https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Mon, 27 Apr 2026 23:26:36 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1644360 Thu, 14 Apr 2016 07:18:21 +0000 Gigi 1644360@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>All I remember is Chic jeans from when I was in junior high/high school, probably because those were the only ones that came close to fitting me. I have a bigger rear and a smaller waist, and like BC, I had to buy jeans that fit my hips, so the waist was too big. I should have bought stock in belts. Of course, the jeans had to be hemmed too. I HATED shopping for jeans. I am so grateful now for all the different sizing. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1644248 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 23:32:37 +0000 catgirl 1644248@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Don't get me started on music! DH is renting a bar and a DJ so I can have a giant 80s dance party with all my friends for my 50th! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1644188 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 21:16:59 +0000 barbaraq 1644188@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I remember Levi's shrink-to-fit jeans from the 50's. &nbsp;You bought them in the men's department in your nearest size, then took them home, filled the bathtub with the hottest water you could tolerate, put them on and then sat in the bathtub until the water cooled. &nbsp;The next part was the hardest: &nbsp;you had to keep them on until they dried. &nbsp;As I remember, they cost about $4.00 a pair.</p> <p>I was never allowed to wear them out of the house except when hanging out with my girlfriends in their houses. &nbsp;My mother was horrified by the whole idea. &nbsp;Only poor people wore denim jeans, according to her upwardly mobile standards, widely shared by all her friends.</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1644171 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 19:41:43 +0000 Mochi 1644171@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>BC, BWAH! We also mercilessly teased kids who wore floodwater pants. Life could be cruel.&nbsp;</p> <p>All of this. Every bit!&nbsp;</p> <p>I remember when The Gap was this tiny, not very glamorous little chain store in the mall. They must have very successfully rebranded while I was in college or something.&nbsp;</p> <p>And also, no one's mentioned how boys in the 70's wore very form-fitting jeans. A leftover from disco? That baggy, hanging down look later on...gah!&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1644116 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 17:33:47 +0000 Anonymous 1644116@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>We didn't dare wear shorter jeans because people would ask us if we were expecting a flood, lol. Mine were never frayed because my mother would hem them up for me, but she made sure not to make them too short.</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1644114 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 17:32:37 +0000 LaPed 1644114@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>"hems that were abraded in back from hitting the ground"&nbsp;</p> <p>Hehe, Rabbit, I never have figured out whether we did this intentionally or if it was just an inevitable consequence of everything being a 32" inseam. I still see it quite a bit where I live and find it pretty cringe-worthy now. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1644090 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 16:49:49 +0000 rabbit 1644090@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Good point about music! &nbsp; So 1980's pinstripe jeans -- Micheal Jackson thriller era.&nbsp;</p> <p>high school skinnies and converse -- Dead Kennedys,&nbsp;</p> <p>baggy jeans then later into bootcuts -- nirvana, NIN, pearl jam, neo swing</p> <p> </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1644062 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 15:57:03 +0000 Staysfit 1644062@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Notice how music goes with all this denim. No one mentioned ELO, or Fleetwood Mac?!!! I strongly relate to all the above, great post! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1643955 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 10:52:47 +0000 Anonymous 1643955@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have told my DDs about how bad the jeans sizing was back then. I remember having to buy to fit my hips and the waist being too big. There was so such thing as short, regular and long lengths. My jeans were always about 6 inches too long. My mom would always have to hem them up and take in the waist. Every time. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1643937 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 05:16:57 +0000 rabbit 1643937@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>First memory in junior high in the 80's were tapered pinstripe jeans. &nbsp;I think I had a pair with pale pink pinstripes on dark denim. &nbsp;They might have even had front pleats, and you wore them with little white pointy oxfords and a matching bandana rolled with a knot in it tied around your neck. &nbsp;</p> <p>Oh, and izod polo shirts? (or the no-name equivalent).&nbsp;&nbsp;Or a brocade candy-colored button up shirt, with like a big rhinestone brooch at the closed collar. &nbsp; &nbsp;</p> <p>High school was skinnies transitioning to &nbsp;baggy grunge jeans and military surplus pants cut into board shorts with converse. &nbsp; By college bootcuts were kind of the thing with various forms of doc martins and hems that were abraded in back from hitting the ground. &nbsp; The fragrances I remember were patchouli and &nbsp;obsession perfume - Kate Moss did those ads... </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1643922 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 04:14:09 +0000 Ledonna N. 1643922@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Back down memories lane.&nbsp; I did not wear to many jeans growing up. Mainly dresses and skirts.&nbsp; I remember the jodorache commercial.&nbsp; I did not pay as much attention to denim styles or trends as I do now but I also wear pretty much one type of style as a uniform.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations/page/2#post-1643909 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 03:39:32 +0000 catgirl 1643909@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Calvins!&nbsp; 8th grade dream jeans.&nbsp; Gloria Vanderbilts too, and Candies or Dr. Scholls, with a switchblade comb in your back pocket and a Bonne Bell roller ball lip gloss.&nbsp; SAVE ME.&nbsp; They still sell Love's Baby Soft, and it smells like a clean diaper.&nbsp; DH and I always reminisce about childhood things and then recoil when we try them again - like Spaghetti-Os, and Love's Baby Soft.&nbsp; The lemon and jasmine scents were a bit better, I think. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643896 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 03:06:50 +0000 Isabel 1643896@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>@ L"Abeille, Oh MY !!!! &nbsp;yes, Love's Baby Soft and Bonne Bell....my youth. &nbsp;: )&nbsp;</p> <p>I think that Love's Baby Soft is still available. &nbsp;Mid life crisis anyone ? &nbsp;LOL&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643881 Wed, 13 Apr 2016 02:06:24 +0000 L'Abeille 1643881@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Bonne Belle and Love's Baby Soft, aaahh!</p> <p>I grew up in the 70's; I remember jeans stores that were basically unisex. The sizing was a mystery. You had to take your hip measurement and extrapolate from that, if you were a man, what your waist size would be, and that was the size you asked for. Then you had your mom take in the waist at the back so they wouldn't fall down. Even then, when I was skinny as a rail, I had Hips, serious Hips, so I had a hard time breaking the code. Wish I'd known then "It isn't you, it's the clothes." (It all made sense later, in med school when I learned the 4 different shapes of women's pelvises. If you can't find jeans to fit in a unisex shop, it is unlikely you will need a C section for a too-big baby.)</p> <p>I remember in high school my mom begging me to wear something other than jeans and T shirts so it would be more obvious I was female. She didn't realize that was the uniform. Wore little else right through university.</p> <p>After having kids... several times I lost enough weight to fit back into my "skinny" (for then) jeans; this was before lycra in everything. Each time, I ended up with a UTI, so I finally made them off limits. I've been less crazy about jeans ever since; I own too many pairs for them to get much wear, since it's really just Saturdays with no reason to be dressy. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643827 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 23:20:18 +0000 Colette 1643827@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Oh goodness, I had both Jordache and CK when I went to Junior High but was only able to wear them twice a week to school. Getting and wearing jeans were a big deal for me, my parents didn't feel jeans were appropriate dress for school or most occasions. In High School it was Levi's and I still have an affinity for them. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643816 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 22:57:31 +0000 Anonymous 1643816@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Did anyone have a pair of flared jeans made of patchwork denim (different colors from light to dark) and with 2 zippers at the waist? I did, and I thought they were so cool. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643807 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 22:42:54 +0000 Isabel 1643807@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>What a wonderful post. &nbsp;In our area, Levi's were the jeans. 70s and 80s. Men's Levi's. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Your stories remind me of my cousins in Portugal. Denim is HUGE and a still a very important display of "status". &nbsp;The darker the better and Levi's is the absolute denim brand of choice. People where them in 80 degree weather. &nbsp;They are often ironed and starched and worn with jean jackets when it is chillier. &nbsp;The denim is "suit" is their power suit.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643695 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 17:14:55 +0000 RobinF 1643695@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Love this, it brings back such memories! I had some Calvin Kleins in the early 80's that I loved and wore to death even though they were too tight around my waist. And Candies slides! I don't remember them being comfortable though, weren't they a wooden platform? I agree though that spiky heels with jeans were trashy and I still can't get that out of my head. I like chunky heels but you won't see me in dainty heels with jeans. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643650 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 15:05:01 +0000 Mochi 1643650@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>In junior high, I don't remember much. There was a brief flash of an overalls trend.&nbsp;</p> <p>Then there were carpenter pants, painter's pants, some sort of chinos (I can't remember the brand, but it had to be that brand). Corduroys. Sort of a baggy fit below the thigh. Skinny jeans weren't around yet in my neck of the woods, at least.&nbsp;</p> <p>Faded denim jackets were big in high school, and boys particularly personalized the backs of them with the names of bands. Led Zep, The Who, the Rolling Stones famous mouth and tongue insignia, metal bands, etc.&nbsp;</p> <p>There were flares, but mostly non-jeans in my memory; more like dress pants.&nbsp;</p> <p>And of course, Lee's and Levi's straight legs.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643595 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 13:58:30 +0000 Angie 1643595@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Sweet, Nancy. I enjoyed going down memory lane with you. I SO remember those brands.&nbsp;</p> <p>Levis 501's changed my mind about jeans.&nbsp; </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643564 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 13:11:47 +0000 Anonymous 1643564@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>1965. College girls were buying men's jeans. My first pair were actually khaki cords from the men's department. I could not wear them when I went home. Too shocking for the parents and neighbors. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643562 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 13:06:53 +0000 Laurinda 1643562@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>1978: The jeans had to be dark blue with white or light blue contrast stitching. Worn with Candie's slides. (They were pretty comfy for the height.)</p> <p>Saturday Night Live parody of Brooke Shields ads:<br /><i> Know what comes between me &amp; my Calvin's?</i><br /><i> My brains. </i></p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643555 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 12:40:29 +0000 LaPed 1643555@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I was born in the mid-80s so all of my associations with denim are from the 90s and aughts. In the 90s, denim where I grew up was extremely grunge influenced -- the wider and baggier the better, and the best was carpenter-style with the hammer loop etc. Anything fitted or tapered was patently uncool. By the time I got to middle school, bootcuts and flares had taken over for the girls, even full-on bellbottoms, again, the wider the better. Boy's jeans just got more and more gangsta-influenced, oversized to the max with wallet chains ubiquitous. (For men, at least, I'm sooo glad that slimmer fits have become more acceptable again!)&nbsp;</p> <p>I don't remember what was "in" for denim while I was in college (2003-2007), I think still mostly bootcuts? And I do remember knit gauchos having a serious moment -- I jumped on board for that one. By the end of college, we were definitely in the midst of an 80s craze that brought the skinny/tapered silhouette into play for the first time in (for me) living memory. Suddenly all the hipsters were wearing thrifted mom jeans and ugly sweaters, and a couple years later the whole world was in jeggings and ugg boots!&nbsp;</p> <p>I really appreciate that denim seems to have reached a point where there is no one "in" silhouette. Maybe it's because I'm not in high school and stuck shopping juniors departments, but it seems like there's a much wider array of silhouettes, washes, and fits available at any given time now, which I think is great. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643485 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 07:53:40 +0000 rachylou 1643485@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Also, can I say girls wore some high heels even in junior high? It didn't bother me then, but it bothers me now. I do note, tho, I'm so old that 15 yr olds marrying - while really hick - was considered not out of the realm of reality like it is now. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643469 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 05:13:09 +0000 Aziraphale 1643469@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Jordache and Gloria Vanderbilt were seriously Not Cool by the time I was old enough to care about such things. Actually I mostly remember wearing leggings (some with stirrups!) in my junior high years, as well as canvas pants that were rolled up and pegged in at the ankle. I can't remember designer jeans being a big thing, although a lot of kids did wear very tight jeans. By senior high, you'd wear 501's (button fly!) or Gap jeans. Both had to be a little loose.&nbsp; </p> <p>Interesting observations, Mochi. I too use the tightness of my jeans to determine if I've gained or lost a few pounds -- I've never owned a scale. :-)</p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643463 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 04:40:44 +0000 rachylou 1643463@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Bonne Bell!!! Love's Baby Soft!!!</p> <p>!!!!! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643454 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 03:54:15 +0000 abc 1643454@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I was more of the Guess jeans era. I remember it being a huge deal when my big sister got a pair. This had to be late 80s as she graduated in 92. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643378 Tue, 12 Apr 2016 00:03:55 +0000 Jenava 1643378@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I recall a pair of hand me down Jordache jeans with zippers at the ankles. &nbsp;I couldn't get enough. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643370 Mon, 11 Apr 2016 23:41:42 +0000 Jjsloane 1643370@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Ahh the peer pressure. I had a beloved pair of Jordache with the horse on the pocket!, 1 pair of Gloria Vanderbilt and 1 pair Calvins. Apparently I was well-stocked. I had jobs since I could work and always contributed to my shopping habit. I only wore other than the Jordache when they were wet from soaking them to wash. Worn with my Rolling Stones Concert shirt many days. I also had 2 pair of killer Levis, but felt the best then in my skintight DEEsigner jeans. They were mostly worn with high heeled Mia clogs (or Candies for the "trashy" girls). Chucks were for the kids with shaved heads and pink hair. I was confused, trying to fit in with the "cool kids" and NEVER the preppies. (How the times have changed... maybe that's my attraction now- repressed) </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/jeans-some-personal-associations#post-1643353 Mon, 11 Apr 2016 22:35:17 +0000 Anonymous 1643353@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I was the Queen of Trash when I was about 17. Wore these jeans (some sort of odd blue-ish colour not known to man) by Chic with a heart in silver studs on the back pocket. &nbsp; With espadrilles . &nbsp;Sigh. &nbsp;And a perm. &nbsp;And Bonne Bell lipgloss. And Love's Baby Soft cologne. &nbsp; </p>