Review: REI OC Granite pants

[emily_in_nc]

+1 for L. L. Bean--quality, functional clothing that fits nicely. One of my favorite brands. Emily, what about getting the regular pants and hemming them, if they fit other than the length? Bummer to be between sizes!

Hemming is just too much trouble and never looks exactly right when I do it. And the smallest "regular" size LL Bean pants is probably too large for me in the hips (Petite sizes are cut slimmer through the waist/hips and have less rise). So I just make sure to buy my pants at places where I can be sure the inseam is long enough (29") or try them on in person.

What LL Bean hasn't yet "gotten" is that most of us prefer a longer inseam for boot-cut or flared pants (esp. if you wear a shoe with any heel at all) than for straight legs with flats. All their petites pants have a 28.5" inseam no matter what the cut of the leg. That inseam works for me in straight legs, but I like boot-cut pants, and they're just too short for that if there is any shrinkage at all (and there often is as they sell a lot of cotton). I've emailed them to mention this, but they haven't made any changes.

Fortunately, a couple of weeks ago, I was able to find long-enough jeans at both Talbot's Petite and Gap (their "Long and Lean" Ankle length, all their other "A" sizes are too short for me also). Isn't it strange that I'm only 5'1-1/2" and have such a time buying pants that are long enough? I guess pants are kinda like bikes sometime....

Emily