The Plus Size Guide to Pants

Years ago, I was in a department store dressing room when I heard a woman way down at the other end asking no one in particular why the store only had boot cut jeans. I knew why and to this day, I regret not butting in and explaining.

All pants are not created equal. Boot cut, wide leg, cropped, slim - they all have a reason for existing. And once you know what those reasons are, you'll know when to wear each kind.

Boot Cut Pants

OK, so what's the deal with boot cut pants? The extra volume at the ankle visually balances wide hips. Remember the tapered jeans and stirrup pants of the 80s? I adored them. I loved wearing pants that drew attention to my sleek, tiny ankles. But in reality..ankles? Really? That's what I'm flaunting?

Boot cut pants are the opposite of stirrup pants. They're especially good for pear shaped women, but all plus size women can rock this look. Vikki Vi bootcut pants come in regular, petite, and extra petite length.

OK, now that I've insulted leggings, let's talk about what's great about them. They're amazing for showing off apple shaped women's lovely legs. They go very well with tunics, which is also a good look for apples.

Pear shaped women may want to wear leggings with tops so long that they're practically short dresses. We now have petite leggings, as well as regular length.

This is my absolute favorite style of pants because they blatantly defy that dumb so-called rule that plus size women should always try to look as small as possible. Like boot cut pants, palazzo pants provide added volume to go with your hips. To me, wide leg pants send the message that I have a wide bottom half and I'm done hiding it.

Palazzo pants look best with a closer fitting top. Go crazy and tuck it in. Or wear a long a line tunic with them for a bohemian artist look. If you have relatively narrow hips, palazzo pants provide some volume to balance out your top.

Crop Pants

Our petite pants are cut for women who are 5'3". If you're shorter than that (like I am), then our Crop Pants may be the perfect length for you. But crop pants aren't just for shorties.

Crop pants are better than shorts. They just are. Shorts ride up when you sit, digging into your thighs. Or they ride up while you're walking and your poor thighs rub and chafe. Crop pants keep you cool while staying below the knee, even if you're tall.

Short like crop pants, wide like palazzo pants, are also called split skirts. They're great for events where a skirt might be more appropriate than pants but you don't want to wear tights or risk chafing.

Straight Leg Pants

Our relaxed and comfortable Pull On Pants fall into this category. They're the pants you picture when you hear the word, "pants." You know how to wear these pants, so enough said.

And Now You Know

It may seem like the different styles of pants exist only to annoy you, like bedazzled jeans. But we all have different bodies and different tastes, and that's what all these pants are for.

 SHOP ALL PANTS

Check out our other posts about plus size style.