How To Buy Jeans and How To Care For Them
Tina, here.
Since we're covering this January core wardrobe staples every woman needs in her closet, I'm sure it's no shock to hear that blue jeans are on the list. Bootcut jeans. I want to dive in a bit deeper and talk a little more about...
Bootcut jeans, how to buy jeans and how to care for them.
Why bootcut jeans? The skinny jean is an epidemic and there seems to be no cure. They are fine on lots of people. But the mid-rise bootcut jean is perfect on everyone. It’s science. Women are built like hourglasses. Men like rectangles. (We change over time, do we not? But that's the beauty of good dressing. You can create the shape you want.) The mid-rise bootcut reinforces that ideal hourglass by balancing the shoulders and the hips, with a waist in the middle. Skinny jeans create an upside down triangle, or haven't you noticed?
A lot of people think you can't wear flats with bootcut jeans. Au contraire. They just need to be almond toe or pointy toe. No round ballerina flats.
Next post coming to the blog is Core Wardrobe: How To Wear Jeans For All Occasions. Subscribe now so you don't miss a post!
I've had this pair of James jeans since, get this, 1995. They were my first serious pair of jeans I paid serious money for - I think right at $100. I couldn't believe I was paying that, but I still wear them. So cost per wear over time has made them all but free. And I came by that fading honestly. They used to be a really dark indigo blue, so they were my dressy jeans, but now since they are faded a bit, I wear them more casually.
How your jeans should fit.
1. They must be a mid-rise.
High-rise, trendy "mom jeans" can make your bum look as long as the day is.
High rise/loooong bum/mom jeans above, mid-rise below. (Jeans from ASOS, but don't let me catch you ordering the mom jeans!) Notice the upside down triangle effect, too, from these skinny jeans.
2. No false whiskering.
You need to know that you need to update your dark rinses more often than you think.
That whiskering that is faked by the manufacturers usually looks silly, especially when it is exaggerated. And see how the seams are not lining up on the sides of my legs? All the seams need to line up down the sides of your legs.
Look at the top. Lots of stuff going on , that looks silly. The whiskering (fake) and the bright stitching. Now look at the bottom pic. Clean. And I've had these jeans for 11 years, so the fading on the thighs is natural.
3. The rear pockets must not dip below the bottom of your bum.
Pockets are too low. Once that V on your bottom pocket dips below the bottom cheek, you're creating a longer bum. And who wants that?
You can really see the difference in the size and placement of the rear pockets here. Upper image: bad. Bottom image: good.
Here's another picture to show you where you want the bottom of the pocket to hit, just above the bottom of the cheek, so you won't have droopy bottom syndrome.
4. They must be slim through the hips and thighs.
Ill-fitting bootcut jeans that are too big in the hips and thighs are also epidemic. These fit as they should, fitted in the thighs, slightly flaring from the knee down.
5. The flare from the knee down must be proportional to your height.
The taller you are, the more of a flare you can do (but not all-out hippie flare); and the shorter you are, the more subtle the flare. These are our fab stylist Barbara Burn's jeans, and since she's so tall, the flare is pretty wide.
6. Reinforce the crease down the front of your legs.
That center crease will create a longer, leaner leg. I promise you. Eradicate form your mind any images of cowboys with pressed Lee jeans. This is different. It's elegant. And flattering. And it's 2016, so get with the program and crease your jeans. (If you get the dry cleaner's to do it once, I've found that the crease will last through many washings.)
7. If your jeans are truly too big, not just from stretching out, then have them tailored.
I love this girl's blog on alterations. Here you're seeing the problem so many of us have, that gap in the waist. As log as your jeans fit through the hips and in the rise, this is an easy and inexpensive alteration.
You may need your jeans hemmed - keep them as long as you can to preserve all your height. Ask for the original factory hem so it doesn't look like a homemade job. If you want a slightly less exaggerated flare, your tailor can narrow the opening.
If you want my pick for the best bootcut jeans, for all shapes and sizes, check out the January Style Vault Bonus Issue,
12 Core Wardrobe Staples Every Woman Needs
free with every membership to the Style Vault this month!
How to care for your dark rinse jeans.
Never, ever, ever let hot water touch your jeans. Or a hot or even warm dryer. It's a rookie move to try and shrink your jeans this way. All you have to do to get them back to their original shape once the booty has stretched out, is wash in cold water and hang to dry. That's just one method. You can also opt to never wash them, and instead freeze them every now and then for a refresh. But get them altered if they are just too big.
Be sure to keep reading our blog this January for the whole series on my Core Wardrobe Staples every Woman Needs. Next post here on the blog is How To Wear Jeans For All Occasions. We’re also cleaning out closets in January and giving women fab personal style makeovers. Check out our one-on-one wardrobe packages here.
Thanks for reading!
Best,
Tina
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