The Super Affordable Jeans Every Man Needs in His Wardrobe

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I never really wore jeans. Not because I disliked them. What’s to dislike? Those classic all-blues aren’t just a by-product of Americana, but its very bedrock. Wear a pair of 501s and you’re part of a brooding brotherhood that herds cattle and longs for the One That Got Away back in Milwaukee, or somewhere like that. It doesn’t matter whether you’re in Northampton or North Dakota. Jeans are cool.

Finding the perfect pair, less so. And thus began my problem. Because the endless cubbyholes of denim in every size, wash and leg length was, and is, an impossible mountain of dull; my very own Everest, but just without the thrill of saving a best buddy from near death on a sheer cliff face. Plus, long swimmer’s legs and a stubby boxer’s torso makes dressing really quite difficult. All in all, denim felt like too much of a bore. It would have to be Dickies’ work pants for the foreseeable. That would be a perfectly happy life.

But in an even happier accident, I stumbled upon the perfect jeans. No boring shopping, no returning parcels at Kennington Post Office with its queues to rival post-Brexit customs at Malaga Airport. And, as luck would have it, an all-American classic came from an all-American store. It is called Gap (or The Gap, if you too are all-American).

Sale GapFlex Relaxed Taper Jeans with Washwell

Shop at Gap

It makes sense that Gap is responsible for the best jeans of my life. Specifically founded in 1969 to make the perfect denim, the GapFlex Relaxed Taper Jeans are a godsend in 2022. As the skinny jean dies out, TikTok has given rise to jeans that are not just wide legged, but enormous. Which puts normal guys in a bind. Too tight and you’re out of fashion. Or a Love Island contestant. Too big and you’re trying too hard to be like those teenagers who dance in perfect unison to a reggaeton remix of a 2016 Rihanna hit. Gap fills, well, a gap. Its most recent offering is loose, but not billowing, and straight cut without referencing that straight edge thing of subcultures past.

But best of all is the quality for the cost. While Gap’s jeans are priced just shy of £50, they’re almost always on offer (for reasons that continue to elude me). Right now, they stand at £19.98. For a pair of jeans that not only look expensive but feel expensive. Better yet, they’re made using ‘washwell’ techniques that massively reduce water consumption throughout the manufacturing process.

Not emo-y, not YouTuber-y, but Yankee through and through. I’ve got several pairs in several washes and the experience has been far from boring. They’re comfortable. They fit well. I now stare out into the distance, in my true blue jeans, and think of my lost, small-town love (proper coastal fish and chips, if you were wondering).