Fresh stuff, best-of-the-web for midlife women
Great writing by women you'd like to have a drink with.
 |
Fashion for the Rest of Us: Jean-iologyYou get to a certain age and you start to wonder whether you need to give up on jeans. Ever since the dawn of the low-rise, jeans buying has become as problematic as the bathing suit buy. They all seem cut for a 17-year-old. They're torn. They're frayed. And they all cost more than a hundred bucks! What's with this? Two things. You still need something casual that looks good. AND: they are doing some interesting things with jeans these days, like mixing a little bit of spandex and other materials with the cotton to create a little give. And the low-rise trend seems to be ebbing; or at least some stores have realized that women over 40 need to buy clothes, too. So don't give up. First, a jeans primer. Then, some recommendations. SKINNY JEANS PROS: great for balancing out a flowy or less-fitted top, easy to tuck into boots. CONS: can emphasize a larger hip or thigh. LOOK BEST ON: women with straighter or “boyish” frames looking to create curves, taller women, or women with longer legs. DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT IF: you have larger hips, butt, or thighs, as they can emphasize the size of those areas. They can also emphasize an unbalance “V” shape to women with larger chests, mid-sections and shoulders. Women with this body-type should only rock their skinny jeans with longer, blousy tops that have a defined waist-line. FOR BEST RESULTS: find a pair in a solid, darker, wash, as bleaching and fading can break up the leg line and draw attention to problem areas. STRAIGHT LEG Like skinny jeans, straight-leg jeans are fitted all the way down to the floor. While not as narrow around the ankles as skinny jeans, straight leg jeans create a similar effect. PROS: Great for balancing out a blousy or looser-fitting top, work great with boots, but are a little less confining around the calf, so they work for more body types. CONS: Like skinny jeans, straight leg jeans can also emphasize the hip, butt and thighs. BEST FOR: Straight-leg jeans work for almost every woman, but have many of the same rules and restrictions as skinny jeans. Also good for petite women women who are easily overwhelmed by too much material. BOOT CUT Boot-cut jeans are quite possibly the most versatile style of jean available. They are fitted through the thigh, and then go straight down past the knee, creating a slight flare. PROS: universally-flattering, available in huge variety of washes, fits, and styles; can be worn dressy or casual. CONS: too wide a leg opening can be overwhelming on a petite frame. CONSIDER: Length. While one can easily get away with a pair of skinny or straight leg jeans being too long or short, boot-leg jeans need to just barely reach the ground. This creates the longest leg-line without pooling at the bottom. FLARE LEG Flare-leg jeans are like the boot cut, in that they are fitted down to the knee, then flare out from there. The main difference is the amount of flare. Flare jeans are much wider at the bottom than boot leg. PROS: great for balancing out a wider top-half, or a thicker waistline. They can also have a great lengthening effect on the legs. They can also add great curves to women with a straighter silhouette. CONS: Can be somewhat overwhelming on petite women and can also add volume to the leg. Length can also be tricky, as they tend to look awkward if too short, but also too big if they are pooling at the bottom. BEST FOR: taller women with some curves. DON'T EVEN CONSIDER IT IF: you're a petite with very thin frame. FOUR LABELS WE'VE TRIED AND LIKED We've tried these labels, and like them. They all have higher rises without looking like mom jeans. But with a few caveats. The same stretch that makes them look good also means you need to wash them more often (even after one wearing. Total pain.) And do a quick (not too long!) toss in the dryer to get their shape back. This is a hassle, and in the case of Not Your Daughters, resulted in a length shrinkage. Try these on in the stores rather than mail-order, because the sizes can be all over the place. The good news is that you may be AMAZED at how good you look in jeans again. Really. It's a huge self-esteem builder. If you haven't tried Not Your Daughter's Jeans, check them out. But definitely do it at a store, where you can try on different sizes and styles. The rise on these pants are made for older women, and they can give you a great look. We found them at Nordstrom's. We also really like Coldwater Creek jeans, especially the Natural Waist Boot Cut style, which really makes you look longer and slimmer. Try on the knit jeans, which sound disgusting, but are actually quite comfortable, and look just like dark denim. Then there are our old standby's: Lee, which has a nice Comfort Waist Boot Cut line. We liked these pants the most because the fabric had more cotton, and the jeans kept their shape longer. But we always have a hard time finding our size and the longer lengths in stores and online. Problem with supply chain?
So your old Levi 501's and the butt that fit into them is a distant memory. There is still a lot of life to be lived, and you can still do it in Levi's Perfectly Slimming 512 line (we found them at Macy's). Give 'em a try and rock on.
|
|
