Understanding my proportions (and these jeans)

Hello lovelies,

I am trying to figure out my proportions and having a difficult time, so hoping you can shed some light on this.

I have two photos here - the first is of me in some skinny jeans. You will notice I have three shiny things on my tank. The top one is where my natural waist sits, the middle one my belly button and the third is at the waist band on the pants.

The second photo is what happens to the front of these pants when I sit down. Nobody needs to be subjected to what happens to the back, but I'm sure you can imagine!! These pants are comfortable to wear standing or walking, but not at all when sitting down.

To give a bit more context, I am 5 foot 9, the gap between my natural waist and belly button is about 3.5 inches, the gap between belly button and top of these pants is about 1.5 inches and the front rise of these jeans is about 9 inches. The distance from under my bust to my natural waist is one hand width (approx 4 inches).

To me, this says I am short waisted with a long rise. How do I best accommodate that clothing wise? There seems to be a lot of conflicting info out there. For example, wear low rise jeans to lengthen your torso (anything lower than these wouldn't cover my bum, and even these ones are questionable), hide your waist in floaty tops (that makes me look a lot bigger than I am and doesn't accentuate what I think is one of my best features), wear longer line tops (but the pear part of me doesn't look good dressed that way).

So confusing! Would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions. I am still in the process of developing my style and given the swelteringly hot climate I currently live in, tend to avoid jeans/pants. However, I will be returning to deliciously cold Melbourne in several weeks, so am interested in what to look for across a range of temperatures.

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13 years ago

Firecracker (Sharan)

Veteran

You've got a great figure! I agree that you are high-waisted. So am I, and I find that I prefer lower-than-average-rise jeans and pants, because I like the way they look and fit. It's hard to find a pant that has a long enough rise to meet my actual waist, and when I do, I just don't like the look. For me, though, mid-rise jeans are usually the most comfy, rather than low-rise ones. I think that's because a mid-rise jean covers my backside easier. I generally don't go for "curvy" fits, because if I'm fitting the waist to a point that's lower than my waist, then there's really not a lot of curve going on between my hip and pseudo-waist.
I'm not quite sure what's going on with the jeans you're wearing in this photo, but if they're not comfortable when you sit down, I would say you just need to find some that have better coverage in the back. These may have a high enough rise in the front but not in the back. You might try jeans or pants with a "curvy" fit, which will give more coverage in back. (But you may run into my problem with them, too.)
Hope this helps! I'm sure others will have suggestions, too.

Liz A.

I swear we have almost the same figure, but your legs are longer. I'm 5'7" with a 30" inseam. Because I have short legs, I prefer to wear a mid rise jean with a hip length top for a more proportional look. I have the same problem that Firecracker mentioned regarding curvy fits. They don't adjust for the angle of curvature on a person with a long rise.

It looks to me like you need a belt with these jeans to alleviate the issues. The belt will keep them from sliding down and bunching up like so.

Lantana

It sounds like you need to find the right rise front AND back. That is a case of persevering until you find a jeans cut that lets you sit without exposing the infamous "tradie's".
A belt, as Liz suggests, will go towards alleviating this problem but if there is simply not enough fabric in the jeans' rear rise you are always going to feel uncomfortable when sitting down.
With your figure (which is lovely, BTW) I suggest mid rise pants/jeans and hip length top with a cropped jacket to direct attention to your waist.
Have fun experimenting!

Anonymous

I have a very similar body shape too. A belt does help with the front pooching. I like wearing my pants on my hips, to make an 8 or 9" rise more like a 7" rise at the front.

Vix

Hi Stephabee --

You're miles taller than me but I have the wonderful short legs/short waist/long rise fit issue. I wear a lot of skirts and dresses.

With pants, I generally buy a medium (9") rise in pants that sit at hipbone height or so. Otherwise it's WedgieTime when sitting and often even standing because the #)%@ things are too short in the rise. Hard to find ones that work and aren't ridiculously baggy in the rear...if you have a little junk in your trunk you'll be in better shape than me on that!

[And hey, slouchy pants are in and I'm embracing the trend a bit for the above reasons.]

For me it doesn't matter if the rise is higher in the back...it would need to be about 15" high to serve and protect. I' often do knit tops that I can wear a bit rouched in the front and longer in the back.

Re top length:

I think you have to make peace with the pieces, so to speak, since the recommendations do conflict. With skirts you can go with tops that hit higher.

With pants, though, I find right where your purple one ends (eg a few inches above ye olde crotch point) is generally the best for me.I'm straight-hipped but the lower-hip is my widest point so it's not ideal, but it is what it is.

If you end somewhere around that spot, you'll be accentuating your waist (if you wear fitted tops) and drawing perfectly appropriate attention to your lovely hipline.

I get not wanting to hide your tiny waist but I have found flowy high-low tops to be a friend IYKWIM, ha! They -- and looser-fit tops in general -- make me look like more of a Rectangle than I already am, but it's where styles have moved so I'm trying to embrace it and enjoy the bonus of not worrying about rear-view exposure.

Another tried-and-true is a longer tunic. I find mid-thigh or longer is better on me that just below crotch point.

Good luck and report back on what's you're trying etc.

BTW, if you edit your title to include "long rise" some of our YLFers with the same issue might jump in with tips.

pastrygirl

(website)

I also have a similar gap between my natural waist (way up high!), belly button, and where jeans usually hit. I find that I have to stick my hand down the back of (skinny) jeans and pull that side up first to get the rise to work for me. Otherwise, they end up slinking down too low when I sit. I also have a bit of belly, so I look for jeans that almost reach my belly button even when I do that pull-up-the-back-first thing.

I personally don't like to do anything to lengthen my torso, because then my legs look too short (I'm 5'7 with a 30-31" inseam). I tend to go for tops that land right at my hip bone. Longer than that, I start to look really wide. Shorter than that, I look like I'm wearing too small a size. Though I will tuck in a shirt and wear a longer layer over it. Or not, if I'm wearing a high-waisted skirt. I really like the high-waisted look so I tend to accentuate it.

In the hot weather, I wear skirts and dresses almost daily. I don't like shorts at all and jeans get too hot (especially since I prefer thicker skinny jeans that are very constricting). In a skirt or dress, I always keep my waist defined at the narrowest point, even if I have to add a belt.

Wow, so much great advice, thank you everyone! As always, lots of things to think about and try.

Firecracker and Liz, I will definitely check out the curvy fit of some jeans. They are non existent here in the Philippines, but there are quite a few available in Oz. It's interesting that they might not be right for my though, given the position of my waist ... will have to investigate!

Lantana and Liz, I tried a belt with these pants after I read your comments and was surprised at how much of a difference it made. I have only ever used belts as decoration or to highlight my waist, but good to know it does what it's actually mean to do!! The pants are still not quite right, but better than before.

Ciet and Vix, I agree about needing the pants to hit at my hip point. It definitely looks better. I too think I would need a crazy high rear rise to serve and proctect (love that expression Vix!). I will definitely give the high-low tops a go. Perhaps a sheer fabric with a tighter tank underneath could still give me the definition in my waist?

Pastrygirl, I laughed when I read your description about pulling the back of your pants up first. This is the story of my life and I just thought it was normal! Hehehe.

Again, thanks so very much for everyone's ideas and thoughts. My style journey is really just beginning and I currently don't have a lot of clothes I'm particularly attached to, so I'm quite looking forward to this whole adventure.

Reading YLF and all the great advice has given me a very different focus when it comes to clothes shopping and I like that!

PS: Happy Mother's Day to all the lovely YLF Mums out there.

krishnidoux

You had great advice already, but I wanted to chime in. To me, the rise is too low. Period. I too have similar issues with some of my skinnies. My solution is to wear them also as skinnies, with longer tunic, and avoid the extra-low rise the next time I shop.

BTW you have a GREAT figure!

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