Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Long, Lean, and Leggy

Friday, April 1, 2011

Tonight I found the secret to having long and lean legs -- something I always wanted, especially when I was running cross country and track in high school. But you have to read my whole post to learn my secret :-). Anyway, my legs were short and stumpy -- proportionally speaking, that is. If my friends and I sat down on the floor with our backs up against the wall, my legs were the shortest even though I was one of the tallest. It really wasn't fair! Seriously, I had to run twice as fast as everybody else to cover the same amount of ground! 

sweater -- Old Navy
jeans -- AĆ©ropostale (thrifted)
shoes -- Dansko (clogs) 

I also had trouble with my thighs. I know that they don't look abnormally huge in my pictures, but WAY back when I was in high school, it was still considered somewhat controversial for girls to be athletic -- being muscular wasn't supposed to be very attractive. And the joke was that I had "thunder thighs." I could never find jeans -- or any pants, for that matter -- that fit my thunder thighs. If they fit my thighs, they gaped at my waist. 

Not being able to buy jeans wasn't that big a deal, because I didn't wear jeans all that often. In fact, I was such a tomboy and a nerd that, for me, it precluded an interest in fashion and clothes. I probably only bought one or two pairs of jeans the entire time that I was in high school. Once I got to college, and was exposed to my roommates' packed closets and overflowing dressers was when I actually started wanting to buy clothes, jeans included.


Once I graduated from college (1980), I threw caution (price) to the wind and decided that I was going to buy a pair of jeans that fit me -- no matter what the price. So where did I go to buy these expensive price-be damned jeans? An outlet center, of course. I still remember my excursion to the Flemington outlets in New Jersey to buy my Calvins. Calvin Kleins came highly recommended by a woman I was working with, who had the same problem with her thighs that I did. I can still remember the store, a place on the south-bound side of Route 202, just north of the circle, and pawing through the stacks of jeans to find my size.


The 90s was when I think I really started to buy jeans, and I went with Lees and Levis. Either they had learned to make jeans that fit my kind of shape or my shape changed. I still have my 501 button ups somewhere in my house (they don't fit, but I still have them). Now that stretch denim and low-rise styles have become fashionable, buying jeans is easy for me. Now I can even go into a thrift store and probably find a half dozen pair that fit me pretty decent.


And, of course, no picture of a person wearing jeans is really complete unless you get the requisite booty shot ...

 
Wow -- this was some trip down the "jeans" memory lane!

So what's my secret for getting long and lean legs? Shoot from above!

7 comments:

  1. The booty is looking good! I have one pair of stretch denim inherited from my daughters, but much prefer the men's jeans that I thrift. My daughter P. was a muscled runner and has had to deal with the same nickname, "thunder thighs."

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  2. @Terri -- How on Earth do you comment so fast? I just barely finished writing it?! :-) I'm glad that you can attest to the thunder thighs nickname -- Gracey has been surprised! I love stretch denim! It is just infinitely more comfortable for me. And this was my FIRST booty shot EVER! and I'm embarrassed to say it, but I was pleased with it ... I couldn't believe that I actually stood there to have it taken -- talk about stretching -- WOW! for me, that was huge!

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  3. It's definitely worth searching for a pair of well fitting jeans. nothing is more uncomfortable than jeans that fit incorrectly.

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  4. Nice Arse;) LOL ! And thanks for the shoot from above tip, I'll be sure to put that into practice. I did learn just last week that shooting from below makes you look funny. I was trying to use the stairway in my house, but I looked like a troll, so know we know. Your posts are always such fun to read, you really put youself out there. Keep sharing, its nice to get to "know" other bloggers!

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  5. I'm proud of you for the booty shot. The most I can do is a sort of half booty from the side. I'm very impressed.

    And I love your tip for long legs - it's like my tip to turn sideways to look thinner!

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  6. Amen to shooting from above! I've been on a jeans hunt for the past year and I think the key is to try everything on. Any designer, different cuts - anything.

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  7. never ever shoot from below... it makes you look stumpy and can give anyone an instant "double chin"

    the other trick is the "skinny arm" where you put one arm or both arms on your hips in your photos - it makes your arms look skinnier. apparently guys that are on facebook don't like the fact that women post pictures with the "skinny arm" because they cant judge how she actually looks. oh geeeez!

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Thanks for reading. Honest opinions and constructive criticism are always welcome.

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