4 Pants That Fit Like A Dream If You Have A Small Waist And A Big Butt
This sounds like a flex but it actually makes finding clothes really, really hard.
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by Audie Metcalf
If you try on pants in the dressing room, and they just … easily fit your body, this is not the article for you. Perhaps I can interest you in some light reading over here?
However, if you are someone who rarely if ever finds pants where the waist, the leg, the butt, and the length, all magically align to create a piece of clothing that actually, gasp, fits, I am very excited you’re here.
While I recently lost quite a bit of weight (read more about it here, here, and here, or ignore it entirely if you aren’t interested) I still struggle with pants fitting because my hip-to-waist ratio is still impossible, and nearly every pair of pants are tight in the hips/butt but then then have a cavernous waist gap. And so when I find pants that really fit and look great, I like to share them with all of you immediately if not sooner.
I bought all of these pants with my own money just in the world, with no real intention of writing about them, but they all worked so well I sort of had to.
A friend was over so I wrangled her into taking all the photos of me so I had more options of where to take them—should I wrangle her more often?! They turned out sort of great, no?
Ok, the pants in no particular order.
1. The feminine, wide-leg chinos
WHAT: Maeve Button-Pocket Wide-Leg Pants*
A surprise to no one, these are Maeve by Anthro, and the fit is un. real. These are a size medium, I’m wearing a mid-height boot, and I’m 5’6”. I actually bought them a few months ago and raced to my office to write about them but they had instantly sold out. I saw they were back in stock a few weeks ago but again by the time I went to write an article, they were gone again. There’s a few sizes left at time of writing this so if you see yours in stock, it may be a sign. These are sort of classic “work pants” but with this pretty button detail—I love wearing them with anything black, but the weird, in-between olive and khaki color honestly pairs beautifully with most colors. I also love them with a navy stripe, which reeeeeally helps my Connecticut roots shine. Here’s the side view and the back:
Size: Medium
Price: $128
2. The weirdly flattering lounge pants I power walk in AND wear to dinner
WHAT: Free People Hot Shot Easy Pants*
I am never not looking for the perfect pair of comfortable lounge pants with a WIDE WAIST BAND because narrow elastic waist bands are created by the devil himself. By the time evening rolls around after a full day of eating, narrow, elastic waist bands are typically digging into my stomach in a highly unflattering and deeply uncomfortable way. Whereas this wide, flat band is both skimming no matter the pooch level of your stomach, and also feels like nothing. The very subtle bow shape that makes my legs look astonishing slim, the material is that super-thin jersey that is superior to all other loungewear fabric, and in a pinch (aka when I’m bloated and on my period) I will be pairing these with this boot and this blazer and going to a fancy dinner. I also bought them in mustard*!
And here they are in action because it’s very important to see how they look in proximity to a dog.
Size: Medium
Price: $70
3. The pants that are definitively made for the female gaze!
WHAT: Maeve Poplin Genie Pants*
Sometimes you just need to wear pink hammer pants and carry on with your life. I get no fewer than 4 compliments from women when I wear these out, and typically no fewer than 4 verses of “U can’t touch this” from my husband. But it’s becoming grotesquely hot already in Southern California, and as someone who Doesn't Show My Knees™, I like to gather all the breathable, poplin things I can so I don’t expire in the 100-degree heat—and these are gloriously cooling. They don’t really do me any favors in the butt and from the side as you’ll see, but I actually think they’re quite flattering in the front and the front is all I see of myself! Sort of like the pants version of just curling the front pieces of our hair in high school.
Size: Medium
Price: $138
4. The pants I’ve owned forever in many colors but just had to be included in this list
WHAT: The Colette Magic Fabric Crop Wide-Leg Pants by Maeve*
You probably own these already but for the 8% of women who don’t, these are truly magic pants. They flatten your stomach, have ample room in the butt and leg, and somehow make everyone’s legs look a mile long. The photo above is a crop but they also come in full length*:
And to prove that I am maniacal about these pants:
Size: 28
Price: $98 - $120
Audie Metcalf is the Editor-in-chief of The Candidly, and lives in LA with her family. You can find more of her articles here.
At The Candidly, we try a lot of stuff so you don’t have to. We only recommend things we truly love, and that we think you’ll love, too. All products are chosen independently by our creative team, and all details reflect the price and availability of products at the time of publication. If you buy something we link to, The Candidly may earn a commission.
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