If I had a nickel for every time someone told me that they hate jeans, I’d be pretty rich by now. Compliments on the jeans I wore that day are followed by complaints about the clothing item: “They’re just so uncomfortable; I don’t know how anyone wears them.”
Now, I absolutely adore any kind of denim, but especially a well-fitting pair of jeans, so I never really let these grievances fly. There’s only so much advice I can give to someone during a passing-by conversation, and one thing I won’t do is let one of America’s favorite fashion pieces get all this hate.
I now ask all of you the question I give to anyone who doesn’t love jeans, this time with the massive spiel included: “Have you ever tried to find a pair that actually fits you?”
Which Style is For You?
Jeans come in any possible style you can think of, and it’s incredibly hard to find your specific style of denim. Here is a breakdown of every cut of jeans.
Cuts
Skinny, Straight, and Jeggings
These three cuts are known for hugging all parts of your leg and, my favorite part, their tuck-ability into UGGs, knee-high boots, and all other sorts of boots.
Despite their compatibility with boots, Gen-Z seemingly despises the form-fitting cut, causing them and other generations alike to throw out the style.
Baggy, Mom, and Cargo
The sweatpants of jeans, these three styles are known for their comfort. They don’t hug tightly anywhere on your leg, with mom jeans getting their name from middle-aged women seeking comfort.
I’d recommend everyone and their mother to own some form of baggy jeans, no matter their body type, and not just because they’re the trendiest right now.
Cargo jeans, especially, are one of my favorite styles of jeans. Women’s pants notoriously don’t have pockets, and now you have more than you’ll ever need.
Bootcut, Flare, and Wide Leg
These groovy styles come straight out of the ‘70s and ‘80s. If you like the elongating effect that comes from baggy jeans, but want something a bit more form-fitting, these cuts are your best friends.
Hugging tight on your hips and thighs, these styles flare out at the bottom, working great with platform shoes and boots.
Rises
High-Rise
High-rise jeans are quite popular among women for obvious reasons — who doesn’t love a waist-snatching, stomach-slimming bottom to exist in during the day? The rise also gets rid of the worry of anything showing while sitting or bending over. This rise works as a built-in corset.
The placement of the jeans above where your legs naturally end at the hip makes this rise a great choice for anyone of shorter height than average. This creates the illusion of a short torso and long legs, which is especially great for anyone with a longer-than-average torso.
The best high-rise jeans can be found by looking for an obvious waist-to-hip ratio. When buttoned, the waistline should be a significant amount smaller than the hips of the jeans. Without this, you’ll get a gap on your back when the jeans are on.
Low-Rise
Low-rise has received a plethora of hate for hundreds of reasons, and for as long as they have been popular. When low-rise came back in style in the early 2020s, all the hate just came flooding back. “Reject low-rise jeans,” cried Vogue in 2021, for the oh-so-scandalous revealing nature of low-rise.
Another reason for all the hate? That low-rise jeans are here to push the dangerous “skinny culture” of the 2000s, as “Blogilates” founder Cassey Ho used during the reveal of her line of jeans.
Poorly made, fast-fashion, low-rise jeans are absolutely guilty of the skinny culture accusations, but as a low-rise lover, it’s the quality of the low-rise that determines how comfortable they are.
If you’re in the market for low-rise jeans, hold up the waist of the jeans in front of you. If the waistline looks straight or close to it, put them back. If there’s an upward U-shaped curve, the jeans will hold onto your natural hips and remove most of the “love handle” effect. I tend to size up one in low-rise, too.
Mid-Rise
In the middle of all of this discourse, we find the forgotten, perfect middle child of the rises: mid-rise. Remember all the good things I had to say about both high-rise and low-rise? Mid-rise does all of that without any of the cons for either of the others.
Giving you a bit more coverage than low-rise can, mid-rise falls about right where your belly button does. This makes it work for pretty much any body type, as it doesn’t lengthen or shorten your legs in any way.
Searching for mid-rise jeans is like finding the child of low-rise and high-rise jeans. Look for that U-shaped scoop and an obvious waist-to-hip ratio, and you’ll be golden.
Where to find jeans
Now that you know what to look for, where do you begin your search for the perfect pair of jeans? Here are a few stores I have had great luck with, for all kinds of budgets.
Your Local Vintage Thrift
Although not a specific store, the vintage thrift store nearest to you will most definitely have a well-designed pair of jeans waiting for you. Clothes considered “vintage” come from an era when people had a few pairs of jeans that had to last for years, meaning the ‘60s through the early ‘00s.
If your vintage store is doing things right, you won’t have to dig through so much fast-fashion-made denim, either. Ranging from $15 to $40, you should be able to find a pretty good deal on a pair of jeans that will last you years.
Mall Stores
When I say mall stores, I don’t mean the ones known for lower-quality clothes at higher prices than SHEIN. I mean the stores that are known for denim.
If you’re worried about how worn thrifted denim may be, and are fine with spending anywhere in the range of $30 to $85, stores like American Eagle, Urban Outfitters, and ZARA are great places to start.
I can speak personally about American Eagle’s curvy line and Urban Outfitters BDG jeans as making some of my favorite jeans ever.
Higher End Stores
Revice Denim and Free People Jeans have been incredibly trendy the last few years and are known for some of the highest quality denim on the market right now, but they can be a bit pricey at $65 to over $100 for a pair of jeans.
Revice has been especially trendy for its Hollywood Heartthrob Denim Jumpsuit, but the rest of their catalogue is fantastic.
I hope, with this comprehensive guide, you can go out to stores and finally find that dream pair of jeans that is both stylish and comfortable!
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