Goodbye, Capris… Hello, Pedal Pushers??

I read an article recently, stating emphatically that capris are out. Capris, defined as “close fitting women’s pants that end above the ankle,” or alternately, “just below the knee,” have been quite popular for more than a decade, this time, but lately we have been told that only unfashionable, old women choose to wear them, despite their practicality.

Capris are considered, by some, to be unflattering because the hem often bisects the leg right at the widest part of the calf, making the legs look “stumpy, and cutting the line of the body at its most awkward point.” One commentator asserted that capris make a woman look like she is “standing in a ditch.” Some fashionistas further claim that capris are often over-embellished with cuffs, obvious pockets, and other details on the legs, making them even more tacky. 

Victoria and me, about 15 years ago, in our "unfashionable" capris

The name of these three-quarter length pants comes from the Italian Isle of Capri, where they first became popular in the 1950’s and into the 1960s. The capris’ popularity first surged in the US when some Hollywood actresses started wearing them, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The same day I read the article condemning capris, I ran across another article proclaiming that pedal pushers are back in. The name, pedal pushers, refers to women’s pants that extend just below the knee, making it easier for women to ride their bikes without danger of catching long, loose, pant legs in their bicycle chains.

Pedal pushers are virtually the same as clam diggers, pants that aren’t as likely to get wet when a woman digs clams or engages in other beach activities, because the already shortened pants are easily rolled up to make them even shorter. Ironically, both of these styles of pants were first in vogue in the 1950s and 1960s.

Just today, I read that capri leggings are popular again in 2024. In fact, some well-known fashion expert gushed that the cropped length, with whatever name you choose to call it, is “poised for mega sartorial fame.”

So let me get this straight. Capris are unstylish, but pedal pushers and clam diggers are acceptable because they serve a valuable purpose. And tight fitting capri leggings are destined for greatness—again.

At the age of 10, I reluctantly wore a pair of orange pedal pushers, just because Mom had taken the time to sew them for me. Over the last decade, or even two, I’ve gladly worn my capri-length jeans when the weather is too warm for full length jeans and too cool for shorts. I like to wear my capri leggings under long shirts, or dresses that would otherwise be shorter than I currently like to wear.

Like so many other women of any age, I will wear whatever makes me feel comfortable and presentable. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Fashion is fickle!

Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?...Why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you?

Matthew 6:25, 28-30