How to find the perfect skinny jeans for short women
When you have legs that are on the shorter side of petite and you struggle to find skinny jeans that don’t stack at the ankles or a pair that you don’t have to hem, it’s a dream come true. You might actually think that magic powers have reigned down on you that day as it’s a miracle you found a pair, however, I’m going to teach you how to be savvy when it comes to finding skinny jeans for short legs.
One of the best things about skinny jeans taking over the denim market has been the evolution of them. I remember the old days when you couldn’t find an inseam shorter than 32″ on a skinny and the skinniest you could get was a 12″ leg opening (which was hardly skinny), this was a nightmare for someone like me with shorter legs, but as times have changed, skinny jeans cuts have evolved and it’s definitely in favour of us shorter women! So, here are some tips that I have put together for you on finding the perfect length skinny jeans straight from the rack!
Shop Your Jeans Cuts Wisely
When I say shop your cuts wisely, I’m saying use the cuts to your advantage! I personally wont buy a pair of 12″ skinny jeans these days, not only because I don’t find them skinny enough for me, but because I know they will usually come with a longer inseam and will create a lot of bunching at my ankles. So, what do I do instead? I buy a pair of ankle skinny jeans that are designed to be cropped and hit above your ankle, however on someone with shorter legs, these actually act as full length skinny jeans!
Choosing ankle skinny jeans or ankle peg jeans is an incredibly wise option because it eliminates the need for hemming, there’s no stacking at the ankles and the jeans fit really well from the off! One of the best things though is the amount of options right now, every denim brand has an ankle crop skinny in their collection and it means we have the run of the mill! The inseams on ankle skinny jeans usually run at around 27 to 29 inches long, which is much better than the usual 32 or 34 inch legs!
If that length is still too long for some of you ladies who are even more petite, I recommend trying out a pair of actual cropped jeans. A lot of cropped jeans tend to run at around 25/26 inches in length, so this could be ideal for you. There is a slight limitation with these though as they do only come around during the Spring/Summer seasons, however there’s no harm in stocking up for Winter on them! Here are some great options for ankle skinny jeans below.
The Citizens of Humanity Rocket Crop is my absolute favourite! I’m wearing them above in the main photo for this article and they combine a perfect high rise, a skinny leg and a shorter inseam which is perfect! Their famous Rocket cut just got the most amazing makeover with the cropped version and I’m seriously going to be stocking up on these!
AG’s The Legging Ankle is another favourite of mine! Not only do they have the flattering back pocket placement that AG is known for and the most authentic and vintage looking washes, but the inseam length is perfect. I am obsessed with these!
Paige Denim Verdugo Crops are also another great option. Paige took her classic Verdugo super stretch skinny and cropped it, perfect for those of us with short legs! Not only do these come in various washes and fabrications, they have a flattering fit too. There’s also higher rise cuts like the Hoxton which are cropped too!
So these are some great options for cropped skinny jeans becoming full length skinny jeans on petite ladies, but don’t forget there are also brands that do a range of petite jeans in their collections. Paige Denim has a petite section, so do many others (like GRLFRND), but I often find these ranges limited and there’s not a huge amount of options, so cropped jeans are the best way! Happy shopping! You might also want to check out my boyfriend jeans guide. Thank you for reading The Jeans Blog, don’t forget to subscribe and follow on social media!
These brands have some amazing cropped jeans as well:
FRAME | L’Agence | DL1961 | AGOLDE | J Brand | GRLFRND
Jeans above – GRLFRND Candice Petite
Jeans above – L’AGENCE Margot in Graphite
Thanks for sharing infromation
Author
You’re welcome!
HI! I just stumbled upon your blog and its really helpful! Thanks for the advice! I also wanted to ask where you got the purple shoes in the header picture at the top. They are so nice!
Author
Thank you! Those shoes are from Carvela Kurt Geiger 2 years ago, you can find them quite a few times on my Raindrops of Sapphire blog.
I’m very short as well as petite…like 4’10” and tiny in the waist (I weigh all of 90 lbs.) How slim are the jeans? I’ve had the hardest time finding jeans that are form fitting for me (I pretty much need kid sizes, but they don’t fit flattering) I live in a very small town (the best jeans available close to me are American eagle. And their 00’s swallow me) and have been looking to invest in some designer jeans, hoping I could get them to be more flattering for my tiny heiny self. Your jeans fit amazing, and I was just hoping you could give me more of an idea of just how small I can actually get a pair…I don’t want to drop $100 for a pair of (bad ass) designer jeans in size 23 or 24 (I’ll have to buy them on the web) only to be let down when they get here and still swallow me whole…help would be welcome and greatly appreciated!
Sincerely,
A 30 year old woman in a 12 year old boys body
Author
Hi! I’m thinking if the 00 in American Eagle are too big, then the 23/24 in designer jeans will also be too big unfortunately. I’m a size 4 in American Eagle and take a 26/27 in jeans, so the 23/24 would probably fit around the same as the smallest American Eagle jeans. They aren’t exactly designer, but I know All Saints jeans run pretty small, I have to fit a 28-29 in their jeans and they go down to a size 24, perhaps they might fit tighter? MOTHER Denim do run a bit on the tighter side too, they go down to a 23, but I can’t be certain how tight they will be. Is there anywhere you can try jeans on? Topshop do a petite section as well and their jeans run quite small, I’m a 28 in their jeans, so perhaps a petite 24 might work? Also, have you heard of Club Skinny? Apparently their jeans are designed for ladies who are thin. All the links are below for you. I hope it helps 🙂 Do come back and let me know what you find!
All Saints – http://www.allsaints.com/women/denim/style,any/colour,any/size,any/?view=all
MOTHER – https://www.shopbop.com/mother/br/v=1/2534374302183980.htm
Topshop – https://www.topshop.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CatalogNavigationSearchResultCmd?langId=-1&storeId=12556&catalogId=33057&Dy=1&Nty=1&beginIndex=1&viewAllFlag=false&pageSize=20&Nrpp=20&pageNum=1&sort_field=Relevance&Ntt=petite+jeans
Club Skinny – http://www.clubskinny.com/
Christian, I completely understand your struggle! I’m 24 and the same height as you but weigh even less (I’ve a super small frame). I just discovered a two great pairs of jeggings from Abercrombie and fitch, and Hollister The 00short fit me perfectly throughout the leg and I didn’t need to shorten them so you should definitely give them a try!
I know exactly how you feel. I am 4 ‘10 and I have a flat butt. This makes it very difficult to find skinny jeans that fit. When I go to stores even the 00 don’t fit me. It’s either they fit good on my thighs and saggy at my crotch and rear area or they are just way to big in general with no smaller sizes available. At this point I live my week wearing the same 4 jeans to highschool…not the best
Hi there! so I have thighs/hips/butt that leans on the thicker side, and i didn’t know if the jeans you included would still work? I’m 5’2 and 135lbs, with most of it in my hips and thighs, so usually the jeans that fit in the waist are bonkers long on me, even when they’re cropped- either that or the bottom of the jean is loose and not fitting.
thanks!
I think everyone can wear skinny jeans if they are combined well – the perfect combination for petite woman is skinny jeans with high waste and high heeled shoes. The legs will look longer 😉
Author
Yeah, that is a great look 🙂
What are the brands of the 4 pairs you wear?? I have the same issue but not one pair of Jean’s in my wardrobe..help me pls
Author
Hi Angela, the brands and links are each listed under the photos. They’re L’AGENCE, Citizens of Humanity etc. All the info you require is in the blog post text 🙂
these are all like, $300 each… lol wtf
Author
If you want non premium denim and want cheap jeans, try American Eagle. Choose the Short or Extra Short leg lengths: https://rstyle.me/+6kqlhmAI155UM-Ey7aTIBQ