Womens Jeans

"How to Select the Perfect Fitting Denim Jeans"

Are you on the hunt for the perfect pair of womens jeans? Confused by all the different jeans terms like high rise, mid rise, cigarette, tapered, and so on? Want to know what type of denim jeans look good on you?

Skinny jeans from Neiman Marcus

Courtesy of Neiman Marcus
Then look no further! This page provides you with shopping strategies on finding jeans with the perfect fit along with explanations on the different jeans styles you can find on the market today.

Get fashion advice & tips on:

What jeans to invest in
Selecting the right style for your body shape
How to find your true measurements

Your shape and size are important in selecting a pair that fits and looks good on you. Simply speaking, you just need some basic knowledge on what kind of denim washes, rise and leg cut complement your body figure and how to measure yourself for the perfect fit.

Want to look for the latest jeans styles and shop instead?

Now let me give you the necessary guidelines to finding the perfect pair of denim jeans:

What Womens Jeans to Invest In?

Some of the best jeans you should invest in are basic and versatile enough to go with all of your outfits (all color combos and fashion looks!) and cover all of your major daily activities all-year-around.

Basic jeans go with almost anything - from tees, fashion tops, blouses, dress shirts to sweaters! Along with plain tees, these wardrobe essentials are the backbone of a solid and functional wardrobe.

How to Build a Solid Jeans Closet

If you want to get the best bang for your buck, you can't go wrong with denim jeans in black and dark blue. They should be basic - meaning, no or minimal details that evoke a fashion statement. The more neutral thus better they blend with the rest of your wardrobe.

The closet jeans essentials are:

2x jeans in dark neutral. Eg. black, dark blue
Medium wash that you can "wreck" and relax in
Medium-to-dark blue tailored denim shirts
Fun denim shorts (eg. shreds, rips, fades, etc.) that you can play and wreck

These are of course a minimum. If most of your daily activities require casual clothes expand your jeans closet with various styles - from different washes to leg cuts.

Tip:

Express Your Clothing Style

After securing the essentials, it's time to build on them with trendier styles that reflect your clothing personality and cover your lifestyle.

Here are a couple of jeans styles ideas:

Classy, Sporty, Dramatic & Romantic clothing personality

If one of your primary clothing personality is one (or more) of the above then you probably like to keep your jeans simple to bring attention to your top garment and/or showcase your exquisite taste.

These jeans styles are also great for casual office dress codes or if you prefer to work on a plain canvas and highlight your tops, jackets, jewelry, etc.

Bohemian, Eccentric, Urban & Trendy clothing personality

If you have one of the clothing archetypes above then you're more daring and don't mind bringing attention to your trendy sense of style, and not least your booty!

These jeans styles work for anyone who wants to stretch their style envelope and have fun with fashion.

The Denim Jeans Terminology

Like I mentioned in the beginning of this page, it's important to have a basic knowledge in the various jeans styles, washes, rise and leg cuts along with knowing your body figure so that you can easily select a pair of denim jeans that complement it.

So let's go through the various jeans terms!

Shortcut banner to jeans styles terminology

Best Jeans Styles for Your Body Shape & Legs

Some of the things you should keep in mind when buying a pair of jeans is the size, length and shape of your lower body.

So ask yourself:

What is my inseam? (length of your legs, from your crotch)
Do I want to bring attention to or draw attention away from my legs? (should you go for side and back pockets to highlight your rounded booty, or choose something plain to minimize your lower body, etc.)
What is my body shape and what jeans styles complement it?

You Can Wear Any Jeans Style

But let me get things straight when it comes to womens jeans: You can really wear any type of jeans you like.

Say what? Do you mean I can wear skinny's with my big booty? No way.

I know, I know. Now you might be thinking that skinny jeans won't look good on you because of your heavy bottom and they can make it look bigger.

Well, that's a classic "no-no" given by fashion experts. There's nothing with that, we all need a sense of direction - all I'm trying to say is that it limits your closet options and can be a drag if you really want to wear skinny jeans.

It's About Your Body Proportions

Most women like to know what to wear and what to avoid, so it's natural for image consultants and stylists to give you a list of what not to wear for your body shape.

But the truth is that most clothing shapes and styles can be styled in a way that complement your body figure. It's all about balancing out your body shape.

Let me demonstrate how all jeans cuts can work on all body shapes (yes, seriously):

Let's say you have a pear body shape with narrow upper half and thick legs. You might tend to stray away from anything that hugs your bottom to avoid enhancing your curves because it can make you look heavier, which is understandable.

BUT..

.. what if you wear a pair of skinnys in dark wash to slim down your lower body? And then add a light colored ruffle top or a top with sleeve interest (ex. flutter, puffed, kimono) to add more width to your upper half?

Like this:

How to wear skinny jeans if you have curves, Pear body shape

Now, wouldn't that draw attention away from your butt and make your shape look balanced?

Or let's say you have a short or thick waist. We're told to avoid high waist. Sounds reasonable as high waist can make it look shorter. However, you can make it work for you with a few adjustments.

Like this:

How to wear skinny jeans if you a short waist

You'll need a high rise jeans in dark wash paired with a skinny belt and top that are similar to the color of the jeans - creating a monochromatic and elongating silhouette.

See where I'm getting at?

As long as you wear it in conjunction with your body shape and the rest of your outfit, you'll look proportionate (imagine an hourglass) and you'll look great no matter body figure! Learn more about how to work with your body proportions

Horizontal Body Shape

Here are a few examples of what womens jeans complement your body shape (without having to think much about styling your top!):

Hourglass
Your focus is to flatter your curvy hips.

Your best jeans styles are:

Best womens jeans for Hourglass body shape

Courtesy of Nordstrom

Wide and flare leg. If you're Petite, stick to the slimmest wide/flare cut you can find
Bootcut. Slim bootcut if your petite, thin-boned or would like to show off your curves a bit without looking stumpy
Straight and skinny leg jeans if you're comfortable with your curves

Basically, you can decide if you want to flaunt or downplay your curves. However if you want to wear skinnys to accentuate your hips and thighs, I recommend that you to throw in a pair of heels to avoid shortening your legs.

Learn more on how to dress your Hourglass body shape

Pear
Your goal is to balance out your hips, thighs and legs.

Your best jeans styles are:

Courtesy of Macy's

Flare and wide leg. If you're Petite, opt for the slimmest wide/flare leg cut you can find
Bootcut work wonders on de-emphasizing your heavy bottom
Straight, if you're comfortable in your curves but don't want to go all out with skinny jeans
Minimal to no intricate details around the hips or butt

Any jeans that flare outwards at the hem - this helps draw attention away from your hips.

Learn more on how to dress your Pear body shape

Inverted Triangle
Focus on jeans that add volume to your hips and draw less attention to shoulders.

Your best womens jeans feature:

Best womens jeans for Inverted Triangle body shape

Courtesy of Nordstrom

Some leg or thigh flare
Details that add volume. Eg. pockets and visible zippers
A variety of denim washes

I suggest that you look for details along the waistband and on the sides of the hips. Examples are faded wash, visible stitches and buttons.

Learn more on how to dress your Inverted Triangle body shape

Apple
Your goal is to slim fill out your hips and legs a bit more to help draw attention away from your midsection.

Your best jeans are:

Courtesy of Nordstrom

Bootcut - it works wonders on balancing out all body shapes. If you're petite, opt for a slim boot cut with details around the hips or thighs
Flare and wide leg help balance out a heavy chest and midriff. If you're Petite select a slimmer wide leg style
Styles with details around the hips and thighs, such as faded wash, pockets and visible stitches

Learn more on how to dress your Apple body shape

Rectangle
Your focus is to create curves from waist down. This means you can wear most jeans styles - lucky you!

Your best jeans feature:

Best womens jeans for Rectangle body shape

Courtesy of Nordstrom

A skinny or tapered leg - it helps create hips
Various details such as pockets, rips, visible stitches and zippers, distressed texture
Various denim washes, especially around the hips and thighs

You might want to avoid straight leg or wide leg jeans that don't taper at your thighs - they emphasize your straight waist. Womens jeans that are tight at the hip and tapers along your thighs and legs create curves.

Learn more on how to dress your Rectangle body shape

Vertical Body Shape

This is the proportion of the bottom half of your body compared to your top half.

Short Waist

A short waist usually means you have long legs. Long legs are appreciated because they make you taller than you are.

However if you're not happy about your short waist, here are some top styles recommendations and styling tips to help elongate it:

How to wear jeans if you have a short waist

Low-rise. But if you have high hips or muffin top, you need to opt for mid-rise and work on the top
Simple waistband. Faded wash, multiple button and visible stitches only shorten your waist
Dark colored top and light colored jeans. The light color bring attention to your legs
Blending the jeans with the color of your top

Learn more on how to style your short waist

Short Legs

A long waist looks very elegant but your short legs might distract the eye.

If you're self-conscious about your long waist or short legs, here are the jeans styles and styling recommendations that will help shorten your waist and make your legs longer:

How to wear jeans if you have a short legs

Mid to high rise
Decorated waistbands such as faded wash, button and stitches shorten your waist
Light colored top and dark colored jeans. Dark colors slim and elongate
Blending the jeans with the color of your footwear

Learn more on how to style your long waist

Balanced

Courtesy of Celebutopia

If you're curvy (Pear or Hourglass) or short, or carry most of the weight around your hips and thighs (muffin top, anyone?), then I suggest following my tips for short legs.

By working on elongating your legs you can appear taller and trimmer.

But no matter how you style your balanced vertical line, a pair of heels will always look flattering on you! :-)

Learn more on how to style your balanced vertical body shape

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Find Your True Body Measurements

Another important factor when buying jeans is the fit. This will save you a great deal of time. Trust me on this. It's so much better to have your body measurements ready when buying jeans instead of relying on differentiating sizes because some brand have sizes that run smaller or bigger than the true measurement.

So to get the best fit, you'll need to measure yourself accurately.

How to do it:

How to take jeans measurements

Use a cloth measurement band and measure:

Your waist - the narrowest part of your torso)

This will be your measurement when buying high rise jeans. Note that your actual waist measurement will not equal jean waist size.

For example, if you have a 26-inch waist you typically wear jeans with a 28-inch waist because it usually sits just below the waist.

Your hips - the fleshiest part of your hips

This will be your measurements when buying jeans that sit around your hips.

For example, if you have a waist of 26 inches, your butt might be bigger and you'll have to opt for a bigger size like 28 or 29.

Your inseam - the length of the legs from your crotch

It's super-important for how long the jeans will be on you. If you don't pay extra attention to this, you might end up getting a too-long or cropped-looking jeans.

You can take a pair of pants that fit well and measure from the beginning of the crotch meet seam and down to the leg opening. This will be your inseam/jeans length measurement.

Your rise - from the crotch meet seam to the top of the waist band

Measure jeans you already known and which rise you're comfortable with. Compare the rise measurement of the jeans to the rise measurement on the shopping description.

Pay special attention to the rise, it tells you how low the jeans will fit, whether they're true waist, mid-rise waist or low rise waist.

More Tips on Measuring Womens Jeans

Refer to the seller's sizing chart to see which size is best for you.

Use a flexible cloth measurement tape to measure yourself. Hold it a bit loosely.

You can also measure a pair of jeans that you already own and that fits you perfectly. Measure the jeans flat, and then remember to double the hip and waist value.

See step-by-step guide to taking full body measurements.

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