Lisa - I think this is an issue of "how to I want to be seen?" What silhouette is my happy place. I'm only 5'3" and leg lengthening is important to me despite the fact that I have long legs for my height. My "skinnies" don't fit like yours. I like either Madewell 9" skinnies (that are actually about 9.5" and fit me as high rise. I typically buy a size up so there is a pinch an inch diffusely and they skim but give a long flattering line. Their skinnies usually have stretch but don't stretch out if that makes sense. The Paige transcend skinnies in the size up are also great. For ease I prefer the slim boyfriends. If you have not tried the COH emerson slim boyfriend in blue ridge they are incredible. They run big, I suggest a size down and although they are 9.5" rise they create a longer torso than the madewell and are incredibly flattering. The wide leg denim is very on trend but you need to offset the volume IMHO with a fitted top and shaped cropped jacket. There's a lot of fit points waist and hip fit, width of leg and length of crop, that needs to be just right. I think the most important point is decide how you want to look, what are you going for? Then research and try until you find it (hedge bets by finding someone of similar height and weight and body type and lemming if possible). But I hear you girl - too fitted or lots of volume are just not looks that are speaking to me either.

I agree wide legs can sometimes add 10 pounds. They have to fit thru the thigs, and not be too thin a fabric. Also not too wide. After wearing my high waisted straight leg jeans for 4 or 5 days, then putting on old skinnies I realized how much more comfy the high waisted straights are.

I actually think these both look great on you, especially the second pair. That being said I struggle with wide legs also. I'm only 5'2" and they look ridiculous on me (how did I wear them 15 years ago with no problem?). And I can't wear high waisted jeans so looks like I am stuck with my current skinnies (which are more straight leg on me - thanks to a thick waist) for the near future. Jeans shopping can be a struggle! Why do I love them so?

I think of pants ( including jeans in tgst cage) as really a pants- footwear COMBINATION, and for better or worse, I’m very particular about what goes with what on ME. That has to do with however I see my body type, silhouette, size of my feet, vamp style etc.
So nowadays I’m having to really build from the footwear up and I’m not one who can just toss on the same white sneaker or loafer or whatever with any style of pants. I have lots of shoes but want to gradually whittle that down smaller more versatile collection with occasional updates.
YMMV as having less fussy feet.
So, I’m not at all anti- trendy in jeans or other- there have been, and will be more, pants trends that are right up
my alley. I’m just trying to get more realistic about which components give me an overall outfit I’m happy with as looking good and authentic.

Plus I think there is still a big pandemic effect for me- even with vaccine and things looking better, my “ going out “ remains limited for right now and I just won’t wear certain things around the house that I might wear for “ people, places, events”.

This is a fantastic collection of comments - I'm so appreciative!

gryffin - as usual, you provide the most insightful and informed thoughts and I love reading them. Just to clarify, my usual slim or skinny jeans are not like the ones I posted. I'm well covered for a regular, straight leg, looser fit jean with a higher rise. I'd love to try Madewell, and perhaps next time I'm buying jeans I will . COH gets a lot of love here on the forum, but they are out of my price range (in Cdn $ they are quite spendy, never mind the fact that aren't available anywhere here at b&m even to try on) . I now see that a wider leg jean needs a different jacket/top situation, which is probably reason enough not to bother with this style.

kkards - I agree with boots being a better footwear choice with wide legs than flatter shoes. I'm just still interested enough in fashion to persevere with some things, but you're right again in that forcing something to work is a waste of time .

bella - I had to laugh at yourthougtful and diplomatically-written comments about my hair - because you are dead right ! Less volume and less styled is definitely more modern, and I know it . But do you think I can leave my hair alone?? Every time I try , I last about an hour before messing around with it and adding in some product. It's so difficult after decades of volume to leave it alone. One note though - I do know my iPhone photos and my general incompetence with taking pictures exaggerates the size of my head and hair. It's not quite that way in real life But still - you are right- and I need to push forward with a more modern look.

rachylou - yes , SQUARE is all I see too. And the waist issue is interesting. I never think of it when I'm dressing myself - and you are totally right in that it's a more current look. I'm not quite ready to surrender to tucking though, so not sure how I can achieve that.

synne - yes, I did some reading on TP myself, and it's very interesting indeed. And thank you for acknowledging that I'm not here to be talked off the ledge or out of my feelings about a look.

Suz - I agree that these wide legs should be longer - again, something I don't necessarily look for when trying on . I agree that slim straights are classic, and as mentioned, I'm well covered in that area. I also have a new pair of cropped flares that I quite like - but they are Jag, which I'm now wary of . We'll see how they perform.

Brooklyn , Roxanna, Jenni, Robin, Gillian, Echo, Sloper,slim cat,Aquamarine, - thank you all for your thoughts - you've given me a ton to think about !

Lisa, echoing those who say these LOOK great but if they don't feel that way, then, that's your answer. To me, cropped wide legs are always going to have a somewhat shortening or 'staccato' effect which does not look wrong given the style, but which can feel wrong if that's not the silhouette you enjoy.

On the wide-legs though, I do agree that they need an alteration in the waist, which could account for why they feel off.

Toxic positivity - the final scene of "Life of Brian" comes to mind, if you know it

Lisa, I think wide legs are among the trickiest to fit. I have a pair of Jags, maybe slim straights I bought because they looked good in back, but everything else in the brand looked terrible on me.

The weight of the fabric and the fit through the thighs down to the knees can make a big difference, not just the rise. And there's a big reason why they usually show the models in heels. Plus, longer and looser tops and toppers so difficult to wear with very wide pants.

I feel like these various pant/jean silhouettes are a conspiracy to get us to buy different shoes (agreeing with unfrumped), tops, and toppers.

How many frogs do you want to kiss before you find your prince of jeans?

DonnaF you’re exactly right. Jeans sales had slumped due to leggings, & articles were written about the end of jeans. Viola, the high waist wide leg was (re)born.
I understand the need to stay in business, but am uneasy with a feeling of slight...sneakiness?
Living in a very hot & humid climate, I love the idea of not having skintight bottoms, though I won’t do a high waist.

I didn’t read the other replies, but I frankly think that wide-legged crops just aren’t you. Or at least, my impression of you, based on years of reading your posts and seeing your outfits.

I feel like Lisa P is the Too-Cool-For-School, Punk-Rock-Glam, Blondie-Bowie hybrid.

Those crops look like you’re trying to fit into the country-club PTA soccer mom set.

Maybe a different styling or brand of wide-legged crops would be different. Or a different length that hits a visual ‘sweet spot’. But sometimes you just know a particular style isn’t ‘you’.

In a way, you’re like Rihanna - you read ‘petite’ to me, when you’re actually taller. Those crops visually overwhelm you.

The skinnies... I think those are fine, just mainstream and kind of a non-event. Lisa, you’re an event, even if you’re just going to the post office. You have a lot of crackling sparking energy that shouldn’t be damped down.

I’m very late to this, but you already know that I find wide crops very challenging too. And it’s not just a height or leg length thing as some might think — in theory, I should look better in these styles than I do, since I have relatively long legs and a little bit of height. But they always make me feel dumpy unless I style them very carefully and with heels. It’s not an easy style for me, so I mostly avoid it. I dislike cropped flares on me as well, since they seem to emphasize the wideness of my hips and thighs while shortening my overall leg line.

If I do the cropped silhouette, it’s likely to be a boyfriend or slim straight style that’s cuffed to the length that suits whatever I’m wearing that day. Not as trendy, perhaps, but easier and more versatile for me.

I think you look great in the photos but totally understand the feeling, snd how something feels is very important. The jeans do look quite big in the waist so you probably need a size down.

I just choked on my coffee, and laughed at your comments, Mary Beth. And thank you for lifting my spirits on this gloomy day . The country club PTA soccer mom set is not the look I'm going for, that's for sure, but maybe inevitable at my age? Hahaha. Rihanna IS tall, I'm not, and in real life do present as a petite-ish person. My photos often tell a different story because of the angle that an iphone shoots at - when I'm holding it, anyways ! Anyways, I think you're right in that I can live without wide leg crops in my closet. I went through this last summer with pretty much the same results - and this experiment confirms it. I don't like JFE outfits - cannot settle for that with my body type.

Janet - yeah, I hear you. The extra bulk in the wide jeans seems to be through the fly area/hip and not really in the waist. Regardless, they are already gone and in the hands of the local thrift shop. As you like to say, the devil is in the details with regards to fit.