Finding a classic bike for a short rider, especially female, is simple: There are many lovely classic French 650B randonneur bikes out there. With that tire size, even a small frame (down to about 48 cm is common) can be designed to ride very nicely, and nicely they ride indeed.
Obviously, the old French "slack head angle + lots of fork offset = short trail" frame design lends itself to small frames, as toeclip overlap is minimized that way.
If you are willing to take a women's frame, from a second-tier maker, you have to pay mostly for the components - unfortunately, many of these bikes are taken apart, because their Maxi-Car hubs and JOS lights are worth several times the value of the entire bike.
Performance-wise, the mixte frames cannot give up too much to a men's frame - witness Lyli Herse's speeds in the technical trials! - and as far as workmanship, the extra joints mean that beautiful craftsmanship shows even more than with a men's frame. I know a 1950s Jo Routens mixte, fillet-brazed, that is absolutely sublime.
Lovely machines, crying for a good home. In fact, I rescued a lovely Ondet mixte, superlight, built-in rack, front derailleur under the chain guard, etc. that will need a new home once I have it back together.
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Jan Heine, Seattle
Editor/Publisher
Vintage Bicycle Quarterly
http://www.mindspring.com/