Style 911: Is It Possible To Make My Tight Pants Bigger?

“I gained about 8 pounds (which I am totally fine with, BTW), but one thing that is annoying me is the fact that my skinniestjeans simply won’t button anymore. I can get them on and since they have a bit of stretch they look fine on my legs, but no amount of twisting and turning and laying on my back will allow me to button them. Is there anything I can do to get them to fit again. You know, besides losing weight?”—Rebecca

Actually Rebecca, we suspect you’re not all alone out there. A couple of suggestions, after the jump ...

So, I have good news and bad news. We’ll start with the latter: From now on, you’re going to have to stop tucking in your shirts when you wear those jeans, period. There’s simply no perfectly streamlined fix for this particular dilemma. That said, there are varying levels of alterations that can be made, ranging from complex to easy DIY. And really, when’s the last time you tucked in your shirt anyway? If you want to get all nitpicky on it, here’s a very detailed description of how you can purchase and match some denim to expand the waistline, but I warn you, it’s probably not worth the time, money or trouble, especially with Forever 21 selling $9 skinny jeans. A much easier fix and one that countless pregnant women have relied on to get through their own “growth periods” is to simply purchase a thick elastic, sew it across the inside of the jeans’ waist with heavy-duty thread, and leave it at that. (You could always put a huge belt across the front to cover up the evidence.) Or the simplest and, ahem, most no-brainer option is to simply fold the sides of the waistband down and go commando (well, in a sense). To draw attention away from the area and to make sure it stays covered at all times, wear a couple of layers on top, such as a longish shirt with a cardigan. By adding heels to this look, you’ll create such a leg-thinning silhouette that no one will suspect you’re not all properly buttoned in. Good luck out there.

Have a fashion or beauty dilemma on your hands? Email your queries to style@thefrisky.com with the subject line “Style 911” and we’ll do our best to help sort you out.