Why are jeans so long

[HorrorFan81]

Ok so I lived through the 90s when my jeans dragged on the floor, got all ripped and tatty and soaked up water to the knees if it rains. Is that back again? Half the time when I try on jeans in a shop that only carry one length, that length is LONG. I am taller than average for a woman so don't understand who is buying all these jeans with 4 extra inches of flappy material. Have posted a pic from today - for anyone buying these how are you wearing / styling them? Do you just accept they will get ripped to shreds at the bottom?

No I can’t take them up myself, I also don’t have the time or inclination when I can pay someone else to do it. Do you question everyone’s choices about what tasks they take on themselves and what they pay someone who has a better skill set to do?

I'm only 3.5 shoe which can be tricky but I usually manage to find something

I've noticed it with trousers in general - I tend to have to take everything up these days and I'm 5foot 5 so the shorter end of normal really. However, since I've got very tall long legged daughters (I blame their 6 foot 7 father) - I'm kind of grateful for the trend towards trousers with a bit more wriggle room so that I don't have to see their own jeans flapping around socially distanced from their ankles.

I can sew but taking up jeans is not the same as taking up other trousers. You either keep the original hem which then tends to want to flip itself back upwards no matter how well you press it, or you chop it off and create a brand new hem which looks shit as it's too neat and tidy.

5'6" is in no way tall. And has minimal bearing on your inside leg measurement which is what matters here. What is your measurement and what are those jeans?

I'm 5'9" with a 32" inside leg and long enough jeans are hard to come by tbh.

Try Mango, they have quite a few long pairs in at the moment, if you like wide leg or flares.

I think the OP meant above average height for a woman in the UK (5ft3ish).

I’m 5ft6 and a 31in inside leg so it does vary by body proportion a lot.

I think it’s a case of finding shops that suit your body shape and leg length, I found M&S jeans too short (standard) and cut for a different body shape for me so I avoid. Cos and Mango jeans are great for me though.

My sister-in-law always get her trousers and jeans altered for length in UNIQLO, it cost a couple of quid I think but is quick and you do it at the till.

Sounds like its definitely a mixed bag. I do like uniqlo jeans but dont have a shop locally so cant use the altering services (unless they post out to you?)

Average height for a woman in the UK is 5ft3 so I am 3in taller than that - I am not 'tall' but taller than average which was what was confusing me about many places seeming to stock what I see as long jeans as the standard. I think uniqlo only have 33in in store which must be longer than average?

I vary between 29 and 31 depending on the fit

I have found the straight or skinny styles are often the correct length, the ones that are longer are the wider styles which I think are supposed to drag the floor by a few inches, fine in the model studio or for TikTok but no good for real life use.

The average height statistic is a bit of a red herring, because it doesn't take into account the variation by age. The average height of younger generations is higher (the age effect is big enough to be noticeable in every day life: I'm in my early 50s and it's moderately unusual for me to see a woman my own age who is taller, but I live in a university city and quite often see taller female students). Brands that sell to younger women may use a longer length because of this.

try the short version of them? I usually wear x long but if they’re too long then I get the standard long
obviously nobody is going to wear them like that, they’ll buy a shorter length or not buy the jeans or have them taken up

I'm 5'4 and have always been able to buy regular length trousers and jeans until this year, now everything is far too long. I've given up on jeans for now tbh, I'm sick of trying them on to discover they are miles too long and the shop doesn't do the style in a short leg! I have the fat face Keswick in a short leg and they sit on my ankle so I've no idea what people shorter than me are doing!

I don't own a sewing machine (or have anywhere to put one), I can sew basic stitches but not very well (because I rarely do it), and I find it very frustrating that I can't do it well.

Therefore I pay an expert. Same as I wouldn't tile my own wall or lay my own carpet. I could probably have a go, but it wouldn't be done as well as I would like. Someone who does alterations every day is going to be better at it than someone who sews a button on once or twice a year.

I suppose my question was whether this is a 'regular' length given that on average more people than not would be shorter than me. But tbf I didnt really consider leg vs torso length and I know I have a long torso so maybe I just have stubby legs 🤷‍♀️

Yes this is what I am finding. I really like a wide leg jean but finding it hard to get ones that dont have several inches dragging on the ground

I’m taller than you at 5’8 but I’ve had this same thought, funnily enough! Of course in my case it’s positive because long-enough jeans are actually easy to come by recently but I mean, I’m 5 inches above average height so it’s surprising that ‘regular’ jeans seem so long.