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The right pair of high-waisted jeans can really make your outfit. Jeans are a classic fashion choice, they can be dressed up or down, and they go with just about anything. Plus, when it comes to high-waisted, you don’t have to worry about showing your backside when you bend over or a FUPA hanging over.
High-waisted jeans are a great wardrobe staple. Sometimes, though, you put on a pair of jeans and they just don’t work the way that you imagined they would. This leaves you wondering,
Why do I look fat in high-waisted jeans?
You might look fat in high-waisted jeans because of your body shape, how the jeans fit, whether they create a muffin top, and how they emphasize the waist. The style of jeans, including the rise, fabric, and pocket placement can also affect the way that a pair of high-waisted jeans looks on your body.
Below, we’ll take a closer look at the number of reasons that you might look fat in high-waisted jeans and what you can do about it. I’ll also give some fashion tips along the way that can help you dress as the most confident version of yourself.
Why Do I Look Fat In High-Waisted Jeans?
A lot of times, the reason that a person looks fat in high-waisted jeans comes down to things like the way that the particular pair of jeans interacts with their body shape and proportions. There are a number of things that affect this- let’s take a closer look.
Reason 1: How the Jeans Emphasize The Waist
High-waisted jeans are designed with the intent of sitting above a person’s natural waistline, which can draw attention to this area when paired with certain shirts. For people who do not have a defined waist, or who have a significant difference in the width of the hips compared to the waist, it can draw attention in an unflattering way.
Of course, this is something that is really only a problem if you want to wear a crop top or a shirt that is more form-fitting. While there’s nothing wrong with rocking a crop top, those women who aren’t as confident with their midsection can try pairing them with a shirt that flows over this area. This lets you get the benefits of wearing high-waisted jeans without worrying about what your tummy looks like.
Reason 2: The Dreaded Muffin Top
While I love the way that high-waisted jeans look, I absolutely hate when they create a muffin top. The good news? A muffin top is usually something that can be fixed depending on the type of jeans that you are wearing and how tight they are.
In most cases, jeans create a muffin top when they are too tight in the waist area. As they compress the soft tissue around your waist, it causes it to push up and over your jeans. Since jeans are a thicker fabric that tends to compress your tummy and FUPA area, the excess around the top ends up looking like a muffin.
A good alternative to dealing with sizing issues from your jeans is opting for elastic waist jeans, which are going to be a lot stretchier than a more traditional jean fabric. Many of them also still look like jeans, so they are just as stylish but better suited to a curvier body. Still, you’ll need to be sure you have the right size so that the elastic doesn’t dig in and create bulges in your tummy area that can make you look fatter.
There are also cases where this can happen because a person has lost weight and they have extra skin in their midsection. In this instance, something like shapewear can be beneficial as long as the jeans fit well.
Reason 3: Bad Body Proportions
While you should absolutely wear high-waisted jeans if you like the way they look on you, some women find that this style of jeans doesn’t work because of their body proportions.
For women with a shorter torso, for example, high-waisted jeans end up sitting higher than they would on the average person and this can make their upper body look a lot shorter and wider. This can even be made worse by pairing the jeans with a loose top, which is going to make the body look bulky and draw attention to the waist and hips in all the wrong ways.
Some women who have apple body shapes also have trouble finding a pair of high-waisted jeans that look good on them and fit well. Because high-waisted jeans can accentuate the waist, women with this body shape often feel more confident in jeans that accentuate their legs (like straight-leg jeans) instead.
Reason 4: Design of the Jeans
When it comes to the way jeans are designed, the rise of the jeans, the fabric they are made out of, and even the pocket placement can affect how the jeans look on your body.
The rise of a pair of jeans describes the distance between the waistband and the crotch. When the rise is short, the jeans are going to sit lower on the waist and might make a person’s belly appear larger than it is.
Regarding materials, jeans are made from different textures and thicknesses of fabrics. Certain fabrics hug the body, while others are more stiff. Stiffer fabrics can create the illusion of more volume, which can make you look fatter.
Finally, the position of pockets affects how people see your hips and buttocks. When pockets are poorly placed, they make these areas appear wider.
Do High-Waisted Jeans Look Good On Everyone?
While I would never tell any woman what they should wear, the reality is that some types of clothing do flatter certain body types more. And, while it doesn’t mean that you have to follow certain fashion rules, for women who are still trying to feel confident, choosing clothing that fits well and is flattering can go a long way in making you feel good about yourself.
High-waisted jeans do look good on a lot of body types, but they do not look great on everyone. Women with shorter torsos, for example, look out of proportion when they wear high-waisted jeans. They also are not always flattering on women with apple-shaped bodies because of where they sit on the waist.
What Body Type Looks Best In High-Waisted Jeans?
High-waisted jeans look great on a variety of body types, particularly on those with a well-defined waist. They look good on athletic body types, as well as curvy women who have a defined waistline.
One of my favorite plus-size YouTubers, Chrissyb Styles loves high-waisted jeans and as you can see in the video they look great on her, but she can also rock regular-waisted jeans, so sometimes it’s also about confidence and how you style a piece of clothing.
Women with bigger bellies prefer high-waisted sometimes, too. While they don’t always look great proportionally, you really can’t tell where the waistline of your jeans is if you have a shirt or tunic over them. Plus, the higher waistline means you don’t have to worry about the jeans digging into your belly too much and they aren’t as likely to slide down if you bend over.
How Do I Choose High-Waisted Jeans That Look Good On Me?
To choose high-waisted jeans that look good on your body, start with a pair of jeans that fit well. You don’t want jeans that are so tight in the waist that they create a muffin top, but you also don’t want jeans that are baggy and going to add extra bulk to your frame.
One of the problems with finding the perfect pair of jeans is that different manufacturers have different measurements of the waist, hips, and length of their jeans. If you can’t try jeans on, try using a sizing chart compared to your own measurements to find jeans that are going to fit your body well.
Sizing aside, jeans also come in different cuts and fabrics. Curvier women often find that flared jeans add bulk to their frame, making them appear larger, but straight-leg or skinny jeans are more flattering. You should also opt for a stretchier jean material that is going to hug your frame, rather than stiff material that won’t move with your body.
The way that you style your high-waisted jeans can also change how they look on your body type. If they are a little tight or you are worried about a muffin top, go with something that flows over the midsection instead of something more form-fitting. A classic T-shirt also pairs great with jeans, though you will want to avoid something that is too loose or oversized because it can add bulk to your body and make you look bigger than you are.
Why Do I Look Bad In High-Waisted Jeans?
If you’ve tried high-waisted jeans and just never been happy with how they look on you, odds are, they just are not a good fit for your body type. People who have bigger midsections compared to the rest of their body or people who have shorter torsos sometimes find that high-waisted jeans just draw attention in an unflattering way.
The good news? Even if your body proportions aren’t perfect for high-waisted jeans, there are plenty of other options out there. Mid-rise jeans will sit a little higher (just at the waist), rather than at the hips like some other styles of jeans.
Trying different cuts of jeans, like opting for straight-leg or skinny jeans instead of flared, might also make the jeans look more flattering. You can still find that perfect pair, you just might need to try a few different styles.
Why Do High-Waisted Jeans Give Me a Pooch?
High-waisted jeans usually give you a pooch when there is a bunch of extra fabric between the waist and the hips of the jeans. When you sit or walk around, this extra fabric bunches and creates a pooch.
This extra fabric can be caused by the jeans having too much of a rise relative to where they sit on your waist, especially if you have a shorter torso. It can also happen when the size of your waist is much different than the size of your hips.
Closing Thoughts
High-waisted jeans are sometimes considered a classic wardrobe option, but the truth is, they are a flattering wardrobe staple for a lot of women. While certain styles or cuts of jeans can make you look fatter, there are a lot of jeans out there. Plus, everything from the fabric of the jeans to the placement of the pockets can affect how they look on your body.
When it comes to fashion, the thing that matters most is wearing the clothes that make you feel most comfortable and confident in your own body. This means that if you’re like me, regardless of your body type, high-waisted jeans are a great way to hide belly fat and I’ll be wearing them anyway! Plus, those jeans are going to look great if you pair them with the right top, too!