Wear Distressed Jeans

Distressed jeans have been in style for years, though the look of the jeans have slightly altered through time. They can be ripped, bleached, or have multiple distressed qualities. You can buy jeans that have already been distressed, but they typically look better if you distress them on your own. To wear distressed jeans, choose the type of jeans you want to wear and then decide if you are going for a casual or dressed up look.

Steps

Choosing a Style

1. Wear lightly distressed jeans. Jeans don’t have to have large rips or sections of bleach to be considered distressed. The jeans only need to have a few small rips or areas of discoloration to be considered distressed. Do not combine rips or discoloration if you want your jeans to be only slightly distressed—you should only choose one.
   • Lightly distressed jeans work well if you are wearing them to school, work, or a casual event—like a party.
2. Choose ripped jeans. Ripped jeans are the classic and popular type of distressed jeans. Ripped jeans can be found already distressed at many clothing stores. Or, you can take scissors to a regular pair of jeans to create your own rips. You can choose to wear jeans with large rips, or jeans that only have a few, small rips.
   • The knees and thighs are common places to add rips to jeans. The rips should be fairly small on your thighs if you don’t want the jeans to be too revealing.
3. Put on bleached jeans. Bleached jeans are another popular form of distressed jeans. You can wear jeans that have small splotches of bleach. Or, you can choose jeans that are bleach almost entirely, except for the top of the jeans.
4. Wear tie-dyed jeans. Tie-dyed jeans are the modern and stylish alternative to acid-washed jeans. Tie-dyed jeans typically have been bleached in areas, but the bleach marks look like an intentional pattern. Tie-dyed jeans are available at many clothing stores, but you can do a quick search online to find places to purchase them if you can’t find them in a store.

Wearing a Casual Look

1. Pair your jeans with sneakers and a T-shirt. Sneakers, T-shirt, and distressed jeans are a classic combination that can be worn as casually as you would like. Keep the look very casual by wearing a plain t-shirt and jeans without any accessories. Make the look slightly less casual by adding accessories to the outfit, like earrings or a scarf.
2. Put on a sweater and ankle boots. This is a great combination for colder weather. Any type of sweater and ankle boots will work. Roll up the cuffs of the jeans to your ankle to show off the tops of the ankle boots. You may want to wear tights under the jeans if the weather is cold and your jeans have large rips.
   • Wear a sweater in a solid color with a pair of brown ankle boots.
   • For a night out, wear a form-fitting sweater with a pair of high-heel ankle boots.
3. Wear a denim shirt. Denim-on-denim can be worn for a very casual day spent around the house, or worn for a casual night out. Choose a plain denim shirt that is a slightly different color than the denim pants. Wear sneakers for a very casual look, or wear high heels or loafers for a casual night out.
   • Wear a light denim shirt with a pair of dark denim jeans and sneakers.
4. Choose a tank top and nice pair of shoes. This look is great for a night out. Wear a simple tank top with a pair of stilettos or nice dress shoes. The distressed jeans and tank top keep the look casual, but the shoes dress up the outfit enough to be worn out for dinner or a drink.
   • Pair a plain sleeveless shirt with a pair of loafers or stilettos.

Dressing Up Distressed Jeans

1. Pair a blazer with your jeans. A blazer is a simple way to dress up a pair of distressed jeans. You can wear a loose and long blazer, or a more formal and fitted blazer. Pair the jeans and blazer with high heels or loafers and a nice T-shirt for an office look.
   • Lightly distressed jeans that don’t have rips, but have slight bleach marks work best with a blazer.
2. Put on a button-up shirt. A button-up shirt is another simple way to dress up distressed jeans. Any type of button-up, plain or patterned, will work. Pair the jeans with a nice pair of dress shoes looks to keep the look dressy.
   • Wear a long-sleeved button-up shirt with lightly bleached jeans and dress boots or ballerina flats.
3. Wear a long jacket. A long jacket paired with distressed jeans is a good look for cold weather. A long pea coat or trench or trench coat would be an ideal choice. Make the look dressier by buttoning up the jacket and wearing dress shoes. Wear plain sneakers and a T-shirt to dress up the jeans, but still maintain a slightly casual look.
   • Wear a long pea coat with a plain sweater, boots, and jeans.
   • Put on a trench coat with a black T-shirt, jeans, and high heels or loafers.
4. Choose dressy accessories with distressed jeans. Accessories are a simple way to dress up your distressed jeans, no mater what shoes and pants you choose to wear. A statement necklace and earrings is one choice to dress the outfit up. Or, you can choose to wear a leather belt and watch.
   • Choose your accessories based on your outfit. For jeans and a T-shirt, wear a simple belt and/or basic earrings, like small silver hoops.
   • For a dressier outfit, like a sweater and pea coat, wear a long scarf.

Tips

• Distress your own jeans naturally, or on your own with tools like scissors and bleach.
• Wear distressed jeans that aren’t overly baggy or tight, but fit comfortably.

Warnings

• Make sure the rips aren’t in places that go against school or work dress codes. If they are, wear tights underneath your jeans.
• Use caution when using bleach if you decide to distress your own jeans.

Sources and Citations

See also

• Look Good in Jeans (Women)
• Unfade Jeans
• Pintuck Jeans
• Taper Jeans
• Wear Jeans with Sneakers
• Make Your Jeans Tighter
• Make a Denim Skirt From Recycled Jeans
• Make Dirty Denim Distressed Cut Off Shorts
• Make Distressed Jeans
• Decorate Jeans

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