Size 14 wide leg jeans that don’t make me look like a clown? 🤡

[Dimplydompley]

I’m early 40s, relatively new mum, and really want to get into the wider leg jeans trend. I’m a size 14 and carry a lot of weight on my bum and thighs. So my current Levi ‘straight leg’ jeans actually look more skintight than they do on the model.

I tried some wide leg jeans on yesterday and honestly looked like I’d escaped from the circus. I looked, frankly, ridiculous.

Where can I go to get age- and shape-appropriate jeans?

One final thing, a high rise is a must. Cannot be mid or low rise.

OP, they look fine. They’re meant to be snug over the bum/hips. They’re a good length on you. As a PP said they sit better if the fabric isn’t too stiff. A fitted top helps balance the wide leg.

I have these from NYDJ also a size 14 and find them very flattering

https://nydj.uk/products/teresa-wide-leg-jeans-ink-skyline?utm_source=awin&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=176013&utm_content=Comparison+Shopping+Service+%28CSS%29&awc=116979_1768795588_28eb3371b865bea244c1491de99c9993

I have the same body type as you. Bershka straight leg high waist work well

I tried them and concluded I looked like an elephant! I'm quite tall (5ft9) but the style just look awful on me.

I couldn't disagree with this more

I second barrel leg. They have similar relaxed fit like wide leg jeans, but are slightly tapered at the bottom, so the overall proportions are better.

I'm 5'6", size 18, I went for these - though they are nearly not as fitted on me as they are on the model. I lost 3 stone last year and don't want to be drowned in denim!

Katrine Denim Dark Blue Skinny Bootcut Jeans | FatFace

I'm size 16 on a good day, and I know exactly what you mean! After much experimenting I found a slightly cropped high waisted wide-legged style from Fatface which worked really well. However I've just checked and they don't seem to be selling them any more. Hopefully it'll be a while before the two pairs that I've got wear out!

I've recently made the transition from skinny to wide leg but similarly struggled with finding a flattering pair. If they are not fitted on the bum/thigh they just make me look much larger than I am.

I bought these from Next which I imagine are quite like the halara ones as they are stretchy and super comfy but they come in different leg lengths which I need. I loved them so much I went back and bought the black and dark blue as well.

The fit is generous so size down and that way I found the fit is somewhere between a wide leg and a bootcut/flare which is perfect.

https://www.next.co.uk/style/su520189/h51068

I think you need to try lots on to find ones you like and suit you. I think the ones in your photo would be a teeny bit short for me. I’m very chunky in the thigh, but I have some from Zara and M&S. both high waist. Barrel leg also works for me, I have some from mint velvet and Uniqlo.

Love the patch pockets ones…..heading to Next app to order right now. Thank you for sharing !

They don't suit me either. They give me no shape. I'm currently in jeans no mans land because skinny look okay but I can't find any and wide look awful.

I think barrel legs make everyone look like they have teeny tiny feet.

Halaras. Best jeans ever.

I stopped wearing wide jeans because I found them a trip hazard, so much fabric around my ankles!

A few thoughts. I adore wide legs but this time around, I'm preferring them in fabrics like corduroy, wool or a heavyish cotton drill. A lot of denim, I think, is either too stiff to hang well or else it's packed with polyester/modal etc which can look good at first but can start to sag and droop quite quickly. I've not found the perfect pair yet either.

Also I'm seeing a lot of women at the moment who seem to be wearing wide legs in the same way they probably wore skinnies, i.e with something long/loose/baggy. I don't subscribe to most style rules any more but I still think the one about balancing a wide leg with something more fitted on top is fairly sensible. So I agree with previous posters about trying them with a cropped / fitted top or with something tucked in.

Thirdly, you say you're a new-ish mum, and I remember how weird my own body looked to me for quite a long time after childbirth. Don't be too hard on yourself.

Thank you for asking this as I am a similar shape but with hip dips.
Anything wide enough to accommodate my thighs stays that width all the way down and I look square. For smarter trousers pleated waist band helps, for summer trousers in thinner fabric with a drawstring they drape better. For jeans I had given up but need to go and try some of these suggestions.

Another vote for New Look Adalae

The M&S boyfriend high rise are pretty wide, and I've been wearing them instead of barrel because barrel look awful on me. I also have some wide leg M&S that I love.

Unfortunately, that is what they look like. They look the same on you as they do on most women who aren't very tall and thin. They are neither a flattering or easy to wear style, made more challenging by the fact that unless you want to look like a rectangle from shoulder to ankle, you have to wear something fitted on top, in which case you get to only look rectangular from the waist down.
I think this cut really requires a choice between look good or follow the trend for most people. On the plus side, after the initial shock at how much worse they look, you will get used to them and adjust.

I disagree! I tried loads of pairs on and looked awful but the M and S palazzo jeans look fab on me and I'm not usually one to say that.

I'm not a fan of wide leg jeans. I looked ridiculous in them when I was a size 20 and I still look ridiculous at a size 12. I'm chunky of thigh and I just don't think they are for me. Having said that I love a flare. I feel like the less baggy thigh with the flare balances me out a bit.

My fave are the M&S patch pocket flare jeans. They don't have them in stock these days but I have bought them in a couple of colourways from vinted https://www.marksandspencer.com/supersoft-high-waisted-flared-jeans/p/clp60573227 www.marksandspencer.com/supersoft-high-waisted-flared-jeans/p/clp60573227]]]] I'm 5ft 4 and get the regular length.

Another vote for carrot by M&S. I wear mine rolled up slightly so they site on the ankle.

Blimey, one of my most successful threads! Thank you so much for all the suggestions, I am going to book a day off work and have a good try on session! 🥕 sounds interesting!

I know the style needs a shorter top but I still have a belly after having my little one. (They say breastfeeding helps you lose weight but in my case it stays, stubbornly. I’m hopeful that once we’ve weaned then I’ll be able to lose my tum!)

5ft9, all my weight is hips/stomach, I find flares good, especially stretchy ones. I bought multiple ones from Vinted-Shein are good.

For me, I need to show some (woolly socked) ankle in order to not look huge. It's similar to emphasising the waist. My body is a funny mixture of large and small and if I don't show the smaller bits, the larger bits make me look as if I'm large all over.

I know fashion tells me to wear jeans to the floor. But fashion also tries to sell me clothes on models who look like my teenage son (gorgeous but unrelatable), so I give myself permission to pick and choose what works and what doesn't, for me.