Rolling pants?

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Robin

Active Member

So, I've seen a lot of you talk about rolling various styles of pants to change the look.

Having only ever rolled pants because they were too long (hello short legs) I'm curious about this.

Does rolling always make the look more casual? Are there ways to roll that are more attractive than others? What length do peple typically tend to roll too?

Fill a girl in on what this pants-rolling for fashion thing is all about, wouldja please? :)Your post

10 years ago

Dressing

10 replies

Latest reply was from Robin

Nathalie

Active Member

Ok so generally rolling pants is done to give a casual look. I like rolling my jeans when i wear Vans since the inner part of the jeans is darker when rolled. U can either roll the jeans in a thick way or in thin way. I generally like the thin way. I usually roll my jeans till above my ankle. Rolling jeans is really nice on ripped jeans. Hope this was helpful

10 years ago

kkards

Veteran

i've rolled/cuffed pants to achieve a higher cropped look, i.e. pants that hit just below ankle cuffed to above ankle. but i think if the pants are truly too long, then they really need to be hemmed.

10 years ago

rute

Veteran

I do that a lot and wear even for the office and combine with heels, it's not more casual, I think it's more trendy and modern!

10 years ago

Aziraphale

Veteran

I roll my pants if the shoes demand it. I wear ankle boots quite often, and I have some that look best with full-length skinny jeans tucked in, and others that look best with the hems rolled. In the second case, both skinny jeans and slim boyfriend jeans work, whereas boyfriend jeans generally don't look good tucked into boots. Generally speaking the more closely the short boot fits to the ankle, the better rolled hems will look. I agree that a rolled hem tends to give a more casual vibe -- but not always. Roll the hems so that only a sliver of skin shows between the pants and the top of the boot, and it won't make your legs look stumpy, even if the boots are flat.

I also wear rolled hems with shoes to create a casual, summery vibe. Rolling the hem so that quite a bit of skin is exposed tends to make your legs look shorter, so on me this works best with heels. I'm too short for flat shoes and rolled hems, although I love love love this look on tall, slim, leggy women.

Does that help?

10 years ago

Liz

Veteran

I think the key is for the look to be intentional.
* Rolling highlights the shoes, so the shoes should be modern.
* The pants shouldn't appear as if they've been rolled just because they were too long.
* It seems to work best on pants legs that are slimmer cut. I would think it could work with wider leg pants but it would have to be done in a way that was super-intentional.

10 years ago

Inge

(website)

Moderator

Hi Robin,

First of all, sorry it took me so long to chime in on one of your threads, and a very big welcome to YLF from me as well:-)

I personally don't think rolling trousers or jeans always makes a look more casual. It also depends on the type of footwear you are sporting, and the rest of the outfit. E.g. a pair of slim-fit boyfriend jeans or dressier trousers with tapered hem paired with a pointy toe ankle strap pump, button-down shirt or silky blouse, and a fun blazer will read a lot dressier than e.g. rolled slouchy boyfriend jeans with a T-shirt and sneakers.

I use a different "number of rolls" depending on the bottoms and footwear. e.g. two rolls on my slim-fit boyfriend jeans when I wear them with ankle boots so that the entire top of the bootie is exposed and there is maybe a sliver of skin between the boots and the jeans.

When wearing tapered trousers with ankle strap pumps or sandals, I would roll the trousers until they showcase the ankle strap of the shoe.

10 years ago

CocoLion

(website)

Veteran

Jenine Jacob of Eatsleepdenim.com did a feature on how to roll and cuff denim. It's several years old I think, maybe even 4? So I think there are even more new ways to cuff and roll since then. Anyway, it's a good starting point for instruction/inspiration.
http://eatsleepdenim.com/blog/.....XHksUJH1E4

10 years ago

Beth Ann

Veteran

I roll and cuff to create ankle pants out of full length versions. That allows me to get two sorts of looks out of one garment! I also like to vary the rolls -- sometimes higher or lower, depending on the contrast to my skin and the type of shoes, sometimes one thick cuff, particularly with dark denim!

10 years ago

Anonymous

I find it best to roll only if the pants are slim. A straight or bootcut would probably make the cuff too thick. I think k Angie has some guidelines like just above the ankle bone leaving a sliver if skin showing or about 4 inches above the ankle bone. I will try to find it in the blog posts.
Some of my pants get rolled because they are ankle pants but hit below the ankle on me yet are not long enough to be full length.
http://youlookfab.com/2014/02/.....kle-pants/
http://youlookfab.com/2010/07/.....or-rolled/
http://youlookfab.com/2013/03/.....led-jeans/

10 years ago

Robin

Active Member

Thanks all. Everyone's feedback is super-helpful in giving me a picture of the different approaches people take.

Love the idea of making sure the roll looks intentional - it's pretty darn clear when the pants have just been too long and they're being rolled to get them out of the way.

as a small person with short legs, I appreciate the commentary on the leg-shortening effects rolling pants legs can have. :pb

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10 years ago

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