Curvy Woman Found Shopping for Pants the 'Bane' of Her Existence. This Is How She's Solving the Dilemma (Exclusive)
Curvy Woman Found Shopping for Pants the 'Bane' of Her Existence. This Is How She's Solving the Dilemma (Exclusive)
Michelle LeeWed, April 1, 2026 at 10:00 AM UTC
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Michel Janse's try-on series as seen on TikTokCredit: Michel Janse/TikTok (2) -
This content creator is on a mission to find the best curve-friendly styles on the market through her own extensive research
Michael Janse has always struggled to find the right pants to fit her hips and her waist as someone with a "pear-shaped" figure
Earlier this year, she started an online series based on her trialing every pants style marketed as curvy from major fashion brands, hoping that her video can inspire women who resonate
"My whole life, buying pants has been the bane of my existence," says Michel Janse.
Janse, a 29-year-old content creator from Southern California who has a "pear-shaped" figure and is on the curvier side, has struggled to shop for pants ever since she was a tween, telling PEOPLE that she has "core memories" about hating the experience. "It's like, you go in knowing you're just going to be let down."
This recently happened when she decided to shop at one of her favorite brands, a French label, and realized that the pants she was trying on in the fitting room had one major problem with them. (Spoiler for anyone who hasn't seen Janse's now viral video: they looked great on her hips and legs, but the waist gap was so wide, she calls it "insane.")
Those bottoms may not have been a match for Janse, but that moment is what inspired her online clothing series, which has resonated with thousands of people on the internet since she started posting the videos in February.
First, Janse uploaded a TikTok about her favorite "curve-friendly pants." Then, she decided to actually find a solution for similarly shaped shoppers by testing dozens of pants marketed as "curvy" by major fashion retailers and giving her honest review on each. (She's also been candid about her measurements, driving home the transparency behind her research.)
"My whole job is trying to think of helpful series for the internet, and selfishly, I'm also so curious. So [I thought] if I could justify spending my time testing all the pants for my own knowledge, how [much of a] win-win is that? It evolved from that first initial TikTok doing well and me being like, okay, people like this and people relate to this, so let's just keep exploring."
Michel Janse on TikTokCredit: Michel Janse/TikTok
The first brand on Janse's list was Madewell, and in her video, she tried on every single curve-labeled pant option she could find in her size. Over the past month and a half, she's worked her way through pants from Everlane, Gap, Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle, Old Navy and, most recently, Khloé Kardashian's Good American.
"I've been getting six to eight pairs per brand, and I have probably done seven to eight full brands at this point. So [I've tested] probably 40, 50 pairs of pants," she reveals.
In the short amount of time she's been trialing different garments, Janse has discovered how off sizing can be within a brand's own merchandise. Sizes one numerical apart from each other fit wildly different on her body, while streamlined sizing for pants that come in different washes, like light and dark, is nonexistent ("I find oftentimes the darker washes are tighter," she explains).
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Janse doesn't claim to be an expert on manufacturing or product development and admits that no, her series isn't backed by any real fashion merchandising experience. But that's what's made the series so worthwhile. At the core of her research is the firsthand experience of feeling marginalized in the fashion industry and having the confidence to make real change in it.
This, Janse says, speaks to a bigger conversation about the body-positivity movement, which has been thrown off course with the increased marketing of weight loss medications, particularly GLP-1s.
"I feel like we made so much progress as a society...[when it came to] embracing curves and a moderate weight. With all of these influencers, celebrities, just people in the public eye seemingly getting so thin out of nowhere, it's made me really nervous for all that progress we've made."
Janse admits to feeling like her body type has become "out of style," but she's reclaimed the narrative for herself and others by openly embracing her curves. The feedback has been "encouraging" and she's learned to feel confident about her figure.
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"I see my body type as a little bit hyper-sexualized. For that reason, I always try to dress it down because I don't want to seem like I'm fishing for attention that I don't actually want. But seeing a lot of other women be like, 'Girl, your body's beautiful, show it off,' has given me some confidence to show it off a bit more." She adds, "I am used to trying to make myself look smaller instead of trying to show off the way my body naturally is. So it's been great."
Janse is for sure not a "fashion girly," but she sees her try-on series expanding to almost every clothing category out there. Up next, she's diving into swimsuits. "I definitely know curve girls struggle the most with swim because you are the most exposed and you're out in the sun, around friends and strangers and your whole body feels like it's on display. You want to participate and don't want to feel hindered from your life experiences because you feel uncomfortable in your clothes."
What's given her a bit of doubt thus far is being questioned for her character. "When you're making content for the girls...it could very much seem as compliment-fishing or just trying to sell yourself for views," she says. But despite how vulnerable sharing this journey with the entire world can feel, well, she's adamant about one thing. "I'm down to take one for the team."
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
