...it's Fall 2012: Printed (or Embroidered) Denim

I thought I would pass on this trend for sure.  I really did.  But then today I had more than a few hours to troll around a mall (Chestnut Hill), and I was attracted to some pairs of rag & bone jeans with embroidery while digging through Bloomingdale's.  These were all cute, but a little too 'young' for me.  

Image from bloomingdales.com.

Images from rag-bone.com.

Having tried on a few pairs, I found myself completely obsessed with hunting down a pair of embellished or printed jeans.  I tried these ikat corduroy pants, also by rag & bone.  Not kidding.

Image from piperlime.com.

They weren't bad, just not me.  Maybe me at 25, but not me over 40.  I made my way out of Bloomingdales (empty-handed except for a great navy Theory blouse, for which I'd attach a link if I could find it online anywhere!) and headed down the corridor to CUSP.  For those who are unfamiliar, CUSP is an outpost of Neiman Marcus and they tend to carry younger and emerging designers.  And, on a table in the back part of the store, were these pants:

Image from neimanmarcus.com.

By Sold Denim, a relatively new company to the jeans market (started in 2010), they fit like a dream, were completely comfortable and happened to be paired with great, rust-colored Vince sweater (and you know how I l-o-v-e Vince).  At $138, they were a lot less than the rag & bone ones (which were near $200).  I tried the outfit on, took a pic, and texted it to Lisa for comment.  

Image from Jennifer Houston.

When she didn't respond immediately, I called her.  Here's how the conversation went:

Jen: "Lisa, where are you?  Did you get my text?"

Lisa: "My phone was in the car; hold on.  Let me look."...

Lisa: "Ok, I see. Looks good. Is that a Vince sweater?  I was just looking at that one!"

Jen thinking: "We share the same brain."

I think I love them and maybe I'm just so desperate for something different.  Unbeknownst to me, Lisa has been eyeing printed denim too and thinks it's a good investment for the coming year.  There's a lot out there this year and wouldn't it be so nice to have something other than blue denim and black pants in your closet this fall?  Here are some other favorites.  I love this Chantilly Lace Print Joe's Jean - totally cute with white or black blouse, right?

Image from piperlime.com.

How about these python print ones from CJ by Cookie Johnson?  Lisa says she's over snake-print, but I think these might be a great neutral addition to a wardrobe.  What do you think?  They come in black too.

Image from nordstrom.com.

These Madewell 'Tiled-Up' jeans are another cute neutral with a twist.  Love it with a denim blouse.

Image from madewell.com.

For me, it's kind of like the non-t-shirt-t-shirt; I really needed something new and different to inspire me.  Next time you pass a table with some printed denim, take a moment and try some on.  You might be surprised.  ~ JH