Stylists Explain Whether Skinny Jeans Are In or Out

For a solid decade, skinny jeans dominated our denim drawers. Skinnies replaced our bootcut jeans, and we wore them everywhere — tucked into boots, with white sneakers or ballet flats and loafers.

But eventually boyfriend jeans popped up on the scene, and the denim landscape seemed to splinter: designers started pushing other styles like mom jeans and culottes or flared crops while still selling skinny jeans. Now fashion outlets like Who What Wear are calling stovepipe straight-leg jeans the biggest trend for fall and Vogue is running headlines like “No More Skinny Jeans: How Today’s Top Models Do Off-Duty Denim.”

We wanted to know: are skinny jeans really passé in 2017? If so, what is the new “it” denim silhouette? The Lookbook asked four fashion experts these questions for an informal "state of the union" on jeans. That includes two celeb stylists:  Jordan Grossman, who dresses clients like This Is Us’s Chrissy Metz, and Rachel Wirkus, whose roster includes Victoria’s Secret Angels Devon Windsor and Candice Swanepoel. Then there is Truc Nguyen, a fashion editor, stylist, and writer who most recently served as the senior style and market editor at Canada's Flare magazine. We also asked  Lorna Burford of The Jeans Blog to weigh in, since she chronicles everything happening in denim trends (and her personal denim collection is over 400 pairs!). Here's their take on whether skinny jeans will always be with us, and what denim style you should try next.

Jordan: Yes, of course! Skinny jeans are here to stay forever.

Lorna: I do! They might not be the most popular style on the market at the moment because of the fashion forward trends which often take the limelight, but skinny jeans are a staple and are just ‘jeans’ because they’re worn by everyone and loved. I think they are the most popular fit when it comes to classic denim.

Rachel: I think they are. They still are a very flattering style on most women. I don't think they are the coolest style to be wearing right now though, but I don't think you need to get rid of all your skinny jeans!

Truc: Right now, skinny jeans aren't as relevant from a trend perspective. They've been around for a while and we're not seeing them on designer runways very often.

Jordan: Absolutely not. Skinny jeans are now classified as regular jeans... unless you’re a guy wearing a size too small of skinny jeans.

Lorna: I don’t think so no, purely because they are now a staple in every person's denim collection. All shops offer skinny jeans and always will because even though trends are fun to wear, skinny jeans are always going to be there for you like your best friend.

Rachel: I think all trends come and go. I think skinny jeans are a good basic. Right now there are so many other styles to try out that are definitely more fun and fashionable.

Truc: I don't think skinny jeans will ever go out of style! There are always fresh modifications every season, such as a higher waist or new denim finishes, and generally they're one of those items that are so popular at retail that brands will always offer them in some variation. I still wear my favourite skinnies in rotation with trendier styles like kick flares and fringed jeans.

Jordan:  I like skinny black jeans. I have at least 20 pairs I wear every day. I think high-waisted have become a favorite of everyone's. They hide everything.

Lorna: In terms of what I think looks cool, I do quite like the cropped flare/bootcut trend. Those can look great. I am more over the boyfriend trend and the mom jeans trend, I’m not really into them anymore as I don’t find them flattering. If I did have to say all time favourite though, it’s still the skinny jean. I like the high rise, super stretch, skinny jeans with a cropped leg and sometimes a frayed hem. The fray hem is very cool!

Rachel: My favorite style right now is a high waisted, frayed cropped jean with a bit of a flare. Jeans with light and dark denim integrated into one pant is also a very flattering style!

Truc: I love the extra long, slim-cut jeans that Raf Simons showed on the Fall 2017 Calvin Klein runway; they look like crisp, tailored trousers that happen to be made out of denim. 

Jordan: I hope denim works back to basic, I see way too many crazy styles out there. Jeans with crazy paint splatters, jeans with metal attached to it. It's too much!

Lorna: That’s a good question. I find that every season that comes and goes, denim is more popular than ever. It’s everywhere we look, in shoes, bags, belts, accessories, dresses, skirts, overalls. You can’t escape the sea of blue. I would say though, within a couple of seasons, it will start going back to classics again. There’s a trend routine that often crops up - crazy prints and designs come out for a couple of seasons and it exhausts itself because there’s nowhere left to go with the innovative designs, so the only way to go next is back to classic and minimal. So I think we will still see some crazy jeans on the market for a while longer, then a lot of classic washes and fits will come back around again to complete the cycle as everyone gets bored so quickly!

Rachel: I think denim is becoming more and more a part of everyone's wardrobe. Denim can be dressed up in so many ways that you can almost wear denim in some format to all occasions and seasons!

Truc: I'm very impressed at denim companies' focus on making the manufacturing process more environmentally friendly. Jeans are an important part of our daily wardrobes, so it's nice to see that there are more eco-friendly options available every year

Jordan: Paige jeans and James jeans are so great!

Lorna: My newer favourite brands are MOUSSY and still GRLFRND. Love them! Oh and Khloe Kardashian's brand, Good American, seems to be great!

Rachel: My favorite jean brands are Mother, Frame, Citizens of Humanity, and Paige.

Truc: Right now, I'm into vintage-inspired blue jeans from Levi's (like the 501CT), and I've always been a fan of Gap denim, especially the '90s re-issue styles that came out earlier this year.