When I started working for a glossy magazine a decade ago, I encountered a strange and exotic breed: fashion people. What distinguishes them from those of us who dress like we’ve been rolled in glue and thrown through Aritzia (aka tasteful, but never adventurous)? They simply don’t give a shit about things that occupy far too much of most women’s brain space – like whether a pair of pants makes their thighs look fat, or a top makes their boobs look small. For them, the clothes are the thing. Does a dress align with their sensibility? Are those shoes exquisitely made? Is that necklace a work of art? Do they like it? You only need to look at the collections of labels like Comme des Garçons or Vetements to know that in fashion, figure flattery will get you nowhere.
See photos below!
Which brings us to the latest trend to hit hipster cafés everywhere: ugly pants. These are the kind of trews my granny might have called slacks, or, to put it another way, mom pants. They’re wide-legged and cropped – close to culottes but not quite as voluminous. They’re high-waisted, too, which can make your whole mid-section look larger, and is pretty uncomfortable to boot.
My first reaction was a raised eyebrow – like, really? But as time has gone on, I’ve been drawn back to them. Doesn’t that high waist kind of make my tummy look smaller? Don’t my ankles appear daintier when counterpointed against the wide leg, which also supplies welcome ventilation on a hot day? Do I, maybe, like how these pants look? And more to the point, isn’t it time to take a leaf from fashion folk and stop being in thrall to tedious does-my-bum-look-big-in-this body tyranny? Instead, this season, I’m saying, screw this, I like it, I’m wearing it.
