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It’s hard for me to imagine a time without wearing my beloved skinny jeans. They have become the one staple in my wardrobe that I could never live without. They are quite easily the most versatile and comfortable pieces to own in my opinion. Witnessing images of Pete Doherty and Hedi Slimane for Dior Homme, I felt compelled to buy my first pair. It was, I will admit, a little scary at the time and the amount of choice was a little overwhelming.
I hastily bought my first pair from the women’s section, as being somewhat vertically challenged I struggled to get the right leg length and waist size combined. H&M provided me with my first hit of skinny love. Not even trying them on, so not to allow myself to back out, I took them home and tried them on. ‘Wow I’m pretty sure you can see the crown jewels’ I told myself. So used to a looser fit jeans and the god awful drop crotch, that this felt totally alien to me. I felt completely exposed and they quickly ended up in the back of my closet. So far back I’m pretty sure the Snow Queen in Narnia borrowed them, the sassy thing.
As I began to see more and more guys wear them, I told myself ‘you have to dig them out and test the waters’. I think my only hesitance was being so skinny due to personal troubles. I felt they would draw too much attention to myself, not something you often hear a gay Leo saying.
The second pair I bought came from a vintage shop and had an aged antiquated look about them. It took me a few times to get used to them, but once I had they became synonymous with my personal style. If the look I liked didn’t have a skinny jean I turned on my heels.
Being so short I do sometimes find it a hardship to find clothes and looks that will suit my requirements, but skinny jeans will always be the perfect starting block to my final look. Keeping the lower half of my body form fitting allows me to explore over sized pieces on my upper half. My ultimate look for winter is a pair of bleached drainpipes, with an oversized cable knit sweater and brogues.
Without a doubt the ideal places to purchase a pair are stores such as Topman. Listed below are my top 3 pairs of skinny jeans currently on the high street:
Topman Charcoal Spray On Skinny Jean :
The colour alone sells itself, a stunning washed out charcoal with key details such as zip fly front and sand blasted thighs, make these the ultimate staple to build any casual look around. The trickiest task with any skinny fit jean, is the amount of elastane used to compensate for movement and overall fit. These are perfect with only a 2% elastane content. This will ensure they don’t bag out at the knees during overall wear time periods. Team with a check shirt and an oversized jumper over the top to get your canvas look. The addition of desert boots (worn with chunky exposed socks) and a bowler hat, will complete this grunge inspired look
Topman Bleach Wash Spray On Skinny Jean :
A little on the biased side, I own a pair of these myself and currently struggle to prize them off. So versatile are they I often wear them as a replacement for a trouser when attending a meeting which requires an element of professionalism and an overall polished look. I team mine with a pair of patent brogues, a fitted mandarin collar shirt and caramel coloured blazer. The colour palette of bleached blue, taupe, caramel and white gives a fresh take on smart/casual. These are also perfect for a more jock inspired look. Team with an oversize baseball jersey, high tops and jock jacket to complete the look
Topman Snow Wash Spray On Skinny Jean :
Ok, hands up again I also own these, but come on guys shopping is a sport and I’m aiming for a gold this season. The snow acid wash gives it a much softer take on a heavily bleached denim. I think it makes them a lot more wearable. The one thing I would say is don’t be afraid to experiment with colour in relation to outfit building. These are the perfect canvas to set off tones such as oxblood and crimson and make rich purple colours pop. Accentuating the jeans with colour is a look more suited for spring/summer for my personal taste, so I would tend to pair them with khaki and earthy tones. A camo shirt layered over a graphic tee with these jeans are my key look.
Happy shopping guys and have fun with a bit of ‘Skinny Love’.
