Please help me find an affordable route to fashionable pants that fit.

November 29, 2007 8:26 AM

Please help me find an affordable route to fashionable pants that fit.

I have been trying to find pants that fit me over the past several weeks. If the waist fits, the seat, crotch, thighs, and calves don't. If the seat, crotch, calves, and thighs fit, the waist is comically large. Belts currently provide the solution to my problem, but wearing pants that are four or more inches too large in the waist tend to cinch in an aesthetically unpleasing manner when belted. Suspenders don't work either.

I have a small waist and hips relative to my rather shapely behind and muscular legs. A bit of research has yielded that this is a relatively common problem for men with athletic builds, but there doesn't seem to be a readily accessible solution outside of custom made pants. Keep in mind that I don't generally wear slacks. In fact, I almost always wear jeans or something casual like cords.

If you'd recommend custom made pants, who would you recommend? If you'd recommend having off the rack pants altered, what specifically am I looking for in stores that make a good candidate for alterations? Don't be shy about suggesting stores, brands, or designers. I'd far rather have a selection of off the rack clothing than have to have every single pair of pants custom made or altered.

Thanks for your help.

posted by sequential to clothing, beauty, & fashion (12 comments total)

This link is the future home of Zafu for men; this sounds like exactly what you need. I looked through the existing women's section; you enter some information about your body type, what jeans/pants have fit well in the past, etc., and it recommends brands and stores that are suited for you. Sorry it's not working yet, but maybe you can help them.
posted by amtho at 8:59 AM on November 29, 2007

amtho, your link doesn't work.

sequential, are you saying you don't wear non-jeans and want to keep it that way or are you looking for any suggestions?

I never wear jeans. My favorite pants are 4-way stretch dress and casual pants. My favorite pairs are made by Hoax Couture, a local designer/store. However, I also like Bertoni, which are available internationally.

Also, if you're going to get stuff custom made you should state your geographical area and price range.
posted by dobbs at 9:15 AM on November 29, 2007

maybe trying a different style of pants:
carpenter jeans
easy fit jeans
wide leg jeans
phat pants...?
try shopping in stores that sell pants for skaters, ravers, and homies? in other words, teen stores.
posted by twistofrhyme at 9:17 AM on November 29, 2007

dobbs, I'm open to suggestions, but I am saying that I tend to dress more on the casual side of what I've seen for custom tailoring work.

As for my geographical area, I travel the northeast extensively, so anywhere north of Washington, DC and east of Harrisburg, PA covers my weekly range. I'm open to using one of the online tailors, but have no knowledge or experience of the market.

I'm flexible on price range. I have found a single designer who makes pants that need very little alteration work at Nordstroms. The cost was $400 a pair and were limited to formal suit pants. I'd prefer to be well below that price range with much greater flexibility.

twistofrhyme, I have tried all of the styles you recommend, with the exception of phat pants. In fact, wide leg jeans were my preferred cut of choice when I was heavier. My experience with each style has been the same now that I am significantly thinner. Furthermore, I would prefer a more fitted look, which rules out your latter suggestion.
posted by sequential at 9:35 AM on November 29, 2007

The quickest route to pants that fit is to get pants that almost fit and take them to a tailor.
posted by InnocentBystander at 10:32 AM on November 29, 2007

Lands End does custom pants and jeans, you choose your fabric and cut, then input your body measurements. I haven't used them so I have no idea what the end result is like, but it would be worth a try. Price is very reasonable too. Also, please don't buy tapered legs, they will give you a very weird look (narrow feet and waist, large thighs and ass inbetween). Straight leg or boot cut is better.

Aside from that, I would suggest you buy pants or jeans that fit you around the largest area (in your case seat and legs) then take them to be tailored. Taking in one area is much easier than trying to add fabric. I don't know enough about tailoring to say what would be a good candidate for alterations, you would be better off choosing a local tailor then going to have a chat. I have to get all my pants tailored (in my case just simple hemming because I am short) and its really worth spending a little extra up front to have clothes that fit you properly.
posted by Joh at 10:39 AM on November 29, 2007

I have a small waist and hips relative to my rather shapely behind and muscular legs. A bit of research has yielded that this is a relatively common problem for men with athletic builds...

My former partner had this exact fitting issue. On a shopping expedition in a reasonably priced local men's suit emporium, he came out of the dressing room in a pair of trousers. The tailor approached him, took one look at his thighs and rear, and said "Ah... you cycle?"

It was a quick job to alter them --- they were able to deliver the first pair of altered trousers the next morning --- and not expensive. He picked up several pairs to be altered that day, and started wearing the trousers from that shopping trip in preference to all other trousers because they were so comfortable and looked so good.

If you haven't talked to a tailor, I strongly encourage you to do so, not necessarily for custom-made clothing but to discuss alterations.
posted by Elsa at 11:01 AM on November 29, 2007

Joh and Elsa, one of the things I've been repeatedly told is that taking in pants an inch produces good results. Taking in pants 2 inches produces less good results, but it can be done. Anything more than two inches starts to cause problems. My issue is that I'm taking in approximately four inches on my waist if I get pants that fit my seat. That said, I'll go to my local tailor and get her advice before I spend too much on custom tailored pants.
posted by sequential at 11:29 AM on November 29, 2007

I wonder if a lower rise might help, because instead of sitting on your waist, the pants would sit more on your hips. I'm not a guy and I'm not up on men's brands and styles, but maybe looking for that keyword would help.

Otherwise, hopefully your local tailor will have some good advice.
posted by bassjump at 1:06 PM on November 29, 2007

Sorry I messed up the link. Here you go : Zafu -- look for the "for men" link in the lower right. Again, this isn't available as a service yet, but they are looking for input for men. It does work for women.
posted by amtho at 7:06 PM on November 29, 2007

I'd recommend tailoring store-bought pants (go for the larger size which can be tailored down). This is generally more economical than asking a tailor to work from scratch. To wit, I think Banana Republic and JCrew both offer in-store tailoring adjustments on their slacks.
posted by jdruk at 7:07 AM on November 30, 2007

The answer turned out to be a combination of the advice here, trial and error, and altering my perception of what "fits" means.

For starters, most of the pants I had been trying had a higher rise than was appropriate for my body shape. A mid rise or a low rise, depending on the designer, seems to improve things drastically. Wearing the pants lower on my hips also helped.

I also discovered that Kenneth Cole cuts for athletic men. The waist is still too large, but within two inches. My first impression of the pants I tried on were that they were too tight in the seat and thighs, but apparently I was the only one who thought so. Given the compliments I received in the new pants, I am willing to live with what I perceived as tightness.

For what it's worth, J. Crew and Banana Republic did not work out in the pants department, but I did manage to find some cute shirts. Thanks for the help!
posted by sequential at 2:47 PM on December 4, 2007