Which jeans are right for you?
We take a look at all the best options from local labels.
If shopping were an Olympic sport, the hunt for the perfect pair of jeans would be given the same status as the 5000m marathon. It’s gruelling, mentally taxing and you can never be too sure you’ll make it to the finish line. It shouldn’t have to be this way, but between the sheer varietals in shape, cut, wash — not to mention the mental minefield of sizing — the act of shopping for a new pair of jeans is best undertaken on a proper night’s sleep and ideally mid-cycle, when your moons and stars are in the good place.
Few things date like a cut of jeans (skinny, flared, bootcut, low-rise, ‘mom’ cut…the recent history of jeans basically collapses all of culture into a few key eras). So, if feeling current and contemporary in your style is important to you, then shopping for jeans is an inevitability. Might as well find a pair that makes you feel all powerful. And it is possible, as evidenced by our Classmates group chat this week, where many of you have shared your jean shopping wins.
It all started with Soph tried on a few options from Sydney label Beare Park, which in August launched a capsule range of denim: two pairs of jeans and a pair of relaxed shorts. Soph tested different sizes in both the mid-rise and high-rise cuts, eventually settling on the mid-rise in a 27 for passing the ‘squat test’ (an essential test if you ask us) and for also looking extremely hot. As denim goes, they are for sure a more expensive option, but one of those rare pairs that will take you from casual to cocktail vibes with the change of a shoe.
And then Soph went one step further and stopped in at Grace here in Melbourne to try on their plethora of jean options, where she shared this sage advice for anyone shopping for a pair of jeans - print out and keep in your wallet for the next time you’re considering committing to this most olympic of fashion quests:
Focus solely on finding new jeans, don’t attempt to conquer anything else while you’re at it
Plan for it to take a long time, anything short of that is a blessing
Go fed and watered, your jeans need to fit and not feel uncomfortable after eating! Also, sustenance
Wear or take the shoes you will most likely be wearing with the denim
Try on multiple sizes in the styles you really love
Enquire about the give of the denim to gauge how much they will stretch with wear
Treat yourself, you likely wear your jeans multiple times a week. Invest in a good pair
This week, we’ve compiled an edit of the best jeans from local labels right now, broken down into style and wash. Looking for ideas for how to style them? Check out our Pinterest board below.
Good luck out there.
Soph & Annie
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BALLOON (AKA BARREL LEG) JEANS
Whether they’re here for a good time or a long time, we’re not sure yet. We can see a return to a slimmer leg starting to take hold, which is no wonder given just how popular wide leg styles have become. But regardless, a barrel/balloon leg jean looks bloody good to us right now. The movement, the proportion and the playfulness of the silhouette — the shape is a moment, particularly with a strappy sandal.
ALPHA60 / Essex Jean — $229
ALPHA60 / Essex Jean — $229
ST. AGNI / Mid Rise Balloon Jeans — $389 **homeroom favourite
BASSIKE / Motley Long Rise Slouch Jean — $290 (on sale)
HENNE / Filomena Jean — $229
NOBODY DENIM / Vera Jean — $269
NOBODY DENIM / Vera Jean — $269
WIDE & BAGGY LEG
A relaxed, wide-leg jean is to 2025 what a skinny jean was to 2005. There’s no getting around them: this is the denim style that’s dominated the runway-to-high street pipeline of recent years (who could forget those comically oversized Loewe jeans a couple years back). Supremely comfortable (as jeans go) - a wide, baggy leg jean looks chic with more classically ‘refined’ pieces: tailoring, heels, lace, layers. Very hard to take off for a generation of women raised on jeans that could double as sausage casings.
MARLE / Wide Leg Jean — $260
HENNE / Elio Jean — $269 **homeroom favourite
ALPHA60 / Chevy Jean — $249
SCANLAN THEODORE / Denim Two Tone Boy Jean — $360
MARLE / Border Jean — $260
RELAXED & STRAIGHT
This cut has a more snug fit through the hip and thigh before running straight down to the ankle. Perfect for anyone who doesn’t want a full-blown barrel or baggy leg but still wants a level of comfort from their jeans. The key here is not to let your typical size get in the way of the right size for you in any given cut — try multiple sizes in the style you love to find the desired effect. A lighter wash offers a more casual vibe, while darker washes cross more easily into more dressed-up contexts like work or evening. But we’re a big fan of a light blue wash anytime, day or night.
Light Blue
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