<p>Funny, my H doesn’t wear jeans, ever. Doesn’t even own a pair. In high school, he wore cords, and now it’s khakis for casual, or athletic wear for really casual. He says that he finds jeans incredibly uncomfortable, and they’re just not “him,” but I’ve noticed that none of the men in his family wear them either. I’ve tried to introduce them to his wardrobe over the years, to no avail.</p>
<p>We have bought different styles/brands of jeans for H over the years. He wears what we buy him but he always goes back to his Levis. He liked some Gap jeans for a while but currently he is wearing Levis. He does not like the baggy styles. Hmmm…I need to check what the name of his current ones are.</p>
<p>My H doesn’t wear jeans nearly as much as I do. He is retired, and wears shorts whenever possible- even when I think it is too cold. He wears cords until I tell him that they are NOT a summer fabric. Khakis when he has to be dressed up.</p>
<p>I, on the other hand, wear jeans whenever possible and am paying to be able to wear them to work this summer. (donation of $1 a day to AHA to wear jeans- $5 for shorts). My closet looks like a denim specialty store. I have skinny jeans, trouser jeans, straight legged jeans, white jeans, dark jeans…</p>
<p>D2 gets to wear jeans to work on Fridays and is in heaven on those days. Her absolute favorites are True Religion but also wears Rock & Republic, Armani Exchange, and Hudson.</p>
<p>I like that our thread is going coed.</p>
<p>I thought I was all set for jeans. I had the old-style Levi 505s in dark stonewash that fit perfectly. I have a pair of Perry Ellis jeans in a dark stonewash that fit great when I bought them (made in the same Mexico factory as the WalMart house brand – the irregular “boo-boo” is that they have the Sam’s Club Maker’s Mark rivets!). </p>
<p>I bought a new pair of the Levi 505s because the first pair fit so well. Alas, the new Levi 505s with the hip hugger waist must be sized up or something because they are falling off of me. If they were the same size with a little lower waist, that would be fine, but they are cut differently in every way. I can keep them up by cinching them around my hips with a belt, but these fit so poorly they are really relegated to yard work duty. Kinda frosts my ass, so to speak, because I paid top dollar for them at Kohl’s based on the fact that the identical size and style pair in my closet fit so well.</p>
<p>And, although not marked, the Perry Ellis are clearly “relaxed fit”. I’ve lost a bit more weight since I bought them. The waist fits OK, but they are decidedly baggy. Hence, I’m down to one pair of jeans that fit really well.</p>
<p>In the light of day, I’m keeping the dark indigo pre-wash 501s, since my other pair of good fitting jeans are the dark stonewash (rapidly turning into medium stonewash). Variety is the spice of life.</p>
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<p>Cords and khakis present many of these same fit challenges. Levis and Dockers are the same company and have a similarly bewildering array of “fits” that have to be sorted out.</p>
<p>“A bewildering array of “fits” that have to be sorted out…”</p>
<p>Welcome to our world interesteddad. I wear clothes in sizes 4 to 8. Some are petite and some are extra long. It is ridiculous.</p>
<p>I like that our thread is going coed.</p>
<p>me too. I will admit that some times when I pick out stuff for H ( sweaters, flannel shirts) I do so with an eye to what colors I like on me. :o</p>
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<p>Yeah. Men have all the “fits” to sort out, but at least there is one fairly consistent sizing scheme. If you know your waist and your inseam length, you can at least get in the ballpark. You may or may not like the way something fits, but at least you can get pretty close to the right size.</p>
<p>I still think the best thing to do for your hubby is bring home the identical khakis (or jeans) from a place like Kohls or Macys in a range of plausibly appropriate fits (i.e. you can probably skip anything labeled “Super Skinny” or “Hipster” or “Girlfriend Jeans” and actually let him try them on. </p>
<p>For example, I can wear either the D3 “classic fit” Dockers or the D2 “straight fit”. The straight fit are cut a little more trim in the hips and legs, which is a plus on me, but they have the lower waist, which just isn’t comfortable for me – I always feel like I need to hitch up my pants. But, I would never know without trying them on side by side and actually seeing. Plus there’s an interaction between the fit and the size. I wear a 33 in the D3 dressy khakis, but a 34 in the same pants D2 straight fit version. Once you know, shopping is pretty easy unless they pull a Levi 505 and change it.</p>
<p>Bring 'em home, try 'em on, and take back everything that doesn’t fit. Then, you know. The nice thing is that some of the major brands – like Dockers and Levis – are availbable in every waist size and inseam length (1 inch increments in the most popular sizes), so you can get a really good fit.</p>
<p>We find that “the rise” is very important for my husband who is long legged. It’s very subtle. Even the same size of a brand will vary in terms of the fit for him.</p>
<p>He does well with Brooks Bros for work pants. Loves his Luckys on the weekend. He also likes Tommy Bahama shorts. </p>
<p>Now if I could just get him to lose the long socks with sneakers and shorts . . .</p>
<p>haha sewhappy about the long socks with shorts. I’ve given up! I buy the short socks, I bought cycling socks, it doesn’t matter. He still wears those darn long socks with everything. I have to hide his brown shoes though or he will wear them. </p>
<p>Ugh! Drives my D crazy. I figured he is who he is and if I have to go somewhere nice with him I’ll make him change. Other than that, I don’t know what to do with him lol!</p>
<p>Interesteddad…if you can find them try Cinch jeans. My H has found those to his liking. I think his have the green label. My H was an original Levis or Wrangler lover and he doesn’t like the fact that his favorite Levi’s now have the button fly… but he’s buying these Cinch jeans these days. Don’t get scared but he says it’s “what the real cowboys wear.” I like the way they look and no they aren’t “too cowboy.” The green label tapered leg original. You can find them for $50 or less. Good solid “old fashioned” jeans material. I have actually heard other guys in our “group” ask my husband where he got his jeans. They make something like 45 sizes in these jeans. My H was the first boy to wear jeans to school back when you couldn’t wear jeans to school and Levi’s were cool…they sent him home to change.</p>
<p>On a lighter note, I think I’d send my husband off to change if he had long socks and shorts on unless the shorts were leather lederhosen and we were on the way to an Octoberfest party. But then my H and the males have snickered about capris and gladiator sandals you still see women wearing them in public so many he’s actually in Bermuda style and you just don’t know it!</p>
<p>My H likes low cycling/running socks and sport sandals. It works sometimes-not always.</p>
<p>Ha, ha, there used to be a facebook page fashionable people against Tevas with socks!</p>
<p>Too funny. What has me worried is our son is with us right now and the other day he headed out in shorts, white socks and leather loafers. Ugh. I guess it was sort of punk?</p>
<p>I don’t think so :-)</p>
<p>Tevas - My DH always says as he straps on his Tevas, “Let your feet go free and your mind will follow.”</p>
<p>It is such a joke in our house. Older D will tell friends and they set him up to say it. What a dork. But I love him.</p>
<p>Sizing rant of the day:</p>
<p>How hard would it be to actually standardize on belt lengths. I know shoes and pants and stuff has added complexity, but a belt is a pretty simple affair: how long is the damn thing from the end of the buckle to the center hole and to the end of the belt! Sheesh.</p>
<p>So I order an Allen Edmonds belt in a 34 and find out I have to return it for a 36 in their sizing scheme because I’m at the last hole with 33 pants. Then, I turn around and order a belt from LLBean. I have another of their belts that is perfect in a 36, so it’s gotta be a 36 right? It arrives today and it’s huge. Gotta go back to Bean for the 34 in this style belt. Arggghhh.</p>
<p>I swear, I don’t even know why they bother putting sizes on the things. The only way to buy a belt is to hold it up next to one that fits and measure the length and hole placement.</p>
<p>Shows you how much weight I’ve lost. Believe me, I have belts in every imaginable size in my closet, but the only ones in my closet that actually fit are all skinny 1-inch wide belts. When were those in style? The 80s?</p>
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<p>Wore my new dark blue Levis today after running them through three wash cycles. MOWC was right – the bled blue for all three washes (all the dark blue and black clothes and towels and stuff in the house are now clean!). Perfect fit. Look good. I’ll get used to the button fly.</p>
<p>As for socks with shorts, that’s something I would never, ever do, except with athletic socks and athletic shoes. Where I grew up, we refered to men who did that as “Yankee tourists”.</p>
<p>It did take me a while to make the switch from crew socks with athletic shoes to short socks. I finally threw in the towel when I realized that Marshalls, with a wall of athletic socks, didn’t sell anything but the short ones. So I have been dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century, wearing the quarter-length socks with running shoes and socks. Maybe someday I’ll try the invisible length short ones!</p>