Elastic-cuffed Pants – do we love them?

Welcome back, kids! Should we just skip the excuses and explanations as to why I’ve been absent for almost one whole year and just move on to the fashion at hand? Yes I think we should*

*But I DID miss you all. Terribly. Seriously.

So we’re all guilty of falling into a fashion rut more often than we would probably like to admit. I tend to fall into at least one per season. Last summer it was three-quater sleeved JCrew boatnecks in every color of the rainbow. This past winter (and by “this past winter” I mean “all winters ever”)  it was knit shirts and Lulu leggings. For some reason, one season in high school it was sleeveless turtleneck sweaters. I cannot even remember which season because there is never really a good season for a turtleneck sweater – if it is warm enough to go sleeveless, it is too warm for a turtleneck, and if it is cold enough for a turtleneck you’re definitely going to want sleeves.**

image credit

**Note this picture is from a blog called “The Fashionable Housewife” and NOT  “The Fashionable High School Student.” There’s a reason for that.

So this Spring I’ve been on the lookout for what I’ll call a “rut buster.” A “rut buster” is an item of clothing that is a little outside of my normal comfort zone, but still basic and essential enough to serve as a substitute for something I find myself wearing far too often. Specifically, I’ve been looking for a style of pants that can serve as a substitute for my all-too-often-worn skinny jeans. I initially tried this pair from the Gap:

Super skinny surplus khakis – on sale for $38 down from $55

And they’re cute. But they’re basically just an olive green skinny jean, albeit one rendered in a non-denim fabric. If I’m going to “bust my rut” (insert inappropriate giggling here), I’m going to do it in a major way. And that’s when I came across this picture on Pinterest:

How cute are those pants???? I love them. Like, LOVE-love them. And who would have thought? Super-love the styling, too. The white shirt is perfectly up-styled casual, while the designer bag and naked sandals take the look up a level from gym chic.

So after being inspired by this adorable outfit, I set out to find a pair of elastic-cuffed pants all my own. And what did I find? Elastic-cuffed pants are damn expensive! For example, this Alasdair pair is cute, and similar to the pair above:

But they are $308 on ShopBop!!!

Then there’s this adorable pair from Vince:

But they’re only slightly less expensive at $265.

In fact, the cheapest pair I could find that was similar in look to the Pinterest inspiration above was this pair from Joie:

And they’re still $168.

So I guess what I’m saying is that it turns out I’ll be holding off on elastic-cuffed pants until they trickle down to my local H&M where I might actually be able to afford them. But if you’re ready to pull the trigger, here are a few things to keep in mind when buying cuffed pants:

1. Picking a darker color like black or navy will keep these pants looking more “sophisticated chic” than “Aladdin fabulous”.

2. You probably want the cuffs to hit just above the ankle – thus highlighting the narrowest part of your leg.

3. Silk might be comfy in theory, but would be a wrinkly nightmare in reality. Stick with some sort of knit and/or poly blend.

4. Finally, keep them fitted up top. The last person you want to end up looking like is this guy:

So what do you think, kids??