101 things about me

Friday 16 March 2012

The Jeans Test...

Many years ago, when I was a teenager, when fashion was a daily concern and what you wore was paramount to how cool you were at school, tight jeans were all the rage. 

I expect they are today also (judging by what you see in the streets) and have been many times between, with a few seasons of bootleg and stretch thrown in. Comfort now rules for me, and whilst snug is fine, tight without any stretch just isn't even going to make it into the change room.

In any case, back to my teenage years...

What my peers thought was cool and what my mother deemed as acceptable, sensible, reasonable and value for money, was generally poles apart, and so my mother (in the name of peace) came up with a test that I agreed to follow...

Tight jeans could be bought, if, and only if, once they were on with the zip fastened, I was able to sit easily on the floor of the dressing room and get myself back up without assistance. Level of comfort was whatever I could hide from my mother, which meant my face changing to different shades of red was also a likely deal breaker.

In any case, the jeans test worked well and many a denim jeans equivalent of the straight jacket was returned to the racks in the name of healthy blood flow to my legs. And although I was never part of the cool group (truth be told for reasons that stretched well beyond my fashion sense) I had a great group of friends that didn't care too much about what I wore nor me about them and we all survived despite it all... 

And so, with this rule in mind, I am blaming my night of broken sleep on a slip up in the 'test' this morning. After a long weekend away followed by a busy week of nights out after work, I have a pile of waiting washing and an ever decreasing limited stack of options. This morning as I sorted my way down past shorts, 3/4 pants and a denim skirt, I came to a pair of jeans that I had forgotten I even owned! 

Now, THAT should have been warning enough, right?

In any case, after my shower I pulled them on and was delighted to find they fit (rather snugly perhaps but not so tight that I needed a coat hanger to pull up the zip!) So, across the next 15 minutes as the clock ticked and I started running late, I congratulated myself on my find and it was not until I got to my car that I realised my oversight.

In my eagerness to get out the door, I had neglected the jeans test. 

And let me tell you, had I applied the rule, I would not be sitting at my desk right now, with a day of work ahead of me, feeling rather uncomfortable, wondering if anyone will notice if I undo the button, if I do if the zip will stay up!

Oh, if only I had remembered to take the jeans test this morning!

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Use the hair tie trick. Loop an elastic hair tie through the button hole the hook over button. This will give you an extra inch.
Luv lou

Lesley said...

Jacinta, this made me laugh. I love the test your mother came up with, but also because I have been there. Thinking I'm brilliant because of this piece of clothing I'd forgotten I had and looks fantastic only to realize too late that there was a reason it was at the back of the closet.

Red Hen (dette) said...

Great story! Your mum was clever! I like the hair tie trick above too!

Shadow Stripe Mens Suits said...

I think if you want to be fashionable don't force yourself to much. For me it is not a big deal if you cannot relate to the new trend especially in fashion. You can just customize your old clothes to be more fashionable. That’s what I did when I was a teenager and cannot afford to buy new clothes.