Your pal Plummy has a hell of a time finding jeans.
The LB Right Fit ones are okay in a pinch, but I want something with a little more polish since I cannot now, nor have I ever been able to, carry off true casual wear.
My legs aren’t short, but my torso is long, so it’s hard to find a rise that comes within shouting distance of my actual waist. Plus, my waist is 16″ smaller than my hips, which is excellent if you’re a Max Fleischer cartoon, but not so much if you want to do mundane day-to-day things like cover your backside with fabric on a regular basis.
Oh, and speaking of backsides: I don’t actually have one.
I’ve got legs that literally inspire poetry (okay one poem, and it doesn’t even have the word Nantucket in it!) and a rack that causes wonder and astonishment wherever I take it. If God in his infinite wisdom decided that it would be better to give me a large, undercooked pancake where a booty would traditionally go? So be it. I’m not trying to be greedy.
Still, it would be nice to have one, you know, for special occasions.
Anyhoodle.
The other day I was wandering around in TJ Maxx on the hunt for an Easter hat –I don’t know why, but Marshalls and TJ Maxx have the BEST church hats. We’re talking like $600 British confections for $150– when I decided to peruse the clothing selection.
Historically, I have had precisely zero luck finding clothes at TJ Maxx and Marshalls. I’ve found better fortune at Ross, which routinely gets Jones New York large dresses (I go there weekly because if you go on just the right day in just the right neighborhood, you can find hundred-dollar Barcelona and Real Madrid jerseys for $30) but TJ Maxx and Marshalls? To quote our pal Hemingway “nada y pues nada.”
However, I was determined not to go home without a good pair of jeans –my last pair having given up the ghost several months ago– so, driven by desperation, I checked out the racks.
That is where I met the Khakis & Co No. 030107 trouser jean, aka The Only Jeans I’ll Ever Love.
(at this point I would humbly request the reader to imagine a choir of angels performing a selection of your favorite choral work from Handel)
They…they’re perfect. They make me look, long, lean and about twelve feet tall. Plus they give me a butt. Dear God they give me a butt!!!!
I don’t know anything about this company, but whoever designed these things were designing $200 jeans, not $40 cheapos. There were smart little design elements that you only really find in old-school tailleur.
Unfortunately, I can’t find them for sale anywhere online so I can’t show a photo –and yes, it means you’ll have to go to a store and try your luck– but let me give you some details (in alphabetical order) instead:
Back: Clean but merciful. The hidden front pockets are repeated on back, with buttons (no flaps). The yoke is low-profile and shallow (about 1 1/2″) with no unnecessary embellishments anywhere.
Color: deep steely midnight rinse. Somewhere between dark indigo and dark gunmetal. There’s no shine but it’s shot with a gray thread along the vertical which gives the illusion of a bit of dimension.
Cut: A true trouser-style, a bit wider than straight leg but slimmer than what I’d typically call wide leg. They’re cut close through the hips and upper thigh (still plenty of room for curves though) and then appear to trimly shoot straight down. If they flare at all, it’s indiscernible on me. I’d say the inseam is about 33 1/2″ with an inch hem that could be let out in case of emergency. The inseam is perfect for heels on me, but I think I’ll get one pair taken up to wear with flats.
Embellishment/Details: Vertical seam down the front, and a slightly forward-set side seam for an extra long look. It’s a surprisingly couture touch for a pair of jeans that only retailed for $40. Two barely-curved hidden pockets. No grommets or embellishments anywhere.
Fabric: A trouser-weight denim twill with what feels like about 2% or 3% elastane. Not as bulky as a traditional pair of 501s, but not thin either. These are jeans that can and will move with your body while still holding you in. I’m well into the afternoon and there have been no signs of saggy elephant butt, which is often the case with jeans that stretch.
Rise: These hit me at my natural waist so they’d probably be a slightly “Hollywood rise” on most people.
Sizing: Kind of a moot point since you have to find them in stores anyway, but for the record I have a 36″ waist and 52″ hips and the size 20W fit me like they were cut to my body. I felt held in but not constricted. The 18W fit with some squeezing through the waist and hips, but not so much that the buttons were in danger of putting out someone’s eye.
Waist: As I said before, these would probably be “Hollywood rise” –sitting slightly above the natural waist– on most people. There’s 2″ high waistband with several bands of stitching and low-profile double belt loops. Inside it’s finished with double stitching and crimson bias tape for extra stability, another surprisingly upmarket touch.
When I got pregnant I initially bought a few plus-size pregnancy jeans at Motherhood Maternity but they never fit quite right. I am also somewhat taller with a small but long waist. Only, I also have a gigantic butt. Like, really big. I was even asked before if it’s real which I guess now I’d take as a compliment but back in my teenage years this question put me into deep depression for a while. So even when I am not pregnant it’s really difficult to find jeans for me because they gap so much in the back and never go up high enough for me.
Anyhow. When I was about 4 months pregnant I went to Marshalls and I found a pair of size 24 Earl jeans. I was a size 22/24 before pregnancy but at 4 months, these fit me perfectly.
Now I am almost due (three more weeks to go) and somehow they grew with me. And believe me, I not only gained a lot of weight in my butt and thighs in the last 4 months, I also grew a real pregnancy belly. I am not one of those pregnant, fat ladies who never really look pregnant. How these pants do it and still fit over my belly – up to my belly button – I don’t know but I am glad they did. They are like the jeans from “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants”.
When I initially found them I went to all the Marshalls in the area and finally found another pair. And they are flattering and a nice, dark denim too. Oh and they were $10 a pair.
Comment by Ali — April 14, 2011 @ 11:12 am
Well, I know where I’m hitting up for some hat confectionary! Thanks for the tip!
Comment by SarahDances — April 14, 2011 @ 11:23 am
@SarahDances: it might be slim pickings right now because of Easter next week, but yeah, it’s some seriously good millinery.
@Ali: Someone asked if your butt was real? That’s fantastic! Of course, I say that as someone who yearns for a booty. I feel your pain though re: rises in the back. I’m not blessed with any manner of badonka in my donk, but I’ve got a long waist so almost nothing ever comes up high enough on me. Oh, and I get accused of having fake parts all the time (usually my lips) and they always say it’s a compliment. Uh. Okay.
Comment by Miss Plumcake — April 14, 2011 @ 12:40 pm
Are these the jeans you were talking about? I am doing internet searches to find a pair a in my size. I have the same issues. (Long torso and smaller waist) Sadly not in my size though!
http://www.shopko.com/detail/northcrest-womens-plus-idg-diamond-fit-denim-pants/14345
Comment by Monica Quijada — April 14, 2011 @ 1:06 pm
@Monica: No, but thanks and good luck in your search!
Comment by Miss Plumcake — April 14, 2011 @ 1:28 pm
Google questionably says that these magic pants originated at Bealls Florida, not to be confused with the Houston-based Bealls that owns Burke’s Outlet, Palais Royal, and Stage. Incidentally, Bealls Florida is only located in Florida(duh), Georgia, and Arizona.
Comment by ChloeMireille — April 14, 2011 @ 10:25 pm
As I have none of those stores in my fair state, I have another option that you won’t believe me on, until you try them. These trouser jeans are from Lee, hand to heaven, I SWEAR…
I saw them on a friend & just thought wow. I went online & ordered some, even though I hadn’t really worn Lee’s, they were affordable enough to try. GIRLS, they even have COVERED BUTTONS! The styling is amazing, the dark indigo color is perfect, the waist is flattering & comfy & they are perfect medium heel length. I have been telling everyone about them, I even made my Mom get a pair! They make me look GOOOOD. Just try them, that’s all I ask…
http://www.lee.com/store/LEE_STORE_US/en_US/product/women/plus/platinum-label-no-gap-waistband-trouser-plus.html
Comment by Leah — April 15, 2011 @ 12:57 am
@Leah: I’d never worn Lees before, but a few years ago when they started to revamp their plus-size line they sent me a pair for review and consult. I wasn’t thrilled with them –they had too much elastane and were cut slightly on the mom-jeans bias– but even then I could tell they were going to go places once they got their act together. I’m glad I was right and it’s awfully handy to have another potential source of Magic Jeans.
@Chloe: Innnnteresting. I’d never even heard of them. I’m pretty sure I’ve never been into a Bealls of any variety, but I totally would if I thought I could find Magic Jeans!
Comment by Miss Plumcake — April 15, 2011 @ 11:02 am
Sadly no magic jeans at my local TJ Maxx, I’m guessing Plummie snared them all :-), but since I have short legs and a tush, they may not have been ‘my’ magic jeans anyway.
I’m gonna try the Lee’s since I’m desperate for jeans and specifically a straight wide leg with a Hollywood waist…If anybody else has any other recs, I’ll owe ya big time.
Comment by Thea — April 15, 2011 @ 11:17 am
One of the most stylish women I know visits Ross, TJ Maxx and Marshalls weekly. She doesn’t buy a lot, but boy does she buy well. Congratualtions everyone! (PS- my only jeans that fit are the Charter Club Classics/Classic slim-it-up which I believe are being discontinued. Yay.)
Comment by Ellen W. — April 15, 2011 @ 11:47 am