Unless you have a tall perfect body these just do not work for anyone. And the tall perfect body can only wear the wide and slouchy with a tucked in crisp white blouse. Why would the fashion industry bring these back?

This is in my opinion pretty bad. The skinny versions are really awful, the slouchy version a bit better, but still… I accidentally ended up trying a slouchy pair that I did not realize was pleated when on a hanger ( it was hanging sideways) and it looked so bad on, I have never taken anything off quicker. I shall definitely pass!

I LOVE the slouchy version. However, the skinny ones are owful. Not even models look good with them.

I like the wide and slouchey pant. I don’t see the cropped pleated pant looking good on many people. I like the updated look of the inverted pleats and the different details.

… Maybe on catwalk models?

I think the wide ones are ok… but just ok. Mostly they remind me of the pants my mom insisted on wearing because the pleats meant the pants fit her waist *and* her thighs. In my head pleated pants will always be “Mom pants”.

Ugh, nay. I wasn’t alive in the ’80s, but I really hate this trend. I think it looks puckery and ill-fitting, not flattering at all! They claim to “elongate the leg and make you look skinnier” much like pinstripes, but instead to me they just look like someone bought them two sizes too big and is trying to cinch them in at the waist! Total “no way” for this one.

Wrong wrong wrong wrong wrong! I mean, the wide legged ones look okay on the models, but most people don’t have model bodies, and pleats are so unflattering.

I think these would look great on a tall, skinny rectangle body type. If you have curves, the pleats will probably bulge out in all the wrong ways, and the end result will be something of a sad clown look.

These look good in the shots. They have an interesting shape and are artistic. BUT I think that has a lot to do with being worn by stick-thin models who are posed in a specific position at certain angles. On anyone with a normal body who is moving naturally through the day, these do not flatter. I find it’s all about the angles. Photography makes these pairs look interesting, but life would not do the same favor.

I agree with the posters above who say the lolk of the wide/slouchy pants in the photos is not that bad. Unfortuantely though, I’ve never seen the pants on a “live” person that I thought looked great.
The skinny pleated pants are a whole different story.
I’m definitely passing on both.

I had a baby. That means I don’t need any help in making that specific part of my body look any fluffier. I’m looking to squeeze it in, not make it bigger! Yup – these are “Mom Pants” for those who embrace their pooch and don’t try to pretend it doesn’t exist.

I’d like those 3 buttoned waist ones WITHOUT the pleats.

Like a lot of fashion trends, I think they only look “good” on 6 foot size 0 anorexic gazelles. Even then, those girls would look better in something else that didn’t resemble mommy jeans in non-denim fabrications. On that note, I’m sick and tired of the fashion industry making the world think that only tall, pathetically skinny girls are pretty. This is a huge pet peeve of mine. Recently I read an article on modeling that said that everything drapes better and looks better on taller girls. It said that if you take the same red dress and put it on a girl who is 5’2” and another who is 5’10” it will always look better on the girl who is 5’10.” I would tend to disagree. What looks good and looks best has more to do with proportions and fit that height. So yes, if said red dress was made for a tall girl it will fit like a sack on the short girl, but if it’s made petite for the short girl and tall for the tall girl, the short girl can look as good if not better than the tall girl. OK, getting off my soap box now. Yes, I’m short, so this makes me angry. No, I don’t want to be a model. But to the point, I don’t like these pants. The slouchy version is a bit more flattering, but there are still much better choices out there.

As a petite pear I have to agree with Sarah. I can’t imagine wearing these pants and know they would loook horrid on me! I’ve already been through this trend once before and I sure don’t want to visit it again.

I feel like there are plenty of other FLATTERING styles of pants that I will happily pass on this one!

I am still trying to rid my husband’s closet of pleated pants! He is on the bandwagon but I had to point it out to him several times!

I’m with the rest of you – the wide leg styles are better than the tapered styles, but in general, pleats add width where so many of us just don’t need width.

And there’s a practical component to the pleats – they are so hard to iron back in shape after you’ve worn them a few times! Sure, if you dry clean that’s less of a problem, but I really prefer low maintenance pants, and if they require complex ironing, I am unlikely to wear them.

But of course, when I’m out and I see someone looking awesome in pants like these, I’ll be jealous and start thinking “well, maybe I should try them…”

My thinking aligns with a lot of others here. The wide leg styles are most appealing to my eye. Either option probably requires a very svelte body to look good. I don’t think I’ll be trying to pull either option off.

A big fat nay from me. You have to be so miniscule to pull off these styles, and even then, they just look goofy to me. Bleh.

Guilty! I’m one of the ones who wore these baggy pleated pants that were pegged at the ankles in the 80’s and 90’s. I weighed less than I do now, am still long-waisted and tall. At the time, they looked good — the seat was fitted/tailored, so from the back the pants looked great.

I think pleated pants require a fit and trim body because the pleats add weight visually. So, I don’t think I’ll be going back to this look. Tailored, flat-front look a LOT better on me now!

They have potential. I like the pair center top with the bow tie. It is a lot of fabric to wear and might be fussy, but looks good in the picture.

That’s really funny: the first thing I though seeing those was ” definitely not for me but I can imagine girls with a great figure like Tanya wearing this look in a fabulous way”. And then I see Tanya hates it…

I like to have a variety of choices, but only if the choices are flattering–for example, trapeze jackets and fitted jackets are both very different, but both cute and flattering options. I think pleated pants are just across-the-board hideous, and I’m horrified to see them back. As if finding a flattering pair of pants wasn’t already hard enough.

I guess if you have absolutely no hips or butt at all, you can get away with them, but they will never be as flattering as a sleek pair of flat-front pants. I find them sloppy looking.

It seems that lately, a lot of trends are geared towards women who already look like models, while the rest of us are getting left behind.

I love Angie’s true confession about wearing pleated jeans with bodysuits.

Looking at these pants is giving me a case of post-traumatic 80s-fashion stress disorder. I can never, ever wear anything like this ever again!

The first word that comes to mind when I see pleated pants is hideous! They are sooooo bad I have no idea why designers would revive that trend. LEAVE IT IN THE FASHION GRAVEYARD WHERE IT BELONGS! PLEASE!!!! They simply do not look good on anyone. They didn’t back in the 80’s when we all sported them with our other horrid fashions and they don’t now when we pair them with decent pieces. They are just BAD! ick!

I was under the impression that pleats were the work of the devil. Maybe an ‘inverted’ or ‘dropped’ pleat pant was ok…but depended on the body shape.

Sales gals who are trying to sell you that LAST pair of pleated pants on the sale rack go on about how pleats create visual interest. I personally try to call the least amount of attention to that part of my body and the less interest the better. [In fact, a waistless, pocketless, no belt looped pair of pants with a side zipper is my idea of heaven.]

Let’s add pleated pants to “Fashion trends we are afraid will come back”…Hey…Halloween is coming up…maybe that would be a good topic for that day!

oh my, the skinny ones are the ugliest thing I’ve seen on your blog to date (not that you generally have ugly things…) Is that going too far? They really did make me physically cringe, which I generally only do when reading about someone’s gory dental procedure.

The wideleg I’m iffy on. They’re certainly interesting, and I can maybe see it in a high-fashion way, but I’m not sold yet.

If I HAD TO wear them I would choose the slouchy kind-otherwise I’ll stay away from attention to my not so perfectly flat tummy area

All of these pleated styles are beyond evil. What woman wants to turn into a bubble from her waist to her thighs? And then when you sit down, the effect is like playing the parachute game in grade school gym class. What’s worse is that I’m finding skirts with pleats like this, too! What are these designers thinking?

Sorry–pleated pants are just one of those fashion trends that should remain dead, buried, and forgotten. The slouchy ones do look kind of interesting on the models but those models would look just as good if not better in flat front wide leg pants. So, no, this would not be something I’d be interested in trying out.

NAY! I wore them the first time around. They weren’t flattering then, and they aren’t flattering now. This is one trend I won’t touch with a ten-foot pole.

Horrible idea. The only one sort of ok is the top right one. Otherwise, nope.

Not for me, and although it’s harsh I don’t think I could help making a face if I saw these on someone! They make they crotch and thigh area look large, and it is not streamlined or sophisticated in my eyes.

No, no, no! What not to wear…

Pleats are EVIL!

Nooooo, nay, never again. Back away from the pleats – I agree, they ARE evil!!
There is nothing more heinous on a sexy curvy gal like me than a pair of pleated pants… especially pleated khaki pants *shudder*!

Pretty pears know to just say no to pleats!

I concur. You know what these are? They’re not just a bad fad that has cycled from the 80s, they’re an evil curse on humanity that has been circulating since the mid 19th century called bloomers. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wi.....loomer.gif Please, why won’t the designers do us a favor and actually look at regular human bodies for once?

I disagree. I think pleated pants will make a mainstream comeback. Something that was stylish for almost a full decade has the potential to come back full swing. I think the wider leg pants are more flattering than the skinny ones, but that does not mean the young and trendy will opt for more flattering.

I do think the taller and the thinner you are the better these will look. But I also know that as our eyes adjust to the look, even curvier women will look good in them. Just like skinny jeans. When they came back, everyone said “Oh no!” then “Ok, if your tall and skinny” and now… “Skinnies for EVERYONE!” (Which I disagree with. FTR).

I agree with Nicole that this will make a mainstream comeback. Our eyes just have to get used to the look first – just as it took a few years to get used to skinny jeans.

I have seen shorts with pleats (incl on recent Project Runway finale) and thought they were adorable. I also recently went to a play (forget which one) that was an 80s period piece, and all the actresses were wearing vintage 80s pleated pants. Some looked great in them – and some looked dumpy.

In the 80s I did wear this look. Not only did I wear the look, I distinctly recall sewing up a pair in lime-green polyester – pleated, high waisted, and tapered at the ankle. I sewed them up (despite despising sewing) because I was so frustrated not being able to find a pair that fit me back then. (We didn’t have petites). I wore them until they wore out.

Despite being short, the look worked well for me – back in my teen years! That was before I had babies and my waist was only 23 inches, my stomach was perfectly flat, and my bottom wasn’t sagging. It gave me more fullness around the hips, which I needed.

Today? No way. I have tried on pleated pants over the years since having my babies (now teens). You can often find them at Marshall’s – actually – sometimes that’s the ONLY style in my size at stores like that.

The look doesn’t flatter me anymore, because I have a different body shape. So I will just be saying NO – even if my eye starts to grow to like the look on other people.

I also suspect that these will become mainstream again, although right now I find them ugly, especially the short, skinny version. I won’t even say that I won’t wear them again. If they become mainstream, they might be tempting because I’m having such a time finding pants other than jean cuts that don’t bag in the back.

I wasn’t sure Nicole was right that they would come back, but now I know she’s right. Today I flipped through Glamour magazine and they showed a pair of pleated, plaid skinny pants like those in the back row – and guess who made them? Banana Republic. Yes, that’s right. I looked on their web site and couldn’t find them, but the magazine said they were $98. It’s ALREADY happening!

I hope they won’t become a mainstream look. I was just watching a movie from late 80s and noting how odd they look. I could probably wear them if they aren’t too low waisted, but I much prefer flat front.
Joy, you made an good point about bagging. I don’t remember having that problem with this style of pants.

Wow, how interesting to read not just the original blog post (and I am curious to see Angie’s follow-up re: what she thinks of the trend) but also the responses, so many of them, and so divided.

I agree with Nicole and Shiny in that the pleats might well make a comeback and also that we might adjust our attitude towards them, just like many of us did with skinnies. I was one of the women who thought “yikes – definitely not for big-butted me” when skinnies first made an appearance, and now I love them; I know I’m not the only one who underwent that shift. It’s really interesting -and a tad disturbing- to see trends and our reactions towards them evolve. I have been wondering about some other trends, like denim washes getting lighter; I have a hunch that lighter and more “washed out” looking jeans will become more trendy agan, and while many of us think “no way” right now, we might be sporting them as well a year from now…

Anyway, back from those musings to the pleats. I don’t plan on wearing pleats again, they do awful things for my already protuding belly. But if I was skinny and 5′8” I’d try the look, and find the pants in the top row artsy and stylish. I even like the pleated skinny in the first (left-most) picture in the bottom row – though not the last two. I do know that a mainstream version of the pleated styles on “the rest of us” will make for some pretty unflattering looks and so yes, I do hope we can stem that tide.

All I can say is “Le Yuck”

Wow. The anti-pleated-pants cult is born.

I believe that a certain body type pulls off pleated pants with style. An extremely slim, tall-ish and straight body type is the requirement. Whether they look better than flat fronts is debatable.

I don’t think any of the models look good in the wide legged styles that are shown. Even they look dumpy. I can see subtle pleats working on pants, sans the volume. That’s what’s key. I therefore much prefer the skinnier pleated pant styles above. Pleats and volume are often like oil and water.

To Nicole’s point, there is a good chance that pleated pants will become mainstream again. But we WILL have the flat fronted option this time around. Thank goodness.

It’s stuff like this that just turns me off of fashion.
Pants on the runways have been mostly sleek. Though some puffy, slouchy, nearly impossible to market styles, too. (that baggy butt style I’ve seen just scares the heck out of me)

I think pants are going through an identity crisis. After the 50’s and 60’s where everthing was tight and fitted, we rebounded with pleats and baggy.
This time around it’s been a nice flat front and varying leg widths. It just hasn’t gelled into one look for long enough.
Now they are tossing pleats back onto us.

why? Capants AND pleats? I don’t know many 12 year olds who can pull that look off. I suddenly realize why women who are my mom’s age and there abouts get stuck in a fashion era. It’s easy. You know it, it’s comfy, it’s not overly expensive buying an rebuying clothing like it’s a hobby.

I dress to look decent, I enjoy fashion from an artistic perspective and do enjoy the trickle down, but I see these pants and and I envision puffy pants on puffy people. I hated the dirndle. I grew up with the darn thing. By the end of the 80’s I was so glad to chuck every pleat in the world. Except the sewn down pleats of a good Burberry kilt.

Sorry. Just a major vent.

Perhaps the top middle pair are workable. Better fabric, like a wool or whatever passes for a faux wool these days, might drape better.

It is impossible to contemplate. I can see the day when Lands End brings back pleated jeans. Or pleated courduroys!!!!!!!

I will run screaming when I see that. I will nurture and carefully launder my flat fronts, I don’t care if I am that rut. I know my limits. I. just. can’t. go. back.

*whew, that feels better*

Personally I am a slouchy pants girl. The others look ill fitting.

I have pleated linen shorts that looked good this summer. I just wore a fitted tank tucked into them. I think the wide, slouchy ones could look good with a fitted top tucked into them, as long as they are the right material. The flowy material in the photos looks good. I think you would just have to try them on and make sure the pleats aren’t in a weird spot on your body.

A pleated detail only look good in the slouchy style and only suit tall slim girls with a boyish waistline.

[...] oxfords are supposed to be worn with jeans (any hem width), dress pants or slouchy wide legged-slacks as a dressier alternative to the fashion sneaker. I’ve even seen taller gals wear them with walk [...]

[...] his video to refresh your memory). And yes, you guessed it, all the styles have either gathered or pleated fronts. So what’s the verdict on the look. Will our eyes adjust to their retro appeal, or will they look [...]

Hey: here I am, trawling through the archives of this just-discovered (awesome!) site, and six months later I have something to say on this! I LOVED paper-bag jeans with bodysuits. I MISS that look! I like these pleated pants, too, mostly the two styles on the left (wide & skinny). They look like they are going to fit me! I have small waist and hips, and short muscular thighs. The size of my strong cherished thighs means flat-front pants ALWAYS give me camel-toe. I look at pleated pants and think that they will fall nicely over my hip/thigh break, and give me a lot more freedom of movement when running/walking around.

It can make sense to say categorically that a look is wrong for oneself as an individual, but I really don’t think we can ever say about anything that it’s a wrong-across-the-board look, because people’s physiques are all so different.