Most people meet Abrand through a style name like the 99 Low Baggy Bella and reasonably assume the number is a model code. It is not. Once you know what it means, the whole range makes sense in about ten seconds.
The number is the rise
Every womens Abrand style opens with a number, and that number tells you where the jean sits on your body. Nothing else.
- 94 is the high rise, 30cm or more, sitting above the hip at the natural waist.
- 95 is the mid rise, 26 to 29cm. The middle ground, and the easiest to wear if you are unsure.
- 99 is the low rise, around 21cm. Sits on the hip rather than the waist.
- 00 is the lowest of the four, and it means it.
That ladder runs 94 at the top down to 00 at the bottom. If a pair has ever felt wrong on you without you being able to say why, the rise is usually the reason, and this is the fastest way to fix it.
The rest of the name is the leg and the wash
After the number comes the leg shape, then the colour. So 99 Low Baggy Bella reads as low rise, baggy leg, in the Bella wash. 94 High and Wide is high rise, wide leg.
Abrand cuts a lot of leg shapes: wide, super wide, baggy, super baggy, mega baggy, relaxed, straight, slim, bootcut, flare, kick flare and barrel. Read the number first and the leg second and you can pick a pair off a rail without trying it.
If it is the barrel you are after, we compare it against the other barrels we carry in our womens barrel jeans guide.
Where to start
If you are new to Abrand, the 95 mid rise is the safest opening. It sits where most people expect a jean to sit, and it comes in the widest spread of leg shapes.
Go to the 99 if you want the jean lower on the hip, which suits a longer top and a looser leg. The 94 is the one to reach for if you prefer a defined waist. The 00 is a deliberate choice rather than a default.
The mens range is the A-series, and it works differently
Mens Abrand also opens with a number, but it measures a different thing. Where the womens number is the rise, the A-number is how wide the leg is, climbing from skinny at A1 through to the baggiest at A8.
The easiest way to see it is the hem width, with one exception noted below:
- A1 Skinny — skinny leg, ankle length, 30cm hem.
- A2 Slim — slim leg, ankle length, 33cm hem.
- A3 Crop — straight leg, cropped, 36cm hem.
- A5 Baggy — loose waist, dropped crotch, extra baggy leg, slightly stacked, 52cm hem.
- A6 Big Baggy — the same again with more volume through the leg.
- A6 Big Cocoon — extra baggy through the thigh but tapered back in to a 48cm hem at the ankle.
A4 Flare sits outside that ladder, and it is the one that will catch you out. It has the widest hem in the range at 56cm, but the leg itself is fitted: close through the thigh and knee, opening only at the ankle. Read the hem number and you would expect a big loose jean. It is a flare, and it wears like one.
If you want one pair from the range, the A6 Big Cocoon is the one to try first. It gives you the volume the cut is known for without the leg dragging on the ground, because the taper pulls it back in at the ankle. The A5 is the more conventional baggy if you would rather it fall straight.
The mens range sits in mens jeans.
Denim skirts
Worth knowing that Abrand is not only jeans. The denim skirts follow the same numbering, so a 99 skirt sits low and a 00 mini sits lower again. They run from around $50 and are the easiest thing in the range to wear straight through summer.
Sizing
Womens denim runs waist 23 to 32, mens 26 to 38, and tops run XS to XL for womens and S to XXL for mens. Sizing is a real waist measurement, so start there rather than the number you usually buy.
Because the rise changes so much between series, a 95 and a 99 in the same waist size fit quite differently through the hip. If you are moving between series, it is worth trying rather than assuming.
Buying Abrand in New Zealand
Wally is an authorised Abrand stockist. Shop the full range online, or come and try it on at our store in Takapuna on Auckland's North Shore.
Open Monday to Friday 10 to 5, Saturday 9 to 5, Sunday 10 to 5. Free shipping New Zealand wide over $80.
