Craft Style Files: The perfect pair of jeans

Last week when I spoke about the Little Black Dress, I said that it was one of the most versatile articles of clothing, other than a pair of jeans. Just like the LBD, jeans have come a long way from what they once were. They went from only being worn by farmers or miners to being worn by everyone of any age. However, even the LBD has its limitations, but jeans have become so common in our society today that it is weird if someone is not wearing a pair. There is such a range to choose from when buying a pair of jeans that you may not know what to do. There are walls of denim in department stores and boutiques that have so many different cuts, washes, and pockets that they now employ denim specialists who know everything there is to know about the product.

Now that we have so many choices we should do ourselves, and others, a favor and find jeans that fit and compliment our body types. There is no excuse for a muffin top when labels are cutting for so many different body types now. Trying to find the perfect pair of jeans will be a task, but it is out there. You may try on 20 different pairs of jeans before you find one that you absolutely love that fits and compliments your body.

The first thing I would like to touch upon is the actual sizing of the jean. With the designer denim craze in full effect, it is now more common for jeans to be labeled the size of your actual waist instead of it saying size 2 or size 10. It will now say size 26, which means that it is made for someone with a 26-inch waist. If you are not too sure of what size your waist actually is then just ask a sales person or denim specialist to take your measurements and you will be able to find jeans that actually fit you. Most jeans fit true to size, which means that if it says 26 and you are a 26, however, there are some that may be misleading

I was shopping at Barneys New York the other day and found a pair of Levi's Premium Jeans, which is a higher end division of Levi's that runs anywhere from $125-$200 plus, in the Skinner cut. I am a 28 in jeans, so naturally I grabbed a pair of size 28. I got to try them on and they do not fit! I thought I had gained 20 pounds in the last five minutes because I could not figure out why they did not fit. I called my friend, who was a denim specialist at Jasmine Sola and wears Levi's Premium quite often, and asked her if she knew why they did not fit. I found out that the Skinner jean is cut smaller and that it does not fit true to size. If it says size 28, then you have to go up to a size 30 for it to actually fit. That goes for both men and women's Skinner jeans.

Once you know your true waist size, you can then step into the realm of washes and treatments. What wash or treatment looks best on you? Well, that can be a difficult thing to establish because there are so many choices. You have very light washes and then extreme dark washes.

With darker denim, you are always going to look slimmer; it has the same effect that black does. It is also easier to dress up darker denim than it is with light denim. It is best to try on several different washes when you go shopping so that you can compare them and decided what is best for you.

Treatments are the distressing or embellishments on the pockets or anywhere else on the jean. I have a love/hate relationship with distressed jeans. It is okay to have some light distressing, but walking around with gaping holes on your jeans? And having the nerve to walk around with holes beneath your butt? You have got to be kidding me. Let us try and be a little classier, shall we? Abercrombie & Fitch is notorious for doing this. I am not going to sit here and say that I do not have jeans that have some light distressing, but I certainly do not have giant holes in my jeans.

Embellishments on the pockets will obviously draw attention to your butt. Some look great like the crystals on the pockets of Rock & Republic jeans. Others just make your butt look like a giant mess. True Religion has certain jeans that have elaborately embroidered pockets but they are not very attractive. The simple True Religion pocket is much better, compared to the overly dramatic one.

Besides all of the different pockets and embellishments, there are different cuts. There is the classic boot cut, low-rise boot cut, baggy cut, relaxed cut, straight leg cut, skinny cut, and the list goes on. Again, your body type will determine what cut looks best on you. The skinny cut only looks good on skinny people. You may not want to hear that, but it is the truth. If you have hips it will not look flattering. It makes you look like an upside down triangle. Ask the sales person for help when trying to find the right cut; they want you to find the right jean just as much as you do.

Guys have so many options for jeans but many do not know they even exist. It seems like the only jeans guys wear are carpenter jeans from Old Navy or The Gap. Stop wearing these, only real carpenters should be wearing them. One of my new favorite labels is Stitch's, which makes awesome jeans for guys. They mainly have boot cut jeans which are flattering on all men. Besides boot cut, relaxed and straight leg are the most flattering cuts on guys of all body types.

When shopping for jeans, you should always ask about the quality of the material and if there is some stretch to it. Jeans that stretch in the hip and thigh area will offer more comfort and you will be able to move in them. You should also know if the waist will stretch out over time, or if it will remain constant. Some jeans will stretch over time, like 7 For All Mankind for instance, but all you have to do is wash and then tumble dry them on low heat, and they will return to their original size.

Do not be afraid to ask a lot of questions when shopping for jeans because they are an item that you will get mileage out of. There are lots of options out there and you want them to fit perfectly.