Reader Mail: The Skinny Jean Debate Continues
In today's Reader Mailbag \ comments section:
Are skinny jeans completely over now? Would it be wrong to wear them this winter?
M.As always, our answer is basically: We have no idea. It is, however, an issue we have been thinking about quite a bit. This is particularly true because there have been so many skinny jeans we have seen on sale, and we are wondering if this is like ... er, selling ice to Eskimos. (Though the way things are going, who knows about that.) In other words: offering, on sale, something no one needs any longer.
Here is the thing, personally speaking: We just sort of like the way we look at bit better in skinny jeans than in flares or certainly in wide legs. We are just too munchkin-like to absorb the extra fabric. But we have, we will admit, felt a bit weird wearing them lately, like we were wearing the wrong thing to a party or like everyone but us had gotten the no-skinny-jeans memo. What we decided, though, is that at least for the time being, we are unbothered by the nay-sayers out there, if they actually do exist, and are not just a creation of our paranoia. One day, we think, they will look as ridiculous to us as boho-chic tiered skirts. Today, however, is not that day, and we are at least thinking that even if the on-point jean-style may be very wide-legged, we will be happily wearing our skinny jeans until at least January 1, 2008.
We would love to hear from everyone else, however.
Above: Seven Roxannes, $149
i remember just before bootcut jeans became virtually unwearable due to the tide of skinny jeans coming in they went on sale in a huge way (specifically my favotite jean of all time the AG angel)... so i stocked up and put them away. and now i can wear them again with no shame. so i would say yes the skinny jean craze is over but if it works for you put them away until this wide leg thing blows over a little... and you can always wear them cropped or just a wee wider (straight leg?). just not extra long and all bunchd at the ankle like we saw (well here in l.a. anyway) maybe six months ago. ick.
Posted by: dora | July 09, 2007 at 01:04 AM
As someone who's been wearing skinny pants/jeans before they became trendy I say keep wearing them. The cigarette leg is a classic cut that's been around for ages. It's a staple. If you have the right figure for it and it looks good on you, why follow the masses and put them away? There are so many great cuts right now: skinny, wide, high waist, boyfriend, even carrot leg/riding pant fit. The variety is fantastic. It's so much better then the trend a few years ago of ONLY bootcut jeans with tacky stitching all over the back pockets. I have zero desire to dig out the old bootcuts this winter. I also live in LA and wear my Cheap Mondays long and bunched at the ankle...don't plan on stopping anytime soon:)
Posted by: ann | July 09, 2007 at 03:38 AM
i mean, hey. the celebs are still wearing it. some higher at the waist. but why not! make it a staple (i hope). it flatters so much we can update it a little with the latest waisted jackets with big buckles perhaps?
Posted by: sherie | July 09, 2007 at 03:40 AM
as a fellow midget. the flare/bootcut makes me look plumper and shorter. skinny jeans 4 life!
Posted by: amanda | July 09, 2007 at 08:47 AM
I don't think skinny jeans are over. They're still in stores,still on celebs, and still in magazines. If you look in that teen vogue you posted about, there is skinny jeans featured n there for back to school(although most are gray). Didn't people think leggings were over already, but they're obviously not going anywhere. I find skinny jeans flattering and will keep wearing them.
Posted by: alexa | July 09, 2007 at 01:43 PM
I don't think skinny jeans are over. They're still in stores,still on celebs, and still in magazines. If you look in that teen vogue you posted about, there is skinny jeans featured n there for back to school(although most are gray). Didn't people think leggings were over already, but they're obviously not going anywhere. I find skinny jeans flattering and will keep wearing them.
Posted by: alexa | July 09, 2007 at 01:43 PM
i put away my skinnies just because it is WAY too hot to be wearing something stuck so tightly against my legs and thighs (and other parts). but i don't think they're over by a long shot -- fall runway shows had brightly colored tights all over, and i think bright tights and skinny jeans are closely related fashion-wise (and they also look alike from afar).
maybe it's just me, but summertime is for short summer dresses, bare legs, and sandals. skinny jeans and pants in general can have me the other nine months of the year.
Posted by: amandabug | July 09, 2007 at 05:15 PM
I often find myself confused fashion wise (ok, in other areas as well) so I’m grateful for the many comments this post has received. I’m really glad others are sticking with the skinny jeans, never in a million years, will I be able to pull off the trouser jean look!
Posted by: Monica | July 09, 2007 at 05:30 PM
i look better in skinny jeans, so i will continue wearing them even if everyone else decides that high waisted wide legged trouser jeans are "in style". i say wear what makes you look good, not what everyone else wears. ughh wide legged pants make me look fat.
Posted by: Celeste | July 09, 2007 at 09:40 PM
Bah. I have never looked good in skinny jeans and I will continue to not wear them. More power to you who do look good, keep wearing 'em. Me, I am starting to get excited about the wider-leg trouser-y looking stuff. No high waists though. Those are horrible.
Posted by: Anne (in Reno) | July 10, 2007 at 12:48 AM
We did a poll on this very subject, and most people said that they still wanted to keep on wearing their skinnies! Personally, I'm with you on the matter: they're more flattering on me than other styles, so I'll keep buying them as long as they're around. I'm kind of hoping they'll become a fashion classic, though, and always be available :)
Posted by: The Fashion Police | July 11, 2007 at 05:18 PM
We did a poll on this very subject, and most people said that they still wanted to keep on wearing their skinnies! Personally, I'm with you on the matter: they're more flattering on me than other styles, so I'll keep buying them as long as they're around. I'm kind of hoping they'll become a fashion classic, though, and always be available :)
Posted by: The Fashion Police | July 11, 2007 at 05:20 PM
Frankly Scarlett...
I have skinny jeans, flared jeans, bootcut jeans and straight leg jeans. I personally couldn't care less what the current trend is denim wise. I wear what feels right on that particular day. Fashion is cyclical anyway so what does it matter?
Posted by: Lola | July 12, 2007 at 10:04 AM
You know what jean fashion I am glad is over: the extreme fading. I remember when you couldn't find a regular-wash pair of jeans without giant white stripes down the thighs and hideous whiskering that looked like a bunch of arrows pointing towards the fanny region.
I have a pair of midnight dark skinny(ish) jeans that fit like a dream. I will wear them until they whisker themselves.
Posted by: Sarah B | July 20, 2007 at 04:48 AM
I think skinny jeans are a classic look, though I'm more in favor of a skinny straight leg than a skin-tight almost-legging look. To me, skinny jeans have a "Beatles in the Hamburg years" vibe that I love. I also just came back from Scandinavia where everyone wears them and I love the atmosphere there (and I got to go shopping at the original Acne Jeans store!). The skinny jeans haven't been around a fraction of the time low-rise bootleg was de rigeur, so I feel it's way too early for them to have worn out their welcome. My favorite thing, though, is for people to wear whatever the heck they want rather than worrying about what's in or out. If you look good in a certain style and just OWN it, you look chic. I wouldn't switch to a style that didn't look good on me, and I definitely don't switch away from a style that does.
Posted by: gigicaron, jeweler | July 23, 2007 at 11:47 AM