Denim – An Insider’s Guide!

Jeans.  They are a big part of my life.  I absolutely LOVE wearing them.  I love helping people find their perfect pair.  Basically, I spend most of my time being around and doing something I love.  Pretty cool, huh?! 

However, not everyone loves jeans, or, at least, not everyone loves shopping for jeans.  It can be more stressful than shopping for a bathing suit for many people.  I have talked many people off the ledge when denim shopping and a good denim education is the thing which seems to help the most.  Well, that and the customer actually trusting that after doing this for the past year and a half for forty hours a week (approximately 3100 hours), I just might know how a pair of jeans are supposed to fit better than they do (I don’t go into your work and tell you now to do your job, do I?).  So if YOU feel you can trust me, here are some tips to make your denim shopping experience easier!

FINDING YOUR PERFECT PAIR

Go tight or go home! Most denim stretches, so when trying them on, go for a snug fit.  If they fit perfectly right out of the gate, they will bag out, creating the dreaded “Diaper Butt” we all fear.  If you can grab a handful of fabric in the butt or crotch of the jeans, they are too big. If your jeans are touching your skin, that does not mean they are necessarily too tight.  If your jeans require you to literally jump up and down to get into them, they are not necessarily too tight.  If you can’t button them (at all), zip them, or sit down in them, THEN they are too tight.  Some jeans relax and conform to your body more than others, so trust the wisdom of the stylist you are working with who advises you to try a different size.  I have several pairs of jeans that I jump up and down like a fool to get into but relax like crazy after getting them on.  My kids think Mom getting her jeans on is hilarious.  It is always fun to jump around with an audience.

When buying denim, I tell all my customers to wear the denim around for an hour before cutting the tags off.  Make sure they do not over or under relax on you.  You can also try your denim on first when shopping and keep wearing them around while you try on tops.  This will also give them a chance to relax and for you to see how they will fit in the long run. 

Be prepared to pay up!  If you wear denim every day, it's a small price to pay for a great fit.  So what makes that great fit cost so much?  Premium denim brands often retain their fit models (can you imagine being paid a retainer to put on jeans?  Sweet!).  These same brands also bring in better fabrics and focus on details such as distressing, which is usually done by hand, not by a machine.  It is details like this which may raise the cost of the jean, not just the name.  In my own experience, I have found my premium denim lasts longer, creating a better cost per wear than lower priced brands.  I recently consigned my first pair of premium denim, 7 for All Mankind, and they were still in mint condition after 8 years. 

Look in your rearview mirror!  Most people will see you from behind and that is where most people will judge how your denim looks.  Make sure you check out how your butt looks in a 3-way mirror. Ask a friend, a stylist, or a nearby shopper for help.  Make sure you look at where the pockets are placed, is there any sagging underneath, are they riding too low or too high. Ask yourself, does that tushie look like a cute little peach (YAY), a flat pancake (nay), or two pigs fighting under a blanket (nay).

Nip, tuck! No piece of clothing is meant to fit you specifically.  It is designed to fit a general body type.  With that being said, it is normal to get alterations on your denim. Most denim is meant to be hemmed (unless you are blessed with super long legs, which I was not).  Do you have a juicy booty and tiny waist?  Take it in and avoid gapping in back.  These are easy fixes for any tailor worth their salt.  If you are going to have the perfect pair of jeans, why wouldn’t you want to ensure the perfect fit for your body?

Try all kinds! When trying on denim, try all kinds of denim on. You may discover that you love boyfriend jeans.  Or skinny jeans.  Or boot cut.  There is a plethora of options when it comes to denim, colors, cuts, fabrics.  How do you know what you will work if you do not try things on?  Often, there is more than one option which will fit and flatter.  Try them all and find out which you love the most.  Be open minded with fit and fabric. Remember, the right fitting pair of jeans will make you look slimmer, the wrong pair of jeans will do the opposite or worse!

To bling or not to bling?  I get asked this question a lot.  Well, this one is a personal choice.  Since it is my blog, I am going to share my own opinion on this one, but you make your own decision.  I do not wear blingy jeans.  It is my belief that if you need to put diamonds and heavy decorative stitching across your rear, your trying to cover something up.  I prefer my ass to speak for itself in a pair of jeans.  Also, it is something a high school girl wears, not a grown woman.  Again, just my opinion.

 

So there you have it!  Some easy tips and tricks to remember when you are buying your next pair of jeans.  Hopefully, this will help to take some of the stress out of looking fabulous in your jeans.

*Special thanks to my booty-licious models, Emily and Lisa, who were kind enough to let me take pictures of their frontal and rear regions for my blog.*

*Denim featured above:  Nico Skinny by Hudson and Piper by AG via Hot Mama*

Confessions of a Hot Mama Stylist

As a stylist at Hot Mama, I have mass quantities of fun while I am at work.  As I tell my kids, "Mommy gets to play Barbies all day!"  Pretty sure they take that literally.  However, as much fun as it is to go to work, it is not without its challenges.  Often, I run into shoppers who are not familiar with the Hot Mama experience that we provide.  People have become so jaded as customers, they have started to approach shopping as a war:  customer versus the dreaded salesperson.  Customer service that was once held to such a high standard has fallen to the wayside at many stores.  However, at Hot Mama (and a few others), we still believe in it and strive to provide it to you with passion.  So here are some confessions from the inside to make your shopping experience with us (or any other store like us) much easier!
 

• When we start a conversation with you, it is not because we are trying to sell you.  Shockingly, I am actually interested in what you are doing today. Or where you got those amazing shoes (I might want a pair).  Or what you have planned for the weekend. Or just simply how your day going. I am truly listening - not planning my next move to "sell" you. How can I be of any help if I don't get to know you? Besides, shopping is much more fun if you are with girlfriends.

  

• We don't make commission, so please do not call me a sales person. I am a stylist. I am at Hot Mama because I want to be here. True story. I am pulling tons of items for you to try on because I actually want you to look and feel hot. Seriously. That is the only reason.  Well, that and it is fun for me. It is my job and I love doing it. If I have to sell you on something, it is not a good choice for you, your lifestyle, your body type, or your budget.

• Your children are really not bugging me. The whole reason we have a play area in the store is so you can bring them with you. So, your five-year-old is crawling under the clothing racks while your two-year-old is busy grinding animal crackers into the carpet. Whatever. Stuff happens. I am not bothered by it. Kids will be kids. I have yet to wish another parent would take their kids out of the store.  Usually, I just find them entertaining and fun.   Now, MY kids? They sometimes bug me when they are in the store. But they act like a couple of wild hooligans who have lost their brains and manners.  Oddly enough, everyone else seems to think they are cute.  Go figure.
• No one looks as hard at your body as you do. Think about it for a minute. What do you do when you look in the mirror? Zero in on your "flaws." Now ask yourself this: what do you think everyone else is doing? They are looking at themselves!  Did you really think you were the only person to do this? Really? People are so focused on themselves, they do not notice whatever minor or imaginary imperfection you are finding with yourself. I wish you could see in the mirror what I see when I look at you, because I truly don't see whatever "flaws" you are talking about and trying to point to. I just see the fabulous woman in front of me.

 

• Dress the body you HAVE, not the body you WANT. I would love to be three sizes smaller. But I am not. So I choose to rock the curves I have. Why deny yourself the feeling of being fabulous because you would like to lose five more pounds, or have longer legs or a bigger chest? Love the skin you are in and be the most fabulous YOU that you can possibly be.  It is extremely freeing and much more fun.

• Yes, I am being honest with you. What good does it do me to lie to you? No good at all. If I lie and send you out the door looking less than stellar, that reflects bad on me and Hot Mama. Plus, why would you ever want to come back? Or tell your friends to come in? It is my job to be honest (in a very nice way) to help guide you to items which fit and flatter. Besides, I am a terrible liar. You would be able to tell. I have absolutely no poker face.
• No, I do not spend my entire paycheck at Hot Mama. But I secretly want to.
• I don't want you to buy anything you don't love. If you don’t want to run right home to put it on, why spend the money on it? We get more product in every day. It is like Christmas morning every day at our store, and our UPS guy, Bob, is Santa Claus. I would rather have someone come in frequently to shop than do it one or two huge bursts a year. It keeps your closet fresher and helps you find more things you actually are excited about.

So next time you are out shopping, think about the person who is approaching you.  You will know in a minute or less what their motivation is, simply by talking to them.  You might be surprised to find out, they have your best intentions in mind. Customer service is not dead, so give us a chance to prove it!

Where Do They Learn This Stuff?

Last week, my biggest and I got into a fight.  She wanted to wear a specific pair of jeans to school.  Not just any jeans, either.  She was insisting on wearing her new skinny jeans.  When I told her to pick a pair from her drawer, she began to cry because none of them were skinny jeans.  God forbid she go to school wearing a boot cut pair of denim? 

Cut to later in the week, same child and I are having an argument over a haircut.  I have been planning on cutting her long locks at the end of the summer into an inverted bob for back to school and am currently preparing her for the shock.  I have a terrible suspicion that she will go into thermonuclear meltdown, in her usual dramatic fashion, and would rather avoid this event at the hair salon.  So this week, we have been arguing about what said haircut will look like.  She is insisting on getting the same haircut as her friend at school.  Today, I saw her friend’s hair.  It is what I wanted to do anyway but apparently mom’s idea was not described properly.  I wonder if the stylist who cuts her hair will know what she wants when she asks for Lily’s haircut.
I don’t know where my daughters learn this stuff.  I cannot remember the last time I cried over skinny jeans.  Or braids versus ponytails.  Or chipped nail polish on my fingers (actually, I am often too lazy to even paint my nails.  Takes too much time to dry and I can’t paint straight).  I love that my girls have adopted a girly side, sharing my love of fashion (although theirs is much more……creative….than mine), makeup, and pampering. 
But like all moms, I worry they are going to develop issues with body image and self confidence.  At what point do I draw the line with their love of pampering and style?  How do I keep them from thinking they need to be something specific as dictated by what they see on TV or in a magazine?
I think the answer is to show them balance in my own life.  Teach them to be their beautiful selves, develop their own sense of style, their own brand of sparkle.  Hell, I hope they will learn from me that you can be a fashionista one day and a Comic Con costume wearing geek the next (or even both in the same day!!).  You can love your skinny jeans one day and your yoga pants the next. 
Moving forward, I will continue encourage my girls to play with fashion and makeup.  Encourage them to be girly, if that is what they want.  I will let them continue to play with my makeup (well….some of my makeup.  That shit gets expensive), paint their nails when asked (or let my husband do it because he is better at it than I am) and have fun getting dressed in the morning.  But they will always be taught they can still get dirty when they want, read comic books, and dress up in nerdy costumes at cool events (like Comic Con, perhaps).  They can love every minute of being themselves, whether they want to be sparkly or not.