Little in the middle, but I need new pants!

December 29, 2019 5:52 AM

What are the best women's work pants for a person with a smallish waist and largeish hips? I can find lots of resources online for the best jeans for this body type, but not much about other types of pants. Details inside!

I want to start wearing pants sometimes. I stopped a few years ago because I was steadily gaining weight on my antidepressant and going up a pants size every six months, and skirts/dresses are more forgiving. I seem to have plateaued now, but it would still be good if the pants in question were accommodating to minor weight fluctuations.

My measurements are:

Thigh: 23
Lower hip: 40
Waist: 31
Inseam: 27

I'm looking for any kind of pants that would be appropriate to wear to a fairly casual office - basically anything that's not denim or leggings (though stretchy knits that look more structured are fair game).

posted by missrachael to Shopping (11 answers total)

Take a look at Uniqlo EZY Ankle Pants, in particular the elastic waist models. They come with belt loops and are constructed in such a way that it's not visibly obvious they're elastic waist pants. They're machine washable and look less casual than denim or leggings.

If ordering online, click on size chart and check the garment measurements (ignore the body measurements) and compare against pants that fit you well. If you don't have such pants, then pick a size where the garment measurements are larger than your measurements. Or you could try out pants in Uniqlo stores, if there is one in your area.

I've also found Talbots petite size pants work well for this type of build, but I'd recommend trying them on at a store to get a sense of how their sizing works.
posted by needled at 6:24 AM on December 29, 2019 [3 favorites]

Have you tried Loft’s curvy fit pants? They regularly have 40% off sales so don’t buy at full price!
posted by somedaycatlady at 6:33 AM on December 29, 2019 [4 favorites]

I second Loft's curvy fit pants as well as Ann Taylor's curvy fit pants; you can almost always get some kind of discount to bring the price down to ~$40-50/pair and the quality is noticeably better than Loft. Both brands tend to run 1-2 sizes large in the curvy fit.
posted by telegraph at 6:48 AM on December 29, 2019 [1 favorite]

With this body shape you will probably really enjoy custom tailored pants! Get any pants that are comfortable in the hip butt and thigh, and a tailor can take in the waist for $15-50 depending on how complex the construction is. Just keep an eye out for sales and factor in the tailoring fee as part of the cost of the pants. Custom tailored pants on a curvy butt look great and they feel great too because they no longer ride down or gape weirdly. Totally worth it!
posted by nouvelle-personne at 7:24 AM on December 29, 2019 [4 favorites]

Some of Athleta’s pants may be suitable.
posted by oceano at 7:31 AM on December 29, 2019

I second Uniqlo- it’s the only time that I sized up because the waist was too tight even though the hips and thighs fit.

In general, I’ve had more luck with high waisted styles.

Otherwise - tailoring has been a game changer. Buy for your hips, take in with a few darts at the waist. If you have a sewing machine you can do it yourself for some pants. Since getting my pants taken in, I stopped needing belts!
posted by Valancy Rachel at 10:30 AM on December 29, 2019 [1 favorite]

Here's the final -great- appearance of the altered pants I linked above- couldn't find the link before as I was on my phone.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 10:52 AM on December 29, 2019

Loft’s curvy fit is my go-to. Especially if you’re used to buying pants to fit your largest measurement, you might drop more than one size in the curvy fit; I can confirm they run large as well.

The curvy fit used to be called Julie, and they show up gently used on ebay a lot too.
posted by nat at 12:12 PM on December 29, 2019 [1 favorite]

Loft, Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, and probably others often have different waist-hip fits for work-type pants. One is often called something like “curvy.” It’s confusing because the fit can also refer to the length, width of the leg, etc. Look for their curvy fit. If you don’t want to spend a ton, the Loft is a good place to start. There are lots of sales right now. I’d suggest going to one near you, if possible, and talking to a sales person. They’ll know which fit to suggest.
posted by bluedaisy at 1:12 PM on December 29, 2019 [1 favorite]

You would probably love Prana Halle pants . Great stretch and a botton and zip fly with a tie at the waist. They fit my hour glass shape better than any other pants I've ever worn and they look really nice. I get lots of compliments when I wear them. They might be a bit long for you and need to be hemmed.
posted by WalkerWestridge at 1:26 PM on December 29, 2019

I'm built about like you, with a similar hips/waist gap (and shorty inseam), and AE's curvy skinny high-waisted pants fit me like a glove. I did the "short" inseam (I'm 28 inches).
posted by joycehealy at 7:36 AM on December 30, 2019