I must admit, it’s taken some practice to call these “culottes” (which sounds very chic and French) instead of “gauchos” which is what they were called back in my day.
By any name, these “pants” have made a recent resurgence and though I haven’t been chasing the trend, I have been keeping my eye out for a pair while thrifting in order to revisit the pants of my childhood. Thrifting is the perfect approach to trends – try them out without breaking the bank. And so it was with these BCBG Max Azria culottes I scored for $4 from Goodwill!
I must also admit, I was skeptical about these culottes. Maybe they just inspired a trip down memory lane to awkward youth with a middle part, huge glasses and cowlicks, but I figured they would look… bad. In fact, once I started pinning culotte outfits, I was very inspired and once I started playing dress up with them, I was convinced: culottes are awesome! They are midi skirts with no chance of flashing! They showcase shoes, make your hips look tiny, work with short or long tops and can be styled with anything that you’d wear with jeans. I am so glad I scored these culottes and can’t wait to add them into regular rotation in my wardrobe! Here are just a few ways I styled them while sorting out my past their potential.
WITH A CARDI AND TALL BOOTS
(what I actually wore to work today)

WITH A SHORT BLAZER AND PLATFORM SANDALS


WITH A SWEATER AND ANKLE BOOTS

WITH A TEE AND FAB SHOES



WITH A TURTLENECK AND BOOTS


WITH A CHAMBRAY AND ANKLE BOOTS

I could have kept styling these culottes all night long but my kids/photographers had to get to bed! If you haven’t tried gauchos culottes since the 70s recently, I recommend thrifting a pair then wearing them with anything and everything! That’s what I’ll be doing!
5 Comments
Which “section” did you find the culottes?
You have the perfect
Body type for culottes. I remember wearing them in school…I was the ONLY one who was working that latest trend. IOne thing she did was always bring the latest fashion to us in our small town U0001f496
I vote for the turtleneck 🙂
I ❤️ these, but im too short!!!
They were in the pants section!!