First, look for jeans that hang from the widest part of your body. For 99.9% of all women, that's going to be the hips. Are your current jeans doing you a big disservice by accentuating you in all the wrong places? Here's how you tell: lay your jeans out flat on your bed and look at the line created between the waistline and the hem. If it tapers at all put those jeans in the Goodwill pile right now! Tapered jeans will show every pound. If the line is strait from waist to hem, you are on the right track.
The casual Friday appropriate Joe's Jeans welt pocket trouser has the added feature of a cuffed hem, which will balance out a curvy hip.
→ Buy the Joe's Jeans Wide Leg Trouser Jeans, $190.00, at shopbop.com; shipping and returns are free.
Next, stick to dark colors. The human eye naturally travels to light colors first, so darker colors seem smaller and farther away.
→ Buy the NYDJ Greta Trouser Jeans, $110.00, at nordstrom.com; shipping and returns are free.
Third, look for denim that has little or no stretch. Look for jeans marked "rigid" or "100% cotton" or that have less than 3% manmade stretchy material, such as lycra or spandex. Rigid denim will shape your body and smooth out the surface (bye, bye cellulite!), while stretch denim will conform to every bump and bulge.
→ Buy the Banana Republic Indigo Denim Trouser, $89.50, at bananarepublic.com.
Finally, you want the waistline to hit right across your tummy. Low rise will create the dreaded "muffin top" overhang; high waisted "mom jeans" will lead to an unflattering bump.
The jeans pictured here are the best of the best when it comes to a slimmer look. Relief from the skinny jean. Ahh, happy shopping days are here again.
Editor's Note: This post originally appeared on July 25, 2006. It has since been updated.
