Rigid or stretch: choosing a size in denim

Two pairs of jeans marked the same waist can fit completely differently, and the reason is usually printed in small type on the composition label. Read that before you read the size.

What the percentages mean

The half-size drift

Anything with 3% elastane or more relaxes by roughly half a size within a few hours of wear. This is not a defect and it is not the jeans being cheap – it is what elastane does under body heat. It comes back after a wash.

The practical consequence: a stretch pair that feels perfect in the fitting room will feel loose by evening. Buy them snug. A rigid pair that feels snug in the fitting room will feel snug at midnight too, so buy those in the size that is comfortable now.

Where the waistband sits changes the number

A high-rise sits at the natural waist, which is the narrowest part of the torso. A low-rise sits on the hips, which is wider. The same body needs a different waist number depending on rise, which is why waist-size-only shopping goes wrong so often.

Check the rise measurement on the product page as well as the waist. If a pair is described as high-rise and your usual jeans are mid, expect to need a size smaller in the waist.

Inseam, honestly

Most brands cut a “regular” inseam around 30 inches for women and 32 for men. That is a design decision, not a measurement of anybody. If you are outside the average, the inseam number on the specification is worth more than any size letter.

Jeans are also one of the few garments where hemming is cheap and completely normal. Buying the right waist and having the length taken up costs less than most people expect.

Measuring a pair you already own

Lay them flat, buttoned:

• Waist: across the top of the waistband, seam to seam. Double it.
• Rise: from the crotch seam straight up to the top of the front waistband.
• Inseam: from the crotch seam down the inner leg to the hem.
• Leg opening: across the hem. Double it. This is what separates a straight leg from a slim one far more reliably than the name on the tag.

Care, briefly

Wash denim inside out, cold, and as rarely as you can stand. Heat is what fades indigo and kills elastane – a tumble dryer will do more damage to a pair of stretch jeans in ten cycles than a year of wearing them. Line dry.

Every pair in the catalogue lists its full fibre composition, rise and inseam in the Specifications tab, along with the brand and part number.