Jeans/pants

[barrelgal]

I have a trim waist but a large rear and thighs. I LOVE the Ann Taylor 'Curvey" cut but they have several differnt cuts. The ones I have on right now are trouser cut so they don't come in around my calves at all. I usually find them on the sale rack for ~$20

[Selkie]

I'm 5'6" and have a petite but athletic figure (i.e., muscular legs/rear and a small waist). With vanity sizing, it has gotten increasingly more difficult to find jeans and slacks that fit me---everything is too big.

Patagonia jeans are the best for me (mid-rise, haven't tried the low rise). Talbot's curvy petite also fit me.

I might try JCrew because their skirts fit me.

[jessmarimba]

Oooh, you know where else I got awesome jeans? New York and Company. They're pretty stretchy without looking like stretch jeans - they fit my curvier areas without bulging outwards and they're so much comfier than normal denim. No idea about their other pants though.

[Crankin]

I started buying Gap jeans in the past year, particularly the skinny jeans and legging jeans. I am short, thin, with a smaller waist in proportion to hips, although my hips aren't huge. The jeans come in petite sizes (yay, no hemming fees). I have big calves and quads/thighs from cycling. Gap jeans, even the skinniest, snuggest styles fit over my calves, which are my main problem.
With such a wide size range (petite, tall, regular) and many styles/fits, I would think you could find something that fit. Pretty reasonably priced, usually around 69.00. I was willing to pay anything to find something that fit.

[gnat23]

I am intrigued by something I heard about called "Yoga Jeans". Surely those would fit my thunder-thighs, right?

Anyone have any leads?

-- gnat!

[ny biker]

All of my pants are from J Jill. The jeans (denim and corduroy) are 98% cotton and 2% spandex, and that little amount of spandex is enough to make them loosen up quite a bit. They have two fits -- Authentic and Tried and True. Authentic has a slightly lower waist and maybe is a bit narrower in the thigh -- I'm not sure because they stopped selling Tried and True a couple of years ago and only just brought them back last week, due to popular demand, and I haven't tried any on yet.

Anyway, the Authentic jeans come in boot cut and slim leg, and sometimes also in skinny, depending on the season. The only ones that are snug on my calves are the skinny jeans. The others have plenty of room in the lower leg.

Their boyfriend jeans are a looser-fit jean overall. I don't like the way they look on me, though I have a couple of pairs of chinos in boyfriend cut that look fine.

Another important point, which probably applies regardless of brand -- there is a fair amount of variation in how the jeans fit within any given size. If they have 2 or 3 different pairs of the same style/color/size jeans I will try them all on, and they will all fit differently. It's because of the way the fabric is cut. They stack up a whole lot of fabric and cut the whole pile at once using a laser, with the result that the jeans from the top of the stack are smaller than the jeans from the bottom of the stack. So don't just take one pair in your size to try on -- try every pair in the size you think you are. You might even find you're better off going up or down a size in one particular color.

It takes more time to try on more pants, but it can be worth it.

Also, if you try on any pants that have a bit of spandex, and they're loose in the waist, try the next size down, because they will most likely loosen up way too much after you've worn them a bit.

p.s. If you're gonna shop from J Jill, I recommend signing up to receive emails from them, so you'll be notified of sales and coupons. I shop there a lot, and I rarely pay full price.

[malkin]

Consistency is always an issue with jeans.

@ Diamond Gusset if you email or call with the size you want--like if you measure and have a real number of inches, they will find a pair of pants corresponding to the actual number of inches you need.

They cost a bit more than some of the off the rack pants, but I get 2 pairs, and wear them almost every day for a year. And then the next year I demote them to the yard work and stuff. So for me, worth every penny.

Made in the USA
They have customer service.

[OJazzy1]

Good info ladies. Guess it's time for me to go jean shopping... it's gonna be a long trip, haha but at least I have a direction to head in.

[SadieKate]

Cabelas authentic cut.

[Owlie]

Gap jeans do well for me, since they're fairly stretchy. Granted, I don't put on a ton of muscle bulk the way some on here do, but the curvy cut works nicely when I'm riding a lot.

[GLC1968]

Levi's Curve ID jeans. They have lots of different variations depending on how curvy you are, but I'm the BOLD curve (no surprise). They are about $60 a pair.

I also have luck with Mountain Hardwear, Ann Taylor Loft in the curvy cut (called Julie, I think) and Banana Republic curvy cut for pants.

For shorts, my best pair are these from Royal Robbins:
http://www.rei.com/product/693810/ro...-shorts-womens
(they look straight in the photo, but they are not - they fit athletic thighs and small waists wonderfully!)

[Wahine]

Levi's Curve ID jeans. They have lots of different variations depending on how curvy you are, but I'm the BOLD curve (no surprise). They are about $60 a pair.

This is me too and OJazzy1, it sound like you and I are similarly built.

When I had to buy new jeans, I walked into a Levi's outlet, went straight up to a staff member and asked to speak to someone who understood fit issues. There was someone there that helped me a lot. I've done this in a lot of stores and it works much better than just randomly trying on different pairs of pants.

I'm 5'7", waist is 29", hips 38", upper fattest part of thigh 23", muscular lower thigh 20". Like GLC I also wear the BOLD curve. They also have a lot of different styles with varying amounts of elastic material in them. The more stretchy, the more comfy and the jeans stay in place a bit better.

In general, I have a lot more success buying work pants at Title Nine. For every 6 pairs I pull off the rack, 4 will actually fit me. At most stores, I'd be lucky to find 1 pair.

[GLC1968]

I'm 5'7", waist is 29", hips 38", upper fattest part of thigh 23", muscular lower thigh 20". Like GLC I also wear the BOLD curve.

Heh, I have the same hips and thighs as you, but my waist is 27" and I'm only 5'4". Funny that the same jeans work for both of us! I'm sure you are buying a longer length than me, of course.

I'll have to check out Title9 - I've never shopped the store, only the catalog, and that's too difficult for finding pants!

[trickycoolj]

Ugh Jeans! My most hated topic. Here's my 2 cents worth in case it helps anyone else! I'm pretty pear shaped, 5'6" 30" waist, 40-41" hips, 24" thigh. I am a huge Lucky Jean convert. The Sweet & Low is a great cut for curvier hip/thighs and tends to be a little more roomy all the way to the knee and has a boot cut to accommodate for the calves. The Sweet & Straight is a straight cut but with larger calves they're pretty snug below the knee, try a size up from your boot cut size it may work, but it may leave the waist too big. Their Sophia cut was new this year and is a little lower rise but also curvy, comes in more at the knee and I've come to prefer this cut as not having a wider pant at the knee doesn't make my legs look like tree trunks (heh). They also have a "super stretch" fabric that costs a little more but has lots of good stretch, they also don't shrink because of it and accommodate my hips/thighs/rear well and are very comfy. I practically sound like a spokesperson but when you find Jeans that work you want to exclaim it from the mountain tops so your fellow perfect jeans hunters will know!!

I've had some success with Kut from the Kloth at Nordstrom/Macy's but the quality isn't very long lasting (tears at the corners of the back pockets). If you're willing to go designer, I got some Paige jeans I liked at Nordstrom Rack for 60% off, they have a nice curvy cut and wider waistband to help with gaping though I don't remember what particular cut they are.

Gap jeans Long and Lean, my former staple, changed last year and they have a waist that's straight up from the hips, it's an odd cut on me and I can practically roll the waist down like sweat pants... not a good look!

[kajero]

Believe it or not, I have some luck with KMart's Lee Ryder Jeans. I get them in the petite section with the relaxed fit. I can only find them online now.

I also have had good luck with Lee Jeans online. They have many different styles in many different cuts. They have a form on line you can fill in with your fit requirements and it helps you select the best fitting jeans for you. The only problem I find with them is the consistency. I bought two pairs of the same style, loved them, and ordered a third pair. Although everything should have been identical, the third pair didn't fit nearly as well. The jeans do have some spandex in them so they have just enough stretch to be comfortable and hold their shape. Much more than the ones I buy from KMart.

If you watch for sales on Lee Jeans website, you can get a pretty good deal. If you sign up with email and wait a bit, you get a new customer coupon which is great!