Jean confusion of sizes and brands can be very stressful and a bit overwhelming, especially for the new eBay buyer.  I hope this guide helps you with your adventure in the online world of buying jeans.  First, I must mention that buying and selling online is a lot of fun! For those of you buying online choosing the right style, size, and most important the seller, can make your experience a lot more enjoyable.

Finding the Right Seller for You

Finding the right seller can be as simple as referrals from your friends that have had eBay successes.  Don’t let a couple of dollars difference from one vendor to another make your choices for you – use the data you collect on the seller determine if he/she is right for you.

To collect the data, first check how long the seller has been in business.  Then read some of their feedback from customers (buyers) and see if they have gone out of their way to write custom feedback.  Typically if a buyer takes the time to write a custom thank you it means it was a pleasant experience and they would recommend the seller to their friends.

Next, look for how many negatives the seller has but keep in mind there are “bad eBayers” out there that give negatives just to be mean or for the most weakest of reasons, so don’t judge those negatives too harshly before looking at the source and what actually happened.  You can further research negative responses by going to that particular buyer's feedback page and see what kind of feedback they have left for other sellers. Unfortunately, some eBayers don’t understand that feedback is NOT the place to complain or ask questions.  It should be done in an email to the seller so he/she has a chance to satisfy the customer before he/she leaves a negative feedback for what could have been just a misunderstanding or an honest mistake.

Check to see how many items the seller has for sale (is it just a closet clean out or a business).  Look to see if the seller has a store and if it's well organized so you can find your size and brand easily.  Someone with a store is more likely to be extra careful of what they sell because they have more money invested and therefore they need to keep the customers satisfied to stay in business.

See if the seller is willing to “shop” for you, meaning allow you to request a particular size and brand and ask to have it put on the shopping list and report back to you when and if they get your item.  Last, make sure your seller has some type of return policy.  Buying online can get real expensive if the purchase is all risk for the buyer.  See if there is a different refund policy if seller makes the mistake on the listing.   Okay, now that you have the criteria to find the right seller for you, let’s see if we can take some of the mystery out of buying jeans online. 

Take the Mystery Out of Buying Jeans Online

Some buyers feel they need to stay with what they know fits (one brand & one size), because they don’t want to risk getting the wrong item or one that doesn't fit properly and getting stuck with the bill for their online unusable purchase.  What DearFreckles has found is there is a measuring method to finding more jean options that will fit.  First you need to get more information than is typically mentioned in most listings. Especially if you are a really hard to fit buyer it is even more important that you do your homework before buying jeans online.  If done right, this task will take you a few hours of eBay item surfing and jean measuring, but in the end it is well worth your time.

No More Sizing! (Buying jeans the new way)

First, you have to not buy jeans by SIZE and length anymore! A size 12 in one brand can be a size 10 in another, and sometimes even a 14 can have the same measurements.  Many times the more expensive jeans cut the jeans a bit bigger and label small knowing some folks will pay a 100.00 to say they wear a 10 instead of a 12.  So take size out of the mix and shop by measurements.  Once you have all the measurements you need to find the right fit, try looking at auctions for one size up and one size down from what you are used to buying.  You will be surprised to see of all the possibilities you are missing sticking to the one size you know you wear in a particular brand.

To start, take the jeans you really like now and measure very carefully.  Write it down on a spreadsheet, in fact if there is more than one brand you like measure them all and note what you like the most about them.  Keep track of it all.
Measure the following:

Measure the waistband – To do this, place the pants flat on a surface and measured from side by side and slightly pulling the waistband while holding the measuring tape.  Note the number (for example 17 ½ inches) showing on the right side of the tape at the end of the waistband. Take the number you get and double it (in this example it is a 35” waistband).  Don’t try to measure all the way around it is to hard to hold the pants while measuring that way and typically it comes out a bit off. Remember the waistband is NOT the same as someone’s waist size!  It is just the top opening of the jeans.

Measure the front rise – Now it is important that you measure the front rise on the same pair of pants the waistband measurements came from because the waistband is directly impacted by the rise measurements – (they go together and can’t be mixed and matched).  Now place the measuring tape under the crotch area (not while you are wearing them) and measure  straight up the front until you hit the TOP of the waistband (tug top of zipper area just a bit to get it sized right) – that is your front rise number (for low rise it will be about 9-10 inches, ultra low rise maybe 7-8 inches, high rise 11 – 12 (more if larger person or plus sizes, of course; a low rise on a PLUS size might be 11 inches, for example).

Measure the back rise – This is one of the most important measurements to do!  This is going to tell you where you want your jeans to come up to, do you want your crack showing, how about those thongs!  Well, if you get low rise without a higher back rise you will show that crack.  It is no fun when you buy a pair of jeans that seem to fit perfectly until you sit down.  So, even though most sellers don’t list back rise, simply email and ask them for it before you buy any pair of pants.  Case in fact, I had two pairs of Luckys for sale and they were the identical brand, style, & size, but the back rise was one inch more on one pair than the other! 

Measure the hips – Take those same favorite pair of jeans and find the bottom of the front zipper and from there go left and right (laying the jeans flat on a hard surface) and that is the hips measurements.  Typically for a size 10, for example, it would show 20 inches, so then you double it and that is your hip number (40 inches).

Measure the inseam – From where the front and back meet in the middle under the crotch area put your measuring tape in the middle of that crossing and run it down the inside of one leg all the way to the very edge of the hem with just a tiny tug on hem (pulling downward) to hold the measurement true to form. That number is called your inseam.  It will typically be within ¼” correct doing it this way. For fun, you can do the same to the other leg and you might find it is a ½" less (from not being cut right at the factory) just use the longer of the two when buying a pair of jeans.

Measuring the opening at the bottom of the hem – Some flares are other brands boot cut, and some boot cut are close to straight legs so the style type is difficult to go by. Therefore, if it is important to you, measure the bottom of one leg opening from side by side laying jeans flat and write that down as your leg opening. To find out how much it changes on your favorite pants, go to the knee and measure the same way (on same pants leg), then middle way for the last measurement. That way you will find out if it is straight, flare, or boot cut and you can ask your seller for this information on the pants you are considering purchasing.

Note the exact material – This one is really important for you, find out exactly what your favorite jeans are made of and write that down on your criteria list.  Make note of how much spandex, polyester, and cotton your favorite jeans are made of.  Is it light weight cotton or heavy weight cotton?  Some like the feel of the “old fashion” heavy duty jeans – 100% cotton, but frankly there are some really thin light weight not so heavy duty sold and they are also 100% cotton! So ask the seller what weight they are before buying if that matters to you (you can't tell by the pictures).

Conclusion

I hope that you got a lot out of this guide (vote YES) and that it helps take some of the mystery out of buying jeans online!  If you get a chance please stop by my store DearFreckles and see what I have to offer, and yes... ask me questions I have no problem with that.  So, find out what works for you and ask the seller questions. If the seller answers in a flippant manner or doesn’t answer at all, well…. you know that probably isn’t the seller you would want to buy from anyway,  because if they are like that before you buy, what they will be like after you purchase from them if you have any problems. So ask questions, and have a safe and fun online experience!