The Big Thigh Pant Fitting Discussion Thread

[dfagdfsh]

This topic has come up a bunch on the WAYT thread, and I figure it needs its own home.

This is a place to discuss finding pants when you have big thighs because of either natural anatomy or working out!

It can be challenging, to say the least. The key challenge is finding a pant with a higher rise, a larger thigh, but isn't cut like a painful dad-mowing-the-lawn khaki pant.

There's also different approaches to finding pants when you have big thighs: focusing on a bigger pant fit that looks clean because of a crease, looking for pants with pleats to give you extra room, looking for pants in stretch fabrics.

I have 27" thighs and wear a size 34-38 depending on the pant.

Some brands I've found that work well with more casual pants:

Wings + Horns: Their Tokyo fit is designed with larger thighs, a higher rise, but a heavy taper.
Outlier: Large thighs with great stretch fabric. Variety of cuts with different levels of taper.

Brands I wish I could wear but have never worked:

Uniqlo: Cheap, ubiquitous, low rise.
Engineered Garments: Why are you so narrow in the thigh?

There's also always the option for going MTM. Luxire is probably the best brand because they directly duplicate your measurements, vs. fitting them into a pre-existing block pattern.

For tailored pants, I generally end up sizing up, and either leave a loose waist and wearing with braces, or getting the waist taken in.

Anyway, post your favorite brands, examples of what you think looks good, etc.

@hendrix @Benesyed @Coldsnap

 

[tennessee]

This is great. Thank you for starting this thread. 32” waist with 24” thighs here. I’ve had good luck with Everlane Straight Leg Jeans sized up one in the waist, Spier & Mackay Contemporary fit also sized up one in waist, Universal Works Tapered Pants, and J. Crew 1040 chinos with some tapering done at the tailor. I’ll be trying out Luxire next and recently discovered @Todd Shelton and am looking forward to trying his pants soon.

 

[Coldsnap]

Ah, good call on the Everlane straight sized up in the waist. I did that for a bit, but there's something about the way fabric with a synthetic blend drapes / feels which I do not like. It's a good option if you are looking for a normal straight fit without too much taper.

I am leaner now adays w/ 40" chest, 31" waist, 25" thighs. I've experimented with a lot of things over the years. Right now there's a lot of just really wide cut stuff on the market (at reasonable prices now too), so it's actually gotten me interested in clothing in a way I haven't been in awhile. So now adays I'm looking for a fit that is oversized enough in the shoulders and body that it just gives enough free fabric to drape over my hips. For pants I just want them to be comfortable, so something like a Sugar Can 1947 or Uniqlo U pants is good for me.

I sorta dig the bigger leg openings too, there's something great looking about the flow of them while walking. I don't really let them break, mostly hemmed high. Ultimately not being fussy about it all, just wearing fabrics I find interested. Pieces I'm vibing with and staying mad comfortable in them.

@tennessee Universal Works is a brand I've been looking at more recently. I've liked their recent collab with Birkenstocks. Also their Noragi type shirt looks great. Got any details on the Universal Works Tapered Pants? How hard is the taper? I picked up a size 36 pair yesterday for $5 at the thrift store but WAY too big for me.

 

[Rais]

I think the most flattering cut for a proportionally larger seat and thighs is one that is relatively fitted from waist band to lower thigh/knee and then more relaxed with a slight taper with a slim, but not skinny, fit from the knee down. The cuff width should be proportional to the waist; the large the waist the wider the cuffs should be (e.g. large waist with a 6" cuff is always going to produce "carrot legs", which I find unflattering). The rise should be "mid" or high, never low, especially if you are tucking your shirt in.

Flattering in this case, in that it looks "good" and doesn't just fit on your body. You could get a pair of skinny fit pants made for a 36"+ waist with 6" or less cuff opening; but even with a perfect comfortable fit, the silhouette would be unattractive on a man, especially from the side. I'd look for tapered pants and be mindful of the cuff according to whatever your waist size is; paying specific attention to the side silhouette when trying them on, not just the front.

There's also drop crotch pants with a large waist, seat and thighs worn with a loose, longer top for something more exaggerated and fashion forward. Those should look relatively consistent on most people regardless of thigh/seat size.

 

[Todd Shelton]

This might be the most frequent fit issue we hear here. It’s legit. There’s guys who have thighs too big for brands they’d want to wear, but their thighs may just be on the big side of average, these guys really don’t have fit problems - they just can’t wear certain brands. And there’s guys who actually have really big thighs, these guys have legit gripes, gaping at the waist and a sloppy lower block, with almost all brands, is a constant problem.

 

[dfagdfsh]

I've struggled a lot with Everlane. The only cut I've found that works well is their "Tapered" fit, which I think they've only used once. The straight leg is too baggy and the slim is too small in the seat.

 

[dfagdfsh]

Here’s an example of two different leg widths:

The top suit is Spier Mackay, with 38 conempotary trousers. I had the waist taken in 3 inches, and the hem is about 8.5"

The bottom suit is Eidos, size 54 trousers. I also had the waist taken in 3 inches, but the thigh/seat is still tight (some pocket flair), with a hem about 7.5"

 

[tennessee]

@Coldsnap I said Tapered Pants when I actually meant Pleated Pants. I would describe them as a loose "carrot" cut. Quite roomy in the seat and thigh with a high waist, single pleat, and an obvious (but not too aggressive) taper below the knee. Here's a picture from the UW site.

 

[dfagdfsh]

One upside though is you look good in shorts and can but shorts from Old Navy cause you’re gonna fill em out regardless

The trend for easy/drawstring shorts helps a lot with this too.

 

[dfagdfsh]

I think the most flattering cut for a proportionally larger seat and thighs is one that is relatively fitted from waist band to lower thigh/knee and then more relaxed with a slight taper with a slim, but not skinny, fit from the knee down. The cuff width should be proportional to the waist; the large the waist the wider the cuffs should be (e.g. large waist with a 6" cuff is always going to produce "carrot legs", which I find unflattering). The rise should be "mid" or high, never low, especially if you are tucking your shirt in.

Flattering in this case, in that it looks "good" and doesn't just fit on your body. You could get a pair of skinny fit pants made for a 36"+ waist with 6" or less cuff opening; but even with a perfect comfortable fit, the silhouette would be unattractive on a man, especially from the side. I'd look for tapered pants and be mindful of the cuff according to whatever your waist size is; paying specific attention to the side silhouette when trying them on, not just the front.

There's also drop crotch pants with a large waist, seat and thighs worn with a loose, longer top for something more exaggerated and fashion forward. Those should look relatively consistent on most people regardless of thigh/seat size.

I think one challenge though is when you also have a larger calf, the fabric is never going to drape as well because the width of your calf 'kicks' it back. The obvious solution to this is a pleat (which shapes how the fabric falls), but I also find a lot of 'pleated' pants aren't really made with a functional pleat, i.e. a pleat that holds extra fabric, but more so just as a detail. An actual pleated pant needs fairly deep pleats.

 

[Oldsrocket27]

I think one challenge though is when you also have a larger calf, the fabric is never going to drape as well because the width of your calf 'kicks' it back. The obvious solution to this is a pleat (which shapes how the fabric falls), but I also find a lot of 'pleated' pants aren't really made with a functional pleat, i.e. a pleat that holds extra fabric, but more so just as a detail. An actual pleated pant needs fairly deep pleats.

This is what I always run into. I don't have the largest thighs (23in) and calves (15 in) , but they're large enough that most off the rack pants catch at my calves and end up bunched up at my knees and tight in the thigh when I size for my waist (30in). Most pleated pants I run into are in a stiff, ****** fabric that just bunches up into the dreaded diaper. I've been looking for a gently tapered single pleat light blue pant for summer for months, and I've resigned to luxire being the only way I'm going to get it, if I want to go through with that process.

 

[thekunk07]

I thin k its called bring fat

 

[dfagdfsh]

I think it's called too many squats and deadlifts Although I did just hit 2x bodyweight deadlift, so suck it kunkel

 

[thekunk07]

I think it's called too many squats and deadlifts Although I did just hit 2x bodyweight deadlift, so suck it kunkel

my thighs are 30 my calves are 20 and I fit in normal pants. my waist is pretty tiny though

 

[Coldsnap]

how do normal pants have 15" thigh measurements..