Is 50 too old for low-rise jeans?

I spent the end of the 90s and the beginning of the 00s with my buttocks exposed. Not all of them, just the upper third. Why might you ask? Low-rise jeans.

Thanks to Alexander McQueen creating the bumster look in 1993, midriff and butt-revealing jeans became fashionable for a decade afterwards. First adopted by the style set, then taken up by pop stars such as Britney and J-Lo, they finally hit peak popularity amongst the masses towards the millennium.

I bought into this look hard. It showed off my pre-kids flat tummy and looked good when teamed with my All Saints-style handkerchief top. I chose to ignore the fact that I spent a lot of time hoicking them up and feeling pretty uncomfortable.

© Getty

I was prepared to put up with this though as I thought it was a sexy look. McQueen said the "lower part of the spine is the most erotic part of the body", and these jeans exposed that and (accidentally) often more.

I was still sporting low-rise when my kids came along. I had a wardrobe full of them and no time or money to buy any other denim style. 

Pregnancy had left me with a muffin top escaping out from my 7 For All Mankinds. Not so chic. Added to this, I was constantly hauling babies and toddlers out of car seats and crouching down to reason with them ("Perhaps don’t lick the floor, darling"), thus scandalising passing old ladies with my exposed derriere. It was a sartorially challenging time.

Changing denim styles

Since then, we've had skinny jeans, mom jeans, boyfriend jeans, distressed jeans, carrot-leg jeans, barrel jeans and high-waisted flares. The latter have suited me just fine, thanks.  

But now I see in Vogue that low-rise jeans are back. Bella Hadid, the most svelte of supermodels, is parading trousers so low-slung you can almost see her nether regions, while Kylie Jenner said she feels most confident in a pair of low-rise trousers. This time around, the jeans are baggy, which at least takes one element of discomfort away.

© Getty Images

Bella’s daring style choice is nothing compared to the teenage boys who I see wearing them hanging perilously from their hip bones. One tug or gust of wind and it would be pants for all of them.

Despite all rationality, I still like the look.  But can a midlifer like me really wear low-rise?

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Can you wear low-rise jeans in midlife?

I've considered this, and I think I can. Perhaps with a tight vest and a long-striped shirt combo that shows an elegant sliver of midriff? Or with a tightly fitted cardigan? The most practical option seems to be pairing them with a body suit so there is no exposed skin. And I know a belt will up the chic levels.

 So, I'm going to be brave and try them on for size. Old ladies of Oxfordshire, beware.