Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

to give up on finding a pair of jeans that fit me

64 replies

Kikikaakaa · 11/04/2017 09:18

I have been on this mission for nearly 2 years. Angry trying on jeans in all shops over the UK 😛

I'm not the skinniest of women but should I have to be a size 10 to find something decent, comfortable, flattering and affordable. is this a pipedream? All the other jeans wearers hate all their jeans too?

I am a size 14-16. When slimmer I still have a big bum and big legs but slimmer waist and it's still the same problem. I also am not well off so want affordable jeans (high street prices).

The problems I am encountering:

-Stretchy jeans often seem to be very thin, look like leggings and look cheap and unflattering on me
-Thicker yet still stretchy jeans seem to not fit well on the waistband, (which is rigid) if regular waist and sitting down/bending is agonising.
-High waisted jeans seem to produce an unflattering kangaroo pouch effect around the crotch area, right?

  • The next sized up jeans (16) are a bit baggy and once the denim loosens up I am constantly yanking them up by the waistband

Where do you all buy your jeans?

OP posts:
chickenowner · 11/04/2017 09:19

I can never find jeans to fit me either. I buy M&S jeggings instead, and they fit much better.

Phantommagic · 11/04/2017 09:20

Similar size and shape here. My best jeans are from Per Una of all places. Slim fit, not skinny. I was amazed, so might be worth a try.

TaraCarter · 11/04/2017 09:23

Find something that is comfortable around your derriere and thighs and looks good. Then buy a belt to deal with the inevitable slippage from your waist.

Kikikaakaa · 11/04/2017 09:23

I will try any shop! Per Una it is!

Currently I own new look black jeans that are so old they have zero elasticity anymore but I can't seem to replace them as new look constantly change their products, high waisted jeans from Topshop that slowly strangle my intestines and jeans from next which fall down and look weird with a belt

OP posts:
Hillarious · 11/04/2017 09:24

I did buy them at Next - slim fit, dark denim, suitable for work - but they've changed their styles now :( so am now on the same mission as you.

chosenone · 11/04/2017 09:27

M &S jeggings for me too. 14 long length are just right. If i want a looser/casual fit I go to Next. Cigarette vintage or slim cut Smile

TaraCarter · 11/04/2017 09:28

I'm dreading my favourite jeans wearing out, now that BHS has gone. Sob.

ghostyslovesheets · 11/04/2017 09:30

I really like Sainsbury's straight legged jeans - I'm short and chunky!

Bizzysocks · 11/04/2017 09:30

Try Evans, they are the only jeans I have found that look OK on me and I too have big legs/bum and a smaller waist

Elphame · 11/04/2017 09:35

I also buy Per Una and hide the fact that they are 2/3" too short for me in boots.

Non jean trousers are a distant dream. I don't have a single pair much as I'd love some black formal ones but I can't get them long enough

Preggocinders · 11/04/2017 09:36

I'm a similar shape to you, but a bit bigger atm after putting on a shit load of baby weight. I suggest asda's wonderfit jeans. They are stretchy and as comfortable as leggings but thicker and more "jeany" £20 and I adore them.

Kikikaakaa · 11/04/2017 09:37

I tried the ASDA wonder fit and was sooo excited - but the waist was not comfortable in the 14, and gaped in 16

OP posts:
RobinMansions · 11/04/2017 09:41

I am a similar size and have the same problem OP. My most comfortable - actually, I should probably say my least uncomfortable - jeans at the moment are by Vero Moda, and are usually priced around £30 or so. Try google for stockists or buy online from somewhere that does free returns.

I can't remember if it was on MN or somewhere else but a while back I saw a link to a US jeans label that designs to fit 'athletic' shapes, which actually turns out to be thick legs and smaller waist! I remember looking up the website and their jeans looked much better suited to my shape. If anyone knows who I mean, I'd be very thankful to be reminded.

Mulberry72 · 11/04/2017 09:42

I buy Dorothy Perkins Eden jeggings, super stretchy, nice thick material and putting them through the drier keeps them nice and tight so they don't go baggy at the knees, crotch or bum.

Astro55 · 11/04/2017 09:42

when you find them buy several pairs because they soon change the shape again!

Annoying remember the jeans shops in the 80's?

HoneyDragon · 11/04/2017 09:45

I'm a size 10 and can't get a decent pair of jeans....so I gave up entirely. Haven't worn a pair for 3-4 years now. Fuck 'em.

Kikikaakaa · 11/04/2017 09:45

I wish there was just a giant jean warehouse!

I have tried Eden, they just don't seem long enough from crotch to waist for me, so flashed a LOT of knicker and bum crack

There is no shop I have NOT tried on jeans but I didn't think of Per Una.

I am wary of online because it's impossible to tell if they will fit then you have the pallava of sending them back etc

OP posts:
Wando1986 · 11/04/2017 09:48

Buy maternity jeans. Much better fit, no high waistband to squidge stuff and last so much longer.

DJBaggySmalls · 11/04/2017 09:49

I know this is counter intuitive but try Bon Marche. They do an actual straight leg in sizes 14 - 20, with 3 leg lengths. And they fit.

QuiteChic · 11/04/2017 09:50

I have the same problem. I must have a dozen pairs none of which fit that well. I did buy some NYDJ (not your daughters jeans) in the States one holiday - the most I've ever paid for a pair - and the denim is crap; they don't last more than two/three washes before the lycra goes funny. It puts me off buying expensive jeans, but I tried Sainsburys recently and they are awful, seemed to make my thighs three times their normal size. I was contemplating Artigiano (£100 a pair) as I wear jeans all day, every day so would certainly get the wear, but I can't bring myself to spend that sort of money on a pair of jeans.

SomewhatIdiosyncratic · 11/04/2017 09:50

I've always gone to M&S for their size 10 short. I need a high waist to be able to cover my buttocks. The waist could be smaller, but manages not to look like a sack when pulled in with a belt.

Although their "short" is now a 29 inch leg Hmm

GloriaGilbert · 11/04/2017 09:52

J.Crew high-rise stretchy skinnies.

jay55 · 11/04/2017 09:52

Monsoon but only sometimes, depends which style they have. They still gape a bit at the back on the waist but accommodate a fat bum and thighs.
When they have a style that works I buy as many as I can.

Etymology23 · 11/04/2017 09:52

M and S 5 pocket jeggings for me too, or I also have a set of their "super skinnies"

Kitsandkids · 11/04/2017 09:52

I'm a bit bigger, an 18-20, but similar in that it is my bottom, hips and thighs that are the biggest areas so jeans are often too big on the waist if they fit on my bum etc.

I had success with Evans when there was one in my town, particularly the 'pear fit' ones. Unfortunately it shut down near me a few years ago.

Since then I've found that Bon Marche jeans are a good fit on me. I got size 18 straight leg for a few years and lived in them - pretty much what I wore every day. They're handy in that they do various leg lengths too. I'm now pregnant and currently wearing a size 20 pair in the same style.