The Unyielding, Unflattering Denim Trend

I lie awake at night, staring at the swirls on my ceiling, wondering what the hell happened at Target today. I walked in around ten in the morning, prime time to shop for one specific thing and ending up with ten other things, while forgetting the one thing I needed. The nostalgic smell of stale popcorn and name brand coffee wafted across my skin as I set forth toward the clothing section, the first place a young woman goes when she needs some avocados and a loaf of bread.

Gone are the days when it seemed like I could waltz into this establishment with my head held high, full of such hope and wonder, and debate with myself on which articles of clothing to buy. Everything was always so cute, so fitting, so ME. Was it just me, or was the selection getting thinner? Why did these dresses look like something off of Little House on the Prairie? Was it now fashionable to look like Mary Ingalls, as she writhed on the floor after being blinded from scarlet fever? Why are baggy clothes suddenly sexy? I thought we wanted to show off our curves! Is ugly really the new black? Was I getting, dare I say it, old?

I at least believed with every fiber of my being that the age old staple of denim would never go out of style. Skinny jeans will always be around. Right? I mean, they survived that awkward early-to-mid 2000’s fashion disaster era, leaving other hideous trends in the dust to decay in their hideousness. Jeans under dresses? Layering polo shirts with the collars popped? Chunky headbands and inch-thick lowlights? What on earth were we thinking? I shook off the terrorizing memory and headed to the jeans. But then I quickly became confused. Why are these so thick and crunchy-feeling? Why does this size 8 look like a size 12? Why are there SO MANY HOLES? Why is the crotch two feet from the waist band? I had so many questions, but at this point, I was way too afraid to ask.

As a woman who frequents the gym and who gives into societal pressure to maintain a decent body, I want my clothes to somewhat hug my shape. I want my jeans to show the lift in my rear-end. I want someone to notice my hard work at my ripe old age of 29! But these jeans, there was no shape in the seat. There was nothing to show any form of feminine figure. Why is everything all of a sudden upside-down and topsy-turvy? Everything I had ever known, everything that I had seen growing up that ended up shaping me into this self-conscious, bodily-shamed womanly figure, dedicated to achieving this perfection that society demands, is now all of a sudden changing. I don’t know how to handle it.

It is definitely a liberating feeling to recognize that young women and teens are being marketed comfier fits of clothing, instead of clothes that are made to attract a male gaze. I am so happy that society is changing for them. More and more often I see a model in a photo who isn’t a size 2, who has curves and rolls and loves the skin she is in. Thank goodness this is happening now and others can be spared the crippling mindset that was pounded into me and so many others at such a young age. The whole idea of less than perfection is intolerable, and if you are imperfect, you should also be ashamed of yourself. We have gotten so far away from those images and those messages that fashion is changing in turn. No woman should be made to feel like she must dress according to what others find attractive. Nor should they be made to feel that their body is less than desirable. We are all the way the universe intended us to be.

That being said, I still hate mom jeans.