Aww too bad -- good to try them out though!

I've been loving the budget conscious AE jeans - just the right rise for me and often on sale for around $30. But I haven't really gone for a dark rinse (the rub off issue), just med. and light.

It's really too hot here to wear jeans multiple days sans washing so I don't like to invest in premium denim unless it's for a pair of "dressy" jeans,.

Yes, the very low rise...I know the feeling of possibly flashing the c-section scar. I thought I found the perfect pair of white jeans earlier this summer at J Crew. They were on clearance, fit great...until I looked at my belly or bent over! Had to return them. Then I found my wonderful NYDJ white jeans the next day and yay - I could bend over with pride

You will find yours! It's the journey, not the destination, right?

"Apple tendencies?" HUH??? Where, in your ankle? I should have such 'apple tendences'

I think the jeans look great on you, but I would wait and try on the AG brand. Don't settle!

Those jeans look marvelous on you, but I absolutely get the psychological issues. Good choice to keep searching; they have to feel good mentally, too.

Sometimes you can feel the low-rise thing more than see it. And it's amazing what a millimetre or two will do!! To tell you the truth, on me, normal rise looks pretty much like these do on you, because I have such a long rise that "regular" is low. And my legs are that much shorter, alas....I have to go for the long-body look and pretend it is intentional. Marley would be shaking her head at me.

But there's low and low, and I know what you mean. I had one pair that sat so low, they threatened to malfunction and they also dug into my bones in a weird way when I sat down. It just didn't feel right. So I bid them farewell.

Still....if you will be wearing them with a belt all the time or a cami and a longer top, then maybe it's worth hanging onto them and making them into clams or shorts like Angie's today. Although that would be sort of ironic. If the ankles were what you loved and then you ended up chopping off that part.

The jeans look amazing on your Claire! They work!

Well I'm a big fan of premium denim so of course I'm going to vote for the AGs first. I have and do wear other brands (Gap, Lucky Brand, BR, AT), but my Joe's (and I had AGs for a while, I've also tried Hudson's) were hands down better than any others. I usually pounce when premium denim works on me because it's hit or miss on the fit. Other premium brands that just do not work for me (COH and JBrand come to mind).

I think how often you plan to wear your jeans is a BIG factor in deciding how much to spend on them. I wear mine daily and usually for all 7 days of the week (or 6) so I know they are workhorses. This makes the higher price tags easier to handle. My CPW goes down pretty fast. My Joe's are 3 years old and still going strong and I wear them 3 days a week!