Just another person with a big hug to you and a "stick with it." Jeans aren't easy for almost anyone. I do not kid you when I say that I truly, without exaggerating, tried on over thirty pairs of jeans this last month (yes, month) in my search since last fall (yes, last fall) for a pair of boyfriend jeans. It takes a lot of trying to find great jeans. Once you find a few lines that work for you, you can stock up.
Just a couple of tips I've garnered from years of being a jeans freak:
1. Be prepared to alter. I'm 5'5". I shorten almost all of my jeans.
2. You can shorten any shape of jean. Bootcuts? Yes. I've done it lots of times. It will not ruin the shape. Skinnies. Trousers. Straight. All can be shortened.
3. You can take in the waist. I'm the girl without a waist, so I have to worry about a pinched waist, not a gaping one. However, my curvy friend (who looks great in her jeans) has the waist taken in on hers often. It is worth it. If it looks fantastic everywhere else, then call in the alterations lady.
4. If a pair is a near hit, then try on three more in the exact same style and size. One of them is going to be way better than the others. One is going to be a disaster. Somehow it always works out that way. Each pair of jeans is individual. If a cut seems almost perfect, then the next pair in the same size may be phenomenal, but you won't know until you try it.
5. It's not you. It's the jeans. There are so many styles of jeans out there because there are so many different shapes of us. If the world were cut for my straight shape, you would be miserable. If it were cut for your curvy shape, I would be miserable. Each failure is disheartening, but I try to celebrate the fact that it means there is so much variety in cuts. In the '80s and '90s, everything seemed cut for one shape, and it was way more curvy than I am. I am incredibly grateful that we don't all have to fit into the same jeans anymore.
6. Call in the experts. Call Nordstrom. See if they can hook you up with a personal shopper. Tell them what your measurements are and what jeans you have tried on so far. Call in the forum, like you have. I would never have found my Old Friend Jeans if Texstyle hadn't recommended them. American Eagle? That's where teens shop, right? Not moms in their 40s. Well, guess what. Apparently this mom in her 40s should have been shopping there earlier. And I would never have known if it wasn't for the forum.
