The jeans I can’t live without

Does anyone else find shopping for jeans a total nightmare? I mean, jeans are a staple in everyone’s wardrobes, and I definitely wear mine a lot. Blue at the weekend, black mid-week at the office or in the evenings. I love them. But I hate shopping for them! Why? Because I rarely find a really great fit, one out of a hundred pairs* will actually work for me. So sometimes I’ll shop online, try on ten pairs at home, probably only to return all of them in a huff. Or, I’ll shop in store and get so sick of nothing fitting well that I’ll go home with nothing except feelings of despair… and I hate to think how many pairs of jeans I’ve bought thinking ‘they’ll do’ and then packed them off to the charity shop because, of course, they very much didn’t do.

For me, I’ve discovered that premium prices – even on the high street – mean better jeans. That said, I can’t always justify buying designer denim, but shopping for jeans in high street stores gives me the fear. I very rarely do it. But, a few weeks ago I was using Next as a through route to exit the shopping centre (and it was a nice excuse to check out their new collections for me and the baby) and I spotted a pair of skinny jeans. The ones I was wearing had been worn to death throughout my pregnancy and were practically hanging off me.

Despite being a bit heavier than I’m used to, I thought, “F*ck it! I’m trying them on!”, and so I did. I grabbed a 14 and hit the changing room, which was near empty. I did it quickly, whipping the old ones off like a plaster, and slipping the news ones up and over my bum, neatly doing up the button across my tummy (I always choose a high rise to avoid the ghastly gape – what IS that?). Jeans shopping rarely happens this way, believe me, so I figured these jeans were meant to be. Having removed my old ones and seen how much more svelte I appeared in my new ones, I realised how much I needed them. I was so impressed by how FREAKING GOOD I felt in them that I emailed the Next PR team as soon as I got home to ask if we could work together on a blog post, because I just knew I had to tell as many women as I could about these jeans. They sent me another two pairs (light blue and black) to add to my wardrobe and I bribed the husband with cake so that he’d take some photos. He even took one of my bum and it hasn’t been retouched (he doesn’t ever retouch my photos to change the shape) so it’s a REAL photo and I’m not at all displeased with it, these jeans really do work miracles…

The 360 degree jeans haven’t been given their name for no reason. They look great from every angle, they feel comfortable in every way – they’re just really, really great jeans. And £48 might seem like a lot for high street jeans but let me tell you, when I need new ones I’ll be heading straight back to Next because I know they look and feel good and I won’t waste time or money looking elsewhere. Plus, I can get three pairs of their jeans for one pair of premium jeans, and there are nine (yes NINE) colours to choose from. And, for once, I have a pair of jeans that fit my leg – no crumpled hem, no turn up, no hacking at the length myself – because Next offers different lengths to choose from. You guys know how big my bum is, how my legs are definitely not my best feature, but these jeans really make me feel the best version of me. And don’t get me started on the black ones – BEST EVER. They’re coming to the blog soon too…

Anyway, I was hoping to keep this blog post short… so I’ll sign off for now but one last thing: please, ladies, if you struggle to find jeans that fit, try the 360s from Next. I can pretty much guarantee you won’t go home disappointed. Or empty handed.

I’m Wearing: 360 jeans, Next; shirt, Next; bag, Next; shoes, Next; scarf, Aspinal of London; sunglasses, Nicole Farhi. 

Location: Oxfordshire.

Images: Kris Miller.

*my personal jeans statistics are totally made up.