Style Tips for Curvy or Plus-Size Jeans

Skinny or boot cut, rich blue or black… style tips for plus size jeans that suit your shape and personality.

Jeans have never fallen out of style, and can make you feel both capable and sexy when you find your perfect pair. It’s rather wonderful that an item of clothing that was originally intended as work wear for cowboys and miners is now worn and loved by almost everyone in the world, whether they’re goth or rockabilly or a lumberjack. Or a cowboy. Or a miner.

If you have a curvy plus-size figure, here are a few style tips on what to look out for when scouring the earth for a pair of flattering jeans that are genuinely worth the money and effort.

Style tips for plus-size jeans

It’s always a good idea to choose a darker wash; the darker the better. Jeans in rich blue or black do lovely things for the lines of your body, and stand the test of time better. Apart from fashion trends (insert hollow laugh), it’s just more satisfying to have a pair of jeans that have faded through time than buying them that way. Old clothes are treasured clothes.

Avoid buying ill-fitting or baggy jeans (unless you like the way they look, because they are baggy in just the right way). Skinny jeans may work really well for you – let’s face it, everyone looks good in leggings – but it’s often worth considering what tops you’ve got in your wardrobe and how they’d work with skinnies. We don’t want to be prescriptive, as you will know what you feel most comfortable wearing, but it’s something to consider.

Stretchy jeans are your friend. They will often be very comfortable to wear and will also help you to keep your shape better.

Jean sizes vary between brands, so be patient and be prepared to try different sizes in order to find the right pair. If you find a pair you really, really like, buy two of them. Trends change, and a good pair of jeans often forms the staple of your everyday wear so if it’s a tricky item to buy and you find a pair that really works for you… just get two. It’s less of a headache down the line.

Tricks that make the most of your figure

You can search through a wide range of jeans when you visit online shops like Navabi UK and you should be able to find a style that works well with your figure. Online shops often have a plus-size section – some might consider that to be ghettoising, but at the same time it can make it easier to find what you want quickly.

If you are looking to try and make your legs seem longer, choose a pair of jeans that are as dark as possible (as we mentioned earlier) and are either boot-cut or flared with slit pockets. The effect of a continuous line of denim from hip to hem creates the illusion that you are taller than you actually are.

If you are trying to make your stomach look flatter, avoid low-rise jeans and go for mid or high-rise styled jeans.

Fitted jeans that are either flared or have a boot-cut leg will help to minimise larger thighs. Avoid any styles that have a fade on the thigh area.

If you are trying to create the impression of a smaller bottom then body-skimming, dark boot-cut jeans with oversized pockets tend to reduce the volume.

Whatever shape you’ve got is something to be celebrated and you should be able to find a pair of jeans that make curvy chicks like you look and feel great. Fortunately, clothing stores are beginning to figure out that not everyone is a size zero, and plus-size shoppers are not going to settle for clothes that don’t fit and don’t flatter.

Main photo: Journalist and plus-size fashion blogger Migg Mag