Public Service Announcement

It seems like I blog about jeans a lot. And I'm starting to think that I might be slightly obsessed. But judging by the thousands of brands that are out there, I'm clearly not alone. Seriously. I walked through Macy's today and every rack and table were overflowing with "the denim". Everywhere I turned, women (and men) were clad in the all mighty jean. Denim, it appears, is our National Fabric. We are the United States of Denimerica!

And that's just fine, because I am on (another) quest  to find the perfect jeans. What else is new, right? The True Religion jeans I bought a while back are awesome, don't get me wrong. I love them. But the rise is, shall we say, a bit "youthful". They are comfortable, but not "comfy". And I still feel guilty for spending the equivalent of three family's worth of food for a year in an under-developed nation on them. I think I may have to sell them (and donate the proceeds) to get the blood off my hands.

Anyway, remember when jeans that were "comfy" were also fashionable? Take Jordache jeans for example. Or Chemin de Fer. No? Too far back? How about Guess Jeans!? Levi's! (ok, technically Levi's can still be considered fashionable, I just don't own any and haven't found a pair that didn't make me look like a portly ranch hand).

Anyway, I am on my latest quest for "the denim" for two reasons. First, I decided that I need a pair of super cute, really comfortable jeans that I can wear EVERY day. Why? Because if you haven't noticed, unless I'm at work, I dress as if I am perpetually ready to go for a run/to the gym/hit the yoga mat/go to bed. I wear "stretch exercise apparel" like nobody's business. This needs to stop. Now.

The second reason (as if the first isn't reason enough), is that I have been trying to lose weight, seriously, for two years. If I keep waiting until I am "the perfect size", I may miss out on the denim craze altogether! I will buy jeans that fit now, with no regard for any future weight loss, and if they get too big at some point in the next millennium, I will simply sell them back to the consignment store. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I decided against spending "big money" for new jeans. It is more fiscally and environmentally responsible to buy used jeans from one of the few high end consignment stores down town. This also allows me to enjoy them with less guilt and perhaps free up some money to donate to a good cause. But even though that's my plan...to buy consignment...I did go to the mall to do "research"... you know...so I know what to look for in the consignment shops. It was pretty dismal.

What is with the low rise thing? The 4-6" rise on all the cute, high end jeans are ridiculous. I'm not saying I want a super high-waisted jean circa 1982, those are equally ridiculous. Isn't there something in between?What if you're 42, relatively fashionable (on a good day), relatively slim (this is a big relative, but if I can squeeze into 'em, I consider myself well within my right to shop the cute jean section)? Apparently, while we weren't paying attention, a  generation of girls have grown up to think it's perfectly OK to have a waistband sit precariously close to their lady business in the front and show their party in the back. Where did we go wrong?

What is interesting to me, is that there seems to be a growing backlash against the super-low rise. Either a bunch of moms got together and boycotted the super low rise trend, or the designers and manufacturers had an epiphany of sorts and realized that once a woman is over 30, she doesn't necessarily want to buy all of her denim at Walmart. Imagine the money that could be made by manufacturing a jean with a higher rise that older and/or not super skinny women could wear! Of course they didn't want to call it the "Mom Rise" or market it toward the middle aged sector, necessarily. Instead, they gave it a more youthful name (which ironically makes it that much harder for a married woman of 42 to find). It's called the Boyfriend or Boy Cut jean. I find this very amusing, considering most boys these days where jeans down around their knees. In any event....I have figured it out! I did my research and I have cracked the jean code!

I found three nice options that you might want to try: the (sadly discontinued) 7 for all mankind "Boy Cut" jean (you can find them on Ebay or in consignment shops at half the price as new), the Miss Me "Boyfriend" cut, or the higher end division of Miss Me; "MEK". I understand that no two bodies are alike, and if you happen to be curvy with a small waist and voluptuous hips - you're on your own (but you may want to give Joe's Jeans a try). If you are like me - the boy cut or boy friend cut jean has given me a new reason to shop.

Yes, Virginia. There IS a jean for you!

Remember these two rules:  Funky pocket flaps are our friend and "boyfriend" jeans won't make you look like a boy, it's simply the manufacturer's code for "these are jeans that won't show your junk".

You're welcome.