The Best Mom Shorts for Spring
/I am by no means a fashion blogger. I am a casual girl who occasionally will wear a wedge and think I’m hot shit.
My uniform is typically shorts, a tee, and sandals. I live in Florida so there are literally only about 2 months out of the entire year where I have to throw on a pair of full length pants, so I like to purchase my shorts wisely.
A few weeks ago I noticed that the temperatures were warming up drastically during the day. Since I only had one pair of shorts at the time, I knew that it was time to make a few purchases to fit my body as this point, 5 months postpartum.
I am no where near the weight that I was before having kids. My trouble areas are still my trouble areas, but I feel just as strong as ever. Just so that you have a frame a reference if you choose to use my words as a source for your own purchase - I most certainly have a mom pooch and large (strong) thighs. Those two together make purchasing shorts particularly laborious.
So here is the criteria that I had when looking for the best pairs of mom shorts to get me through the next few months:
No flashing when I bend over
High waisted
Loose around the thigh
Versatile - could be styled different ways
Affordable - no single piece pricier than $50
Here are the contenders that I found:
1 Old Navy High-Waisted Boyfriend Jean Shorts for Women - 3-inch inseam ($34.99)
2 American Eagle Curvy Denim Mom Shorts ($41.04)
3 Target DENIZEN from Levi’s Women’s High-Rise Jean Shorts
4 American Eagle Stretch Curvy Denim Mom Shorts ($45.60)
5 Amazon Essentials Women's 4" Denim Short ($18)
6 Old Navy Mid-Rise Slim Midi Distressed Jean Shorts for Women - 5-inch inseam ($29.99)
And here are my findings:
First of all, when did ‘mom shorts’ become a style? Is it supposed to be an attempt at mocking the late eighties style mom jeans? I still am not quite sure why a store whose main demographic is teenagers is trying to make ‘mom shorts’ a thing, but I digress.
The three stand out winners were:
American Eagle Stretch Curvy Denim Mom Shorts ($45.60)
Yes, they were the most expensive of the contenders. They were also the softest. The fit was comfortable without looking frumpy. I think they would more appropriately be called boyfriend shorts. I do think they run a bit large. I had to order one size down to get the best fit - and that is saying something for a woman who has had three kids.
Amazon Essentials Women's 4" Denim Short ($18)
If I was only able to buy one pair from this whole experiment, it would be these. They are almost as soft as the pair almost triple their price. They aren’t distressed so you could dress them up - FL girls know what I’m talking about. They are also short shorts without showing the whole world your whole business.
Old Navy Mid-Rise Slim Midi Distressed Jean Shorts for Women - 5-inch inseam ($29.99)
I was surprised I liked these so much because a 5” inseam seems long on a 5’5” woman. However, these are the shorts I will wear if I find myself outdoors for a long time in the dead of summer. The length will help keep the aforementioned large and strong thighs from chafing. (Excuse me while I high five a million angels Liz Lemon style.)
The biggest loser was:
Target DENIZEN from Levi’s Women’s High-Rise Jean Shorts
Holy Smokes - just awful. They felt like sandpaper. They were baggy in all the wrong places, but the waist was appropriately sized and somehow I had camel toe at the same time. Stay far far away from these.
The rest were just average. I knew that I was aiming for three pairs that could be worn in different situations that were comfortable and stylish. The other contenders just didn’t check the boxes as well as the top three.
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