In Defense of Barrel Jeans.

They're weird and I'm into it.

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I remember the first pair of barrel jeans I ever saw. I was at the flagship Nordstrom in Seattle with my friend Kate and a very chic older woman working in the cosmetics department was wearing a pair of Citizens of Humanity Horseshoe jeans. Y’all, I lost my mind a little bit. I’d never seen anything quite so weird-but-cool and she was 100% pulling them off. I was fascinated. What a bizarre shape! But, why not? They’re the ultimate man-repellers and I wanted a pair. 

A year later I made Kate try some on with me and…yeah. I don’t think we’re pulling this off. People assumed I was making fun of them but I wasn’t! I really think it’s an avant garde silhouette and I love the idea of clothes that are structural and interesting without trying to be flattering. Nothing about the barrel leg jean is trying to slim or trick the eye. They’re just fucking weird and I’m into it. 

Then I became obsessed with the Nili Lotan Shon jeans which aren’t as extreme as the Horseshoe jeans but still pretty extreme in the barrel shape: 

They follow me around the internet and I love them in theory but I’m not spending that much on a single pair of jeans. I find it interesting that clothing designed to be odd/interesting rather than flattering (read: slimming) gets such strong reactions. The online comments are either, “Coolest jeans ever!” Or “These are the ugliest fucking jeans I’ve ever seen.” 

I’m tired of trying to dress to hide the parts of my body I don’t like and just want to wear the stuff I think is cool or interesting even if it’s not working to make me look magically slimmer. 

Anyway, I’ve been waiting for a pair of “starter” barrel jeans to come along and Madewell has delivered in the form of the Darted Barrel-Leg Jean. (I referenced them in my last post about packing.) I went to Madewell to try them on and had to size down because they do run big. In the dressing room I waffled, worrying that they were still a little loose but they were SO comfortable I didn’t want to take them off. Obviously I bought them:

This is the lighter wash (Dobbins) in a size down from my normal jeans size. I also ordered the darker wash (Irmo) in two sizes down just for comparison but that’s not the way to go:

They look okay, but the waist was uncomfortably tight and they’re meant to sit at the hip and be kind of baggy. I have worn my pair a lot (wearing them right now, in fact) and will probably buy another pair in a different wash this fall. 100% recommend. They are wearable and not too exaggerated but still have cool seaming at the knees. I find them refreshingly comfortable and I could not give a shit if they’re flattering or not. (Up next, who wants to see the dresses I bought in my packing panic?)