I tortured myself last week by going to the mall(s) and trying on jeans. You’re welcome. *wink*
Actually, I have been wanting a lighter wash pair of skinny jeans, and almost ordered the Goldsign glam jeans (I tried them last year and didn’t like the fit as much as the higher rise virtual style, but did think they fit my calves well) during Shopbop’s coupon code so I could use my store credit, but went with the Freda Salvador shoes instead. And now, of course, the jeans are on sale, and sold out in my size. But, even better, I think I’ve convinced myself to be happy with and wear what I have, especially since I don’t wear denim much in warm/hot weather, so no big deal.
If you’re new here, or for a bit of background, I have an extremely hard time finding jeans I like to fit my legs (I wear a size 29 typically, have a 26.5 inch inseam, a smallish waist comparatively speaking, and very muscular/heavy legs for my body). I’m also VERY picky about fabrication, wash, style, etc., so I don’t like much. Right now, the jeans I love and wear most frequently are my Goldsign virtual high rise jeans, 6397 shorty jeans, Frame Le Garcon jeans and 3×1 The Principle high rise cropped jeans. None of them are perfect, but they are each very good, comfortable (I find I reach for the 3×1 jeans constantly for traveling lately), and fit my needs right now.
BUT, I love jeans. I love trying out new styles, washes, and the feeling of a really good pair. I love the way a great pair sucks everything in, but is still easy to move in, sit in, and wear for lots of different occasions. I am always, it seems, on the hunt for THE right pair. And with my challenging body type, that is always a struggle.
Anyway, here are some jeans I’ve tried on lately, and my comments on them. If you have any questions about particular pairs, please let me know. Also, if you have any recommendations, I’d love to hear those as well (as would fellow readers)! I wouldn’t have tried the 6397 shorty jeans if not for a reader’s comment on hers, so please don’t be shy to share your favorite denim, even if you don’t have the same body type as me.
Onward:
Simon Miller wide leg jeans – size 30 + Acne Studios sweater
(I honestly just tried these on for fun, I love the wide-leg style and was curious about the white, but I knew they’d look horrible on me – as they did!)
Rag & Bone/JEAN Dre jeans in “mabel” wash – size 29
(these were my favorite jeans of all I tried on. They fit my legs/calves beautifully and weren’t too loose up top, although they will absolutely stretch with wear.)
Rag & Bone/JEAN Dre jeans in “pike” wash – size 29
(I also liked these very much, for a non-distressed look, but wasn’t a huge fan of the whiskering right at the zipper/top of the thighs…)
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Eileen Fisher organic cotton skinny jeans | I need the size 4P, but these were just okay, nothing very interesting or special. Which is fine, just not what I look for right now in denim. They are organic cotton though, and “sustainable,” so a better option if that is your highest priority. If they were available in a lighter wash, I would be more interested.
Eileen Fisher white boyfriend jeans | I liked these, but took a size 6P, and might even size up to 8P if I want them to be loose at all – I always have to size up in boyfriend jeans for them to fit my legs. They weren’t overly compelling for me though…If you like white jeans, they were very good, and also organic cotton, so a great sustainable option.
Rag & Bone/JEAN crop flare jean | honestly, these weren’t that bad, the length was good, the slight flare was pretty cute, but the top/rise was a little off; they weren’t as tight as I’d like there. A fun pair of jeans, but wouldn’t have much longevity I don’t think.
Citizens of Humanity Rocket high-rise jeans | these were horrible. I tried on several pairs of CoH at Nordstrom and they were all just horrible on me. They “fit” but showed every bump and lump in my legs, and barely went over my calves. That was mostly true with the denim made of less than 50% cotton, but these were 98% and were still bad. I’ll stick to Goldsign for skinny jeans.
I actually think the white jeans look pretty good….needs a different shoe.
Like the previous comment, I too liked the white jeans on you!
they’re not AWFUL awful, but the angle of the photo makes them look a lot better than they did in person, i promise!! thank you though 🙂
I like the leg of the white jean but there’s something….odd….in the crotchular region.
Thank you for willingly going to the store to try on jeans. I HATE trying on jeans. Some of those look so good on you, but I just can’t buy pre-distressed jeans. Must be my frugal New England upbringing showing through?
As pictured the white jeans are my favorite pair but I trust you about the angles. I have one wide leg pair that I really love (Chimala) but they are the only pair I’ve found that look good on me from all angles so I’ve stopped looking. I don’t think I’ll ever need more than one pair and they should last forever.
I also think that wide leg jeans somehow work best with a low top sneaker, every time I try a different shoe with mine I end up changing back to a sneaker.
you guys are all over those white jeans!! ha. honestly, i would have been more excited about them if they were actually a little more cropped on me – they’re supposed to be cropped. as they are, they’re too long, and i can’t do anything about it because of the fraying. and the shoes weren’t great with them, for sure, but that’s what i was wearing 😉
yes, that’s because my big thighs pull on that “region”!! 😉
i didn’t think i could pay for distressing either, but i REALLY love the distressed dre jeans. they’re not overly distressed, and i think it just lends a little “edge” to them without making them look sloppy. in my mind anyway LOL
I like you in the jeans from the last picture the best, but you’re right the whiskering/wash is weird. The best wash of Dre jeans I have tried on a few years ago was called “Charing”, unfortunately huge back pockets didn’t look good on my derriere;-)
Grechen, have you tried Acne Pop? They are 100% cotton, cropped length and I love them. I am waiting for sales to buy another pair in white. Other style of Acne I would recommend is Jet – classic straight leg jeans, not skin tight at all.
I have the Dre jeans in the Pike wash. I warmed up to the whiskering in between the time I first tried them on at Bloomingdales and when I finally ordered them from Shopbop (with a discount code, of course). I like them – they are comfortable and very wearable, but I don’t reach for them as often as I do another pair of “slim boyfriend” jeans, the DL1961 Riley (Nassau wash). Those might be as close as it gets to my dream pair, partly because they never stretch out (that’s a trademark of the brand). I’m a 29 in the Dre and a 28 in the Riley, for anyone who’s interested in trying those. I find they accommodate my thighs perfectly. The Dre do stretch out a little and tend to get saggy in the butt on me. But I have a saggy butt to start with. Ugh.
I love the Mabel ones on you, Grechen!!
Yeah the Dre’s back pockets don’t really do me any favors either.
For white, wide leg cropped jeans maybe Rachel Comey Legion or Elkin jeans?
What’s a girl to do when the sizing is all over the place. How is it possible to even order online or choose a size in the store when there is no consistency across the board with good designers? I have the utmost respect for Eileen Fisher and love her clothes but how hard is it to size something accurately? I take offense when clothes are vanity sized because I assume the designer/ manufacturer is perceiving women to be shallow.
HATE white jeans….
I agree with Juli about sizing being all over the place with jeans! And it pisses me off, too, because I order online and I can ALWAYS order my husband’s size and they fit him. No problem. But if I try that? I can guarantee I’ll be sending them back. And it can happen even within the same brand. I’ve learned you just MUST try on jeans!
Rant over…I love the Rag & Bone’s Dre in Mabel wash on you. They’re super flattering. It’s funny how a few whiskers can make such a difference. I think I have to pay closer attention to the details! 😉
My go-to’s continue to be Paige Denim Jimmy Jimmy Skinny boyfriend jeans (I really don’t even know what that means). And I have Eileen Fisher skinny white jeans purchased on sale from Rodale’s, but they stretch out a lot.
Thanks for admitting to dealing with problems of fitting jeans when you have heavier legs. Many of us have this issue. It’s even harder when you’re petite.
I’d love to find jeans that don’t have ‘stretch’. They lose their shape quickly. Nothing like a pair of cotton jeans that will soften with many washes. When they finally wear out, you can’t stand to part with them.
i like jeans with more cotton in them too, but they are VERY hard to find lately, people want stretch…my favorite jeans are my 100% cotton 6397 shorty jeans, and least favorite, my 3×1 with less cotton. i do like them, they’re ridiculously comfortable, and great for traveling (they don’t loose their shape), but at the end of the day, i really prefer cotton. the dre jeans are good like that…
i don’t know, i’ve never paid any attention to sizing much, since i’ve always worn a different size in different brands, even in different pieces within brands. but i understand the frustration. eileen fisher particularly is so all over the place in sizing – i wear a large petite in my slouchy pants, and smalls in other pants. so i’d never buy anything from there without trying on multiple sizes first…
Thanks for the rundown on jeans, Grechen. I like the Rag & Bone jeans in mabel the best on you. I get what you mean about the whiskering on the pike wash, but for spring/summer it might actually work. I bought two pairs of the Frame Le Garcon jeans after thinking they looked really cute on you and another blogger I follow, and while they fit in the legs nicely, between the mid-rise and the stretchiness of the denim, I have a huge problem with them falling down and sagging around my waist and butt. I don’t think I could have sized down to a 28 either, because then they’d be too tight in the thighs and calves for me. I do love the Madewell high rise skinny skinny jeans since the high rise makes me feel like I’m “covered,” they never sag out, and they fit my legs pretty nicely. However, I’ve been sort of on the fence about purchasing from Madewell anymore since it doesn’t technically fit the standards for ethics and sustainability, but they do have a nice jeans recycling program. I was so tempted by the AMO Babe High Rise Cropped Slim Jeans (https://www.shopbop.com/babe-high-rise-cropped-slim/vp/v=1/1526734589.htm) during last week’s Shop Bop promo, but ultimately decided that I didn’t “need” another pair of jeans. Who knows, I’ll probably continue to stalk them and see if I can get them on sale later in the season.
i agree about the frame le garcon jeans sagging a bit, that’s why i don’t wear them to fly, or consider them my “most” comfortable jeans – i have to pull them up whenever i get up from sitting, which i HATE.
i have those amo jeans on my ‘hearts’ list at shopbop too! i considered trying them also with the code, but decided to pass. i sort of wish i’d tried those instead of the 3×1 cropped high-rise jeans i have that are a similar style, but darker wash. but i always have to hem my jeans, and can’t do that with the frayed hem, so that’s another reason i haven’t tried them.
of course i agree with your madewell thoughts – i remember trying those high-rise skinny jeans when they first came out and i liked them a lot, but have a hard time purchasing for the reasons you mentioned. i’ve thought to go and try them again…but i don’t need to.
thanks for your comment!! (i agree on the pike wash, it’s growing on me!!)
I wish Rag & Bone jeans fit me better .. they are amazing jeans .. but ugh, gap in the waist on me 🙁
Monica.
MonicaP´s last blog post ..It never rains in Southern California…
The Rag + Bone jeans look awesome. I hope you got them : )
I finally bit the bullet and, based on everyone’s experiences, ordered a pair of the Dre’s… Now, granted I’ve put on a few pounds (6 to be exact) and I can’t believe I’m sharing this, but the 29 was skin tight on me. That’s right, the jean that everyone says runs big, was more like a skinny on me. SIGH…
Zanna
They’re skin tight on me too!! They’ll stretch I promise. Wear them a bit I don’t have them yet. But a friend has a couple pairs and they will definitely stretch to be comfortable. All jeans that are boyfriend style start out skin tight on me. Some stretch out nicely and some don’t. These will
OK, thanks! I’ll throw them on again and do some calisthenics, thanks Grechen!