What jeans to buy if skinny jeans look amazing

[bluetongue]

I’m trying to buy jeans at the moment and it’s a nightmare. As a five foot one, curvy (but not overweight) woman in her 40’s with short legs nothing else looks as good on me. Most other styles simply are unflattering or look wrong somehow.

I started of off trying straight jeans but they were baggy and my butt looked weird. Then I tried slim fit but they sort of look like slim jeans gone wrong. It’s a bit depressing because after recently losing (I’m now healthy BMI) I’ve been able to buy lots of clothes that look amazing and have been getting loads of compliments on my new look and wardrobe. Jeans have defeated me however.

On a related topic, I’m heading to the UK next week from Australia (hence the shopping spree) and after trying on my dark blue skinnies I realised they are super flattering on me. Much more flattering than any other jeans I’ve tried on recently. Would they look out of place in London with boots and a blazer for gong out in the evening? After losing weight they’re still skinny but not skintight. It’s so hard packing for 6 degree weather when it’s over 30 degrees 😁

When fashion changes I think it takes a few months for us to get our eyes in and adjust to new shapes. So non-skinny jeans may appear unflattering now but in a year’s time you might think differently?

I suspect that it’s because we’re all used to wearing looser tops, with skinny jeans, so when those are combined with looser jeans the overall effect is a bit too baggy. Plus straight-leg and flared jeans need different shoes and boots compared to skinnies.

I’m wearing Superdry parachute grip combats and they took a bit of adapting to compared to girlfriend jeans. I love them though, and the look feels modern.

Anyone who feels great in skinny jeans should continue to wear them!! Plenty still on sale in fashionable shops and plenty of people still wearing them in London.

When I put mine on now, I do feel oddly dated and also a bit out of balance as my top half is a lot bigger than my bottom half. I will still wear them though but pay attention to what with. They look better, bizarrely, when I wear something oversized on my top half. I guess because this actually disguises my bust etc and also seems more modern. A fitted top AND very fitted jeans are what is not in fashion. The rise is important too, to get that balance.

Wrt to making other types of jeans work for short legs, I haven't gone very wide/baggy but have been wearing straight/barrel ish/slim and have found shortening them or rolling them up, then having boots which cover the ankle and the gap (in winter) makes them work, rather than full length, which is odd as you'd think this would make my legs look even shorter. You just have to get the length spot on.

I totally disagree about the Stan smiths! You can wear without socks unless it's icy ( I rarely wear socks) or wear any socks you like! Go colourful or else white. Your choice, there aren't rules. Look on pinterest

I love the tesco Contour Skinny's. They do them in a lovely dark blue.

Definitely try the Levi's. If you buy them direct from a Levi's store they usually offer free in-store alterations and I've always found their staff really helpful in suggesting which styles to try.

I seriously would not wear them tucked into long boots though…. I have not seen anyone wearing those out in the wild for a long time. Trainers and socks are great although I’m personally not a fan of white trainers in the winter. There are so many other types of trainer around - (every colour under the sun ) it does feel a bit staid to stick to white. I think they look OK with a vintage style sports sock but seriously not with a full length jean or trouser. Cropped trousers or long skirt look better with that type of look.

pantharella no show socks are amazing and don't slip down

I’m not talking about ‘no show’ socks or trainer socks. I’m talking about the ankle covering kind, quite obviously. I’m surprised that I’m having to spell this out. Bare ankles with white trainers look daft in cold weather. England in January and February = cold weather.

I dunno. My neighbourhood (West London) is full of women trotting around in white trainers with portions of their ankles uncovered (including me). It might not be what you'd wear for a night out on the town, but seems perfectly fine for daywear. I'm from a much colder place though, so might not be very sensitive to that.

I always wear trainer socks with my white trainers so that’s me told 😳

If you’re on Instagram then follow me.myshoes.and.I Or whattowearfor_ the first one is based in Poland but she has a very generic European city style and the other account has great capsule wardrobe photos. They should give you an idea of what people are wearing.

Youcan wear what you like in London and people frequently do. My rule of thumb is to not look like a tourist (holiday clothes do not exist) but to wear what you would normally do at the weekend if you were going somewhere reasonably nice.

I wear normal socks with trainers, OP. Today I had white Stan Smiths and bright orange socks with slightly cropped blue Levi’s mom jeans.

I always wear trainer socks with my white trainers so that’s me told 😳

What, even in freezing cold weather? Wear what you like, but the OP, who lives in Australia, wants to know what to wear in London in January so as not to look unfashionable or silly.

Having short legs I don’t tend to wear trainers in winter. They look best with ankles on show and it’s too cold for me, though plenty of people do all year round. As a last resort I’d wear pop socks but not my finest hours.

Normal ankle socks are either white to match the trainer, which is actually very fashionable amongst the younger ones (dad on his way home from playing tennis look) but feels very odd to me, or another colour altogether which cuts off the flow of the leg. Fine if you don’t have short legs.

If you have to wear socks I think matching the colour to the trousers/jeans looks best as it doesn’t reduce the leg length.

I tend to wear ankle boots with a slight heel instead to avoid all this.

London in winter will ruin white trainers, particularly if you're spending a lot of time walking, which is often the quickest way to get round. All the puddles (and there will be plenty of them) are black. I'd avoid.

I must admit, that was my concern. I will be taking a pair of Columbia waterproof sneakers (for snow) so might just the white trainers safe at home 🙂

Yes, even in winter. Even in the rain. They are Vejas and can withstand a bit of water.

Success at last! I ended up getting a light blue straight pair and medium blue skinny pair from Uniqlo. The ‘skinny’’ pair are more like a slim fit on me.

As a bonus they were also very reasonably priced 😁

I agree. Bare ankles in very cold weather look odd. Very odd.
And socks with white trainers look odd. Very odd.

Very belated update but after arriving in London I decided one of my pairs of jeans just didn’t look right at all (for my age anyway) and skinnies were much more prevalent than in Australia. Went into M and S and wouldn’t you know it, the first pair of jeans I tried on fitted absolutely perfectly and we’re ridiculously comfy. It was meant to be so of course I bought them.

That's great OP.
I'm in Australia and travel to England every couple of years. I do worry about what to wear but I always end up buying new stuff and wearing that the whole time.
Then when you get home you can call them your London jeans 😊

I love m&so mom jeans.
They are good for shorter folks as they're loose but not voluminous at the end. They're tapered. I feel 4'8 in wide leg trousers

Exactly.

No one needs to know that M & S isn’t the poshest shop in the UK and if they look and feel great who cares. Plus it was M&S Kensington High Street so that’s posh in my books.

The short length they have is made for me 🙂

bluetongue - what height are you please? M&S seemed to have changed the lengths of their jeans so i'm a bit confused if i'm still regular length or not.

I’m 5’1 and the short length is perfect but I do have short legs even for my height,

Also a further update on my shoe dilemma . I brought my white Adidas Stan Smiths and they’ve been great. Lots of other women in London wearing sneakers including white sneakers. You end up walking so much here that I think most people just go for comfort,