Unisex dressing is more prevalent than ever this season, from Chloë Sevigny for Opening Ceremony to Rad Hourani's diffusion line. Still, when I came across Cheap Monday's Tight Fit unisex jeans at Alter recently, I was intrigued. Oxfords, knitwear, and blazers are one thing — all pretty forgiving in fit — but gender-neutral skinny jeans? It's a bold concept, especially this fall, when Gap and American Eagle seem to be engaged in a marketing war to see who can wallpaper the most city surfaces in ads for their "Born to Fit" 1969 jeans and "butt-lifting, thigh-trimming" Artist jeans. So I called for a few pairs and enlisted some svelte New York stylist to try them on for size.
All were impressed by how comfortable they were: lightweight (despite the muggy 90-plus degrees outside), stretchy, and supersoft. The jeans were Efron-esque on the stylist — a passing (male) shopper deemed them "rather feminine" — but both were fans of the fit and feel. (One wondered aloud whether his pair could "go missing" when we sent back the rest.) Predictably, the women were slightly more critical, yanking at the navel-grazing "Mom jean" waistband. Although the front view was flattering through the hips and thighs, the "deal-breaker" for them was the butt-enveloping back pockets, extending partially down the thigh. What's your take: Are these skinnies fit for both sexes?
