I’ve heard that there are people who can walk into a shop and buy the first pair of jeans they try on, but I don’t know any of them. Most of my friends have issues buying jeans, which are second only to bathing suits in their ability to turn a normally sane woman into a basket case! There is nothing enjoyable about assessing all your flaws in a cramped dressing room, only to step out into a brightly lit shop for the whole world to pass judgement! So when I learned that there are sites where you can custom-design your ideal pair of jeans (as well as tops, dresses, and almost any other clothing item, for that matter) in the comfort and privacy of your living room, I was intrigued. Now that I’ve actually spent some time on those sites, I am blown away. It’s astonishing that in ten or fifteen minutes on your computer, you can design your perfect pair of jeans, and spend about the same as you would on an off-the-rack pair of premium denim. Here are a couple of the sites I checked out!
http://www.indicustom.com/: This easy to use, easy to navigate site lets you design the denim that is ideal for you in just a few minutes. You choose everything from fabric (ranging from sturdy 100% cotton to a stretchy lightweight denim with 2% spandex – my favorite), rise, fly, leg style (from superskinny to wide, and even capris), coin pocket/no coin pocket, hem style, back pocket style, stitching, and back pocket embellishment. Then it gest really interesting, as this site asks specific questions about your body shape and size, including some of the most critical: how do your jeans typically fit in the waist, do your jeans usually gape at the waist or not, what is the shape of your tummy, what is the size/shape of your thighs, etc. Yes, some of these questions can be humbling, but no one ever needs to see the answers except you. And an honest self-assessment is a small price to pay for the perfect fitting pair of jeans. That, and about $155. (The pair I designed came to $160).
http://www.makeyourownjeans.com/: This sites boasts that it has made 50,000 jeans to date, and it’s easy to see why. While the site is not as sophisticated or as detailed as IndiCustom, it does offer a great value – jeans made to your size and specifications starting at $49. Choose the fabric, the wash, the rise, the fit and the details, and enter in all your dimensions, and in a few weeks, you’ll have a new favorite pair of jeans. It also offers an assortment of custom clothing, and jeans for men and children too!
http://www.z2jeansco.com/: Sure, they’re in Pakistan, but with Free Shipping and custom premium denim starting at $125, does it really matter? This site offers denim afficionados a staggering array of options, from fabric and wash to thread color to button color to all the usual, like fit, rise, and shape. The sizing system is easy to use and offers really helpful tips on measuring. Love it!
http://www.thimbler.com/: This professional site offers free shipping, a money back guarantee, and a Facebook page with a jeans style newsletter. More conservative and less edgy than some of the other sites, this site seems to cater to a slightly more mature crowd, i.e. you won’t find jeggings or superskinny jeans here. The skinniest leg style they have is a straight leg, and the options are basic. You enter in a few measurements, and select the shape of your hips, tummy and seat from a series of illustrations, and voila, you have just designed a great-fitting pair of jeans for about $125.
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