Where to shop for affordable but brilliant jeans

The Telegraph's Girl On A Budget columnist, Krissy Turner, wears jeans most days, and encourages you to do the same. Here's how to get away with it...

While I’m envious of colleagues who look effortlessly chic wafting around in printed dresses, I end up in denim most days by default. Jeans have always been my go-to, and thankfully I can get away with wearing them to work - though I smarten them up with a blazer and heeled ankle boots when I do.

But although there’s nothing in my wardrobe I rely on more, there’s also nothing I like to shop for less, since buying a pair of jeans is never a straightforward task. For instance, while Zara is my one-stop shop for pretty much everything else, the jeans do nothing for me, while some friends (granted with smaller bottoms and leaner legs than my own) can’t stop singing their praises. Urban Outfitters on the other hand, which I often overlook, has a great denim line that I can’t get enough of.

Best for a slim, but not skinny, cut: Contrast stitch Orson, ￡46, Topshop; Best for cropped kick-flares: ￡55, BDG at Urban Outfitters

While fit is personal to each of us and requires lots of trying on, there are a few ways to simplify jean shopping. Different cuts of jeans suit different occasions: I steer towards slim or straight over skinny and distressed, as the former are smarter and will line up with more dress codes.

For a good all-round pair, I’d recommend ‘girlfriend’ cut: slimmer than a ‘boyfriend’ or ‘mom,’ but looser and more flattering than skinnies and as they typically have 1% stretch, it’s unlikely these will gape at the waist. Try Topshop’s Orson if you’re keen - the contrast stitching nods to current denim trends, too. Gap is a great source of denim that’ll stand the test of time. I find a black cropped kick-flare (mine are from & Other Stories) most flattering: I like to cut hems, using a cheese grater to get a frayed edge.

Best for dressing up for evening: ￡59, & Other Stories; Best for rigid denim with little stretch: ￡40, Weekday 

For evening wear, generally, the darker the wash, the more appropriate the jeans. Taking smart/casual dress codes quite literally, I’ll wear an indigo pair with a silk shirt and embellished mules- and this is an easy outfit for work to dinner dressing.

While jean shopping can be a chore, there are few more satisfying purchases than a pair that flatter your figure. Once you’ve found them, you won’t regret buying them in two or more washes. As it happens, our senior fashion editor Charlie just unpacked an online order of “her favourite jeans in the world” in two different washes: she advocates a cropped kick flare, too.