My Denim Updates

I made a couple of updates to my denim wardrobe. Just a few subtle changes but enough to make me feel like I'm still hanging on in there.


Update 1. Big Turn Ups.

It's not escaped my attention that there seems to a big turn up thing going on at the moment. I always associated it more with the dark stiff selvedge raw denim kind of jeans but lately the faded blues are getting a bit of a look in too.

And I'm late to this one as I actually said that I couldn't do the big turn ups thing on Sharron's blog Style At Every Age when she posted about them as I said they made my legs look even shorter than they already were but I walked away thinking - why can't I? And the reason was, because I was cuffing the wrong jeans. I was trying to do it on my skinnies and it was looking all kinds of wrong on me. The look isn't about cuffing skinny jeans, it'a a more slouchy laid back kind of look.

The jeans which probably kicked off this trend and everyone seems to be raving about is the MIH Phoebe mid rise, slouch leg jeans with it's sliced off hem turn ups.

Source

Now, I don't have any old slouchy jeans which I particularly want to cut the hems off to attempt this look with. But I do have a pair of old New Look straight legs which are the perfect length for turning up to try this look. Not as loose as the Phoebes but I have to say, I don't suit really baggy jeans. They make me look well ... baggy.

Carvela sandals (old), New Look Jeans (old), Nail Polish - OPI Skyfall

Normally I turn these up a couple of times to work the boyfriend look and have been doing this with these jeans for the last 2-3 years but it struck me that the bigger turn ups would bring me up to date and make me look more current. You need at the very least a pair of straight legs so they can skim but not touch your ankles. You're going for that half mast look which you see on kids who have had a growth spurt and suddenly their trousers are swinging around their ankles because their mums have forgotten to let the hems down ... by about a year.

2014                                                                      2013

I could have gone the whole hog and cut the hems off to get a similar raw edge effect as the MIH Phoebes but I actually like my jean hems which have the frayed tatty bits on the back of them where I've scuffed the ground with them - these are jeans which have genuinely been round the block a few times - they've earned their hems. Having looked at the 2014 picture above, I've actually turned these up another cm since (go me!).

And if I could be bothered to attempt to do this properly - I think I would actually buy a pair of men's jeans in a slim/straight cut as they tend to be cut a little looser on the calf and you would be able to get the swingy effect of the Phoebe's without the £200+ price tag (ouch). As you can tell - I have given this far too much thought whilst sat in too many play parks for far too many hours these past two weeks and if the Easter holidays had been another week longer, I might have done it in a fit of madness. Also if you are going to do this and you have swingy hems - can I recommend an iron of the hem to "cement" it and a couple of stitches either side just to hold the turn ups in place and stop them from falling back down. 

Update 2. Cut Off Hems.

No one's really mentioned these anywhere that I know of but I just fancied having a bit of a play with some of my old jeans which I had fallen out of love with. I had a pair of old Zara skinnies which were banished to the spare bedroom clothes graveyard. I dragged them out and thought "ey up" (well I was born and bred in Yorkshire), had a funny brainwave moment and proceeded to hack the hems off using the method I blogged here.

Zara Jeans (old), White Birkenstocks, Seventeen Caribbean Coral Polish

Well I sort of like what I did but I don't think I did it on the best jeans for the job. But they will do for the summer and they make a nice change from turn ups.

Update 3. Normcore Jeans

Well this was a little unintentional and just happened to coincide with the "Normcore" trend. This strange term has been banded around a bit and there are many takes on it but I like the description of "understated non descript style" rather than "boring". Err ... what I am guilty of wearing most of the time and doesn't always get featured on the blog. I became aware of the Normcore phenomena on Alyson's That's Not My Age blog and the Uniqlo jeans she featured on there are the exact pair which I happen to have. Oh oh! And there was also a grey sweatshirt featured. And a mention of some New Balance trainers. I have all three! Oh oh!

So here I am chanelling Normcore. I even thought I'd throw in a rucksack for extra Normcore'ness.

Can I just tell you about the rucksack. When I was dragged kicking and screaming to go walking in the Lake District ten years ago, I was gently coerced in to the whole thing by the promise of new (walking) boots and a bag. The bag turned out to be this rucksack. I was offered a bright orange horrid cheapo thing and I shook my head and then pointed at the silver and black kick ass Lowe Alpine number hanging on the wall which cost oodles more. I thought it had a touch of DKNY about it circa early 2000s (yes I am that sad and deluded). Besides, if you make me walk up mountains. I make you pay ... literally.

Anyway, back to my Normcore jeans. I bought the Uniqlo Skinny Fit Jeans in shade 65 blue.

Uniqlo Skinny Fit Tapered Jeans

As you can see, mine looked nothing like the picture above in terms of colour. They are a more dare I say it "stonewashed" blue in real life. But the fit was good and I liked the skinny straight leg fit that they were on me. For the record, for those who like skinny jeans which taper right in to give you the full carrot effect, these are not the jeans for you. For those who don't want that and want a slim jean but not as wide a hem as some of the straight leg offerings out there - these are pretty good.

Anyway, a crotch shot for you ....

... just to show you the whiskering on the jeans which is done quite subtly rather than the big tiger stripes which so many companies are guilty of doing on their jeans. And they blend nicely in to the natural creases as well. Oh gosh, these are so Normcore, it hurts. 

I bought these in a size 27 which I would equate with a UK 10 for those who have ever wondered about ordering Uniqlo jeans and don't understand their sizing. I didn't either but followed their instructions of measuring an existing pair of jeans to compare the measurements and lo and behold it worked. I got the impression that they give a little with wear and chose to size down to a 27 whereas I take a 28 in other stores. This is the fit around the top of the jeans ....

No gaps around the back.

I also had to hack off about 4 inches and do my original hem trick which I explained here previously.

Spot the join on the hem!

But they are quite comfy and haven't overstretched or anything during the time I've had them and worn them. Do I love them - no. Because they weren't the exact shade of blue I had in mind but if they had been, I would have been over the moon because I couldn't fault the fit (no camel toes here). Besides, it's a bit of a struggle to work through the variations in denim shades online so if you get the chance - just shop in store and besides, you can get your jeans shortened if necessary for free if you spend over £19.90.

So that's my my little denim update and here's my little photo bomber who thought he'd help out whilst he's on his Easter hols.

Chip off the old block!

Going ....

.... going ....

..... gone!

Don't worry, he didn't really fall down the stairs!