Outfitters, 361 Newbury Street, Boston, (617) 236-0088; 11 JFK Street, Cambridge, (617) 864-0070; www.urbanoutfitters.com