Wranglers: A Buyer's Guide
Not everybody grew up wearing Wranglers like my older brother and I did, so I offer a few pointers here.
Also see:
Patoski, Joe Nick. "True Fit." Texas Monthly. Sept. 1993. Reprints available at www.texasmonthly.com
If you are a first-time buyer, try to buy your Wranglers somewhere with a mirror. Failing this, young female clerks will most likely be happy to check the fit for you.
The 2 main things to look for when buying jeans is to make sure they're comfortable in the waist and fit right in the butt.
Remember to try on several pairs. No jeans company in the world makes any two pairs of jeans exactly alike. I wear jeans in sizes 33 34 35 and 36 depending on the general cut and the specific size.
Cowboy Cut PRCA Jeans (13MWZ)
These are cut fuller in the seat and thigh than an average pair of jeans, 501's for instance. They are also significantly higher in the waist, fitting right under the navel for many guys. These are the jeans of choice for guys with nice big butts and/or muscular thighs.
Slim Fit Jeans (936)
These are cut narrow in the seat and thigh for guys with slim builds. Guys with average builds may find the fit awesomely shrink-wrap, but beware, as they can have a tendency to flatten the ass. These ride lower on the hips, more or less where 505's do. These are the jeans of choice for thin guys, guys who like a TIGHT fit, and divers looking for swim skins. If you're starting to get a belly and you still want your jeans to fit in the seat, buy slim fits a size larger than you normally wear. Roomy in the waist, snug in the butt--a trick my older brother employs during the winter.
Gen X: Stackers
Now, how long should your jeans be?
I personally have a pair or two in my accurate inseam for casual wear with a flannel shirt and regular old leather shoes.
Since at least I don't know, the mid-80s, even guys who don't normally ride horses tend to wear their Wranglers 2" to 4" too long in order to keep the bottoms from riding up over the tops of their cowboy boots when they're sitting down. This causes the fabric of the leg to bunch up gently below the knee. This style is known as "stacking" as the fabric "stacks up" against the boot. Narrow-heeled boots may allow the hem of stacked jeans to drag the pavement and fray, a look some cowboys like. Country singers are the most notorious stackers: Neal McCoy and Tracy Byrd, neither an unusually tall man, have been known to wear 40" inseams. The longest inseam available in Wranglers is 44" so I say, go ahead and experiment. Stacked jeans, especially starched ones, are generally a more formal look.
I've also been seeing (1986-present) guys in Indiana and Kentucky buy their Levi's too long and slit the leg seam at the bottom to allow the hem to drag the ground. I'm asking you not to take a knife to your Wranglers--just wear narrow-heeled boots and let gravity do the rest. My cyberbud KnifeVandal can disregard this advice if he likes.
OK, so I saw a young cowboy at the Charlotte airport with slit leg seams--July 2, 2000. Fashion changes.
To Starch or not to Starch
There is nothing some of you like better than to yank your glove tight Wrangs out of the dryer and slip right into them. On the other hand, for that extra formal look when you're out to impress the other dudes at Boot Scoot Nite or at a rodeo after-party, starched, pressed, and creased jeans can be the way to go. Some swear by starched jeans for their skintite fit as this process has a tendency to shrink the denim slightly. You will definitely be aware of every single step you take after you bring your jeans home from the cleaners and "break starch," forcing your limbs into the crackly paper thin denim. Starched jeans also make for sharp leg creases and accentuate stacked legs. You'll be in good company--see our friends the country singers.
Your regular old dry cleaners can do this for you. Ask for the jeans to be pressed and creased, with heavy starch. Some guys even like "extra heavy" cement-like starch if all they plan to do is stand and model. Your very own bondage pants.
However, if you are one of those independent do-it-yourselfers, some kind young lady has provided instructions on the Web for boiling your own jeans. Click on the link below.
One last thought on creased jeans--if you live out in the country miles from a dry cleaner, get yourself some wire pants stretchers and dry them on the line. No fuss, no muss. Available at www.cumberlandgeneral.com