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Slim-fit pants orskinny jeans (when made ofdenim) aretight trousers that have a snug fit through the legs and end in a small leg opening that can be anywhere from 9" to 20" in circumference, depending on size.[1] Other names for this style includedrainpipes,stovepipes,tight pants,cigarette pants,pencil pants,skinny pants,gas pipes,skinnies, andtight jeans.
Skinny pants taper completely at the bottom of the leg, whereasdrainpipes are skinny but then the lower leg is straight instead of tapering and so they are often slightly baggier at the bottom of the leg than skinny jeans. In some very skinny styles,zippers are needed at the bottom of the leg to facilitate pulling them over the feet because the leg opening is so small. Stretch denim, with anywhere from 2% to 4%spandex, may be used to allow jeans to have a "super-slim fit". Skinny jeans come in a variety of colors and styles.[2]
Before the 18th century, European men worebreeches andhose. In Tudor times, these breeches were loose-fitting, but by the 1660s, tight breeches were fashionable. These were popularised by Frenchmen at the court ofLouis XIII, as part of thethree piece suit that also included a type offrock coat called aJustacorps, atricorne hat, apowdered wig, and a longwaistcoat. During theRestoration era, the tighter breeches were introduced to England, and the rest of Europe, because the cut was deemed more flattering to the leg.[3]
From the 16th until the 19th century, theMughlai nobility attired themselves in tight-fittingchuridars which were worn tied below the knee. These trousers, and other elements of traditional clothing like theshalwar kameez, were often worn by Englishmen working in India, especially officers of theEast India Company.[4]
Tight-fitting trousers were fashionable from 1805 until 1850, being descended from the loose work trousers worn as a political statement bySans-Culottes during theFrench Revolution.[5] These "pantaloons," popularised byRegency era Englishmen such asBeau Brummel, were worn high on the waist and tailored to accentuate the leg like thebreeches previously fashionable among the upper class.[6] Pantaloons were tied (or buttoned) around the ankle and commonly put into boots.
Pants, which had come to mean tight-fitting trousers, but now just a synonym, fitted more loosely from the 1840s onwards as mass-production replaced tailoring. Beginning in theEdwardian era and continuing into the 1920s,baggy "Oxford" or "collegiate" trousers andplus fours were fashionable among the younger generation. As the name suggests,Oxford bags originated at the UK's elite universities, where young upper class men pursued an active, sports-centred lifestyle.[7]
Drainpipe trousers re-emerged in the 1950s, with popularWestern stars such as thesinging cowboyRoy Rogers, TheLone Ranger,The Cisco Kid,Zorro andGene Autry and actressesMarilyn Monroe andSandra Dee wearing their pants very slim to the ankle from 1955 onwards.[8] Tapered jeans became most notable withcountry music stars and with the birth ofrock and roll in the 1950s, whenElvis Presley donned slim-fitting jeans and shocked the country.
In the early 1960s, drainpipes were worn byThe Beatles,The Rolling Stones,Bob Dylan and otherrock music acts. Fashion iconAudrey Hepburn also raised the popularity of drainpipe jeans. Slim fitting pants and jeans were worn not just by members of the teenageMod orgreaser subculture but also ordinary people. By 1962,Sears were selling tight jeans made from "stretch" denim that incorporatedelastane.[9] The trend lasted until the end of the 1960s when "hippie" culture gave rise to flared pants andbell bottom jeans.
In the early 1970s,glam rock androckabilly bands reviving theTeddy Boy look popularised drainpipe jeans in contrast to theflared trousers worn by hippies. Redtartan drainpipe jeans (as they were then called) were popular in thepunk subculture of the late 1970s, and were worn by many bands and scene leaders such asRamones,The Clash andSex Pistols.
Skin-tightacid-washed jeans were also popular in the 1980s with mostheavy metal bands, and in particular those in thethrash metal scene, such asAnthrax,Megadeth,Metallica andSlayer. This was the trend for those who did not wearspandex, which was popular with the dominant heavy metal scene at the time. They were often worn with whitehigh-top sneakers or basketball shoes likeConverse. By the late 1980s, drainpipe pants were largely superseded bystraight leg jeans likeLevi 501s, but remained popular among fans ofhard rock until the 1990s. Tight-fitting jeans were also worn by pop stars likeMichael Jackson andFreddie Mercury. The 1980s also saw the revival of "stretch jeans," pioneered and popularized in the United States by Steven Kohn and Sal Parasuco.
By the early1990s, many glam metal bands such asPoison,Mötley Crüe,Kiss,Bon Jovi, andSlaughter, abandoned spandex and wore form fitted jeans. Tight jeans were also worn by members of thecasual subculture from the late 80s until the mid 90s, includingEwan McGregor inTrainspotting.[10] However, with the rise ofgrunge andhip-hop music in the mid 1990s and thepost thrash movement, drainpipe jeans quickly went out of fashion in favor of baggycarpenter jeans, as worn by hip-hop/rap acts such asKris Kross,Another Bad Creation, andSnoop Dogg. Flared jeans also made a comeback from the mid-1990s onward, furthering the move away from the drainpipe styles.
The 2000s saw the continued rejection of slim-fitting pants and jeans throughout the early and middle years in mainstream fashion. However, in 2005, fitted pants were reintroduced to the mainstream market for women. This new style of pants was called "skinny jeans". During its first year, skinny jeans were only sold online, and they were not available in stores. Initially, they were not well received by the public, though there were some early adopters. It was not until 2006 that skinny jeans gained more steam in fashion world, and by this time skinny jeans were being sold at shopping malls.[11] Throughout 2007[12] skinny jeans received more mainstream exposure as fashion trends started moving away from thebell bottoms andbaggy pants which had been dominant for the previous 10 years.[13] Men's skinny jeans were introduced in the late 2000s and became the norm by 2009.[14][15]
Skinny jeans first spread to men's fashion in 2009.[16] This has continued into the 2010s, entering the mainstream fashion in 2011. They eventually became one of the decade's defining fashion pieces for both men and women. Many men expanded their wardrobe to include tight-fittingchino trousers coming with variety of colors, but often in khaki, brown or white.[17][18] Women's skinny jeans also came in various colors, often neutral colors like khaki and white. Starting in the mid-2010s, high-waisted women’s skinny jeans became stylish.[citation needed]
In the mid to late 2010s, skinny jeans peaked in popularity. Starting in the late 2010s, straight legged jeans would increase in popularity and lead to a steady decline in skinny jeans popularity. Stay-at-home orders during theCOVID-19 pandemic accelerated a trend toward more comfortable, loose-fitting clothing andathleisure apparel.[19]
Victorian doctors theorised that tight trousers caused an outbreak ofapoplexy in New York. However, the veracity of this claim is questionable, given the often speculative nature of early modern medicine.[20]
In modern times, some physicians believe tight trousers may cause numbness due to compression ofnerves. For example, this may affect the outer thigh in the conditionmeralgia paraesthetica.[21]
A recent study by Korean doctors suggests that skinny jeans can causevaricose veins.[22] Among men, tight trousers may also causedyspermia due to overheating of thetestes.[23]
A study in 2015 documented the case of skinny jeans causingrhabdomyolysis, bilateral peroneal and tibial neuropathies.[24]
Some opposers of skinny or tight pants believe that they are immoral, immodest, overtly sexual, or a threat to local traditions.[25] Inconservative regions of the Southern United States and some other western countries, like Russia, it was often linked tohomosexuality as of the 2000s.[26]
A number of schools around the world have banned students from wearing overly slim pants like "skinny jeans".[27][28] In the United States, the ban inBrigham Young University–Idaho caught the attention of mainstream media in 2011; the ban was lifted in that college the same year.[29] In one case, a student was banned from taking an exam for wearing skinny jeans.[30] InIndia some colleges have advised against or prohibited tight pants for female students, citing their own safety.[31] InTanzania it was reported a female parliament member was asked to leave the parliament for wearing "skin-tight pants", with the parliament speaker calling it 'non-parliamentary attire'.[32] There have also been reported incidents in the world of court defendants being turned away for wearing such "unappropriate" slim pants.[33] Female police officers inMexico have reported becoming victims of sexism for outfits which included tight pants.[34]
In the 2010s, severalreligious fundamentalist governments, especiallyradical Islamists, disapproved of tight trousers. InSaudi Arabia, the police were reportedly instructed to arrest teenagers who dress this way because the tight jeans are seen asun-Islamic and, when worn by men, a sign of homosexuality.[35] In theGaza Strip,Palestinian youths caught wearing skinny jeans have been arrested and beaten by theHamas police.[36] Incidents of wearers being imprisoned or fined have been reported in places includingSudan[37] and in territories that were controlled byISIL in 2015.[38] InIsrael, a number ofRabbis signed a decree prohibiting devout Jewish men from wearing tight pants.[39][40]
Some people wearing them have been met with violence, such as in 2012 when unknown individualsmurdered between twelve and one hundred people inIraq—among them were "emos" of both sexes wearing tight clothes and emo hairstyles.[41] There has also been a case in theDemocratic Republic of the Congo where security officers attacked a number of women who were wearing tight pants.[42]
Since theCold War, many Communist dictatorships have disapproved of skinny jeans. In Russia, they were associated withanticommunistjuvenile delinquents like theStilyagibeatniks during the1950s or theso-called "hairies"during the 1960s. InCuba during the late 2010s and early 2020s, law enforcement have used tight pants as a marker for male homosexuality in the context of arresting.[43] In May 2021,North Korea banned "skinny jeans" and a number of other fashion items for its citizens, citing it as "capitalistic".[44]
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