For many, the biggest wardrobe challenges include finding the perfect bathing suit and a great fitting pair of jeans. Ask around and you’ll find that many struggle equally with both. But right now, it’s jeans’ shopping season, and styles abound. Currently, there are no fashion rules to the game — nothing is exactly "out" (remember when skinnies were almost taboo?) and what’s "in" is a matter of personal taste.
So says Madison Rexroat, Elle accessories editor who oversees the denim market as part of her job. "To me, it feels like there are more styles available than ever. You can really be all over the spectrum and still be able to defend your denim choices," she says. She cites Kendrick Lamar’s newsmaking Super Bowl boot-cut jeans to the Diesel brand’s release of almost shocking "revived low rise bumsters," along with "baggy and barrel and everything in between."
Madison Rexroat, Elle accessories editor, cites Diesel brand’s release of low-rise styles and Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show boot-cut jeans for popularizing the styles. Credit: Diesel; AP / Frank Franklin II
If she had to choose — and she’d rather not — what look is falling into the most coveted category? "I think skinny jeans are on their way to a comeback ... and barrel jeans are definitely still gaining in popularity."
Local retailers are feeling the fluidity and carrying more variations than ever. "I’ve been selling jeans for a long time and I have never seen a season like this," explains Gabrielle Sunshine, the owner of the Penny Lane boutique in Huntington. The store stocks some 15 styles of jeans ranging in price from $78 to $200, from skinny to wide-leg, low waists to high, in materials that include rigid denim to plenty of stretch.
There's a wide variety of styles at the Penny Lane boutique in Huntington, but bestsellers include from left, the KC elephant leg, mid-rise jean; the ladies barrel jean with some distressing; and the Roscoe boot-cut low-rise with frayed raw hemline. Credit: Penny Lane Boutique
"It does seem like anything goes," notes Sunshine, who credits a new wave of "body positivity" as explanation for the broad assortment. "Brands have realized that not everyone is a model and looks good in one style so they’ve produced many to satisfy different shapes."
These days, Sunshine sees particular interest in the curvy, voluminous barrel leg jean (also dubbed "balloon" and "horseshoe"). Her customers, she says, "either love it or hate it, but everybody has to try it on."
At The Wellground, an apparel and wellness boutique in Port Washington, the inventory includes some 35 brands of jeans in dozens of styles with prices that go from $160 to $398. "Jeans are like bathing suits and you’re going to try on like 20 pairs," says the store’s co-owner Manda Kovar. "They’re expensive and there’s a huge discrepancy in what people like so we try to have a little something for everyone."
Kovar notes her customers are "responding to cool, new, novel jeans," and it’s not just about one pair. "People are looking for 'going out at night jeans' " — these often with a slight flair and slim leg — and more casual styles including some with rips and unfinished hems. As for the tattered styles, explains Kovar, "There’s a huge discrepancy. Some will wear ripped jeans, some will absolutely not."
Her partner, Lanie Marcus, adds, "We all have different bodies and I think everyone has a different part that they want to accentuate or show less of. It’s a very personal choice."
Sagine Pierre, owner of Sage & Angie Boutique in West Hempstead, models wide-leg and skinny jeans, which she says are "the most flattering jean on the planet." Credit: Mike Harrison Mercier
Last year, wider legs were not popular at Sage & Angie Boutique in West Hempstead. "My customers were not receptive to them," says owner Sagine Pierre. Now, "They’re embracing the style. The wider the better."
American Eagle's low-rise, baggy wide-leg jean features rips around the knee and an overall slouchy fit. Credit: American Eagle
Here, find some 20 styles of jeans in prices that go from $59 to $89. While she sells only one skinny silhouette, by Judy Blue, Pierre touts it. "It’s the most flattering jean on the planet," she says, adding that it was a TikTok phenomenon because of stretch, comfort and fit.
And while she stocks some rigid, non-stretch styles, she believes, "You almost have to be tall, skinny and straight to wear them and most people have curves."
So how to navigate the dizzying jeans marketplace? Elle’s Rexroat says it takes trial and error.
First and foremost: "Try them on," she says. "Learning what you like is key. Find out what rise, length and fit you prefer and from there you can choose wash and style. And if you can, stand sit, and walk in the jeans you’re considering making sure they’ll be comfortable for anything."
Finally, don’t fall fashion victim to a style because it’s currently popular, she warns. "If you’re physically uncomfortable or don’t like the way you look, it’s going to impact how you go about your day, and we just can’t have that," Rexroat says.
