These Levi’s are a nice fit and length. I’m 5′3″, 123 lbs. and with a heel, the length is just right. The first pair I ordered (size 4) were to small so I shipped them back (free return shipping) and got a size 6. My card was credited then I ordered the larger pair. I purchased the natural colour and it’s a nice dark denim.

After checking dozens of stores I did find one place that sold such a size: Lucky Brand Jeans. Their extra long sizes worked out to approximately a 37 inseam. For a number of years I would hit up a Lucky maybe once a year or so and ask what they had in extra long. It usually amounted to a selection of one or two options. I even tried a pair of women’s pants once. Things were good in extra-long Lucky land, and I resigned myself to the extra-large price tag: $100+ a pop.

On a tip I got some Levis 501 shrink-to-fits. The trick with these is you buy larger than your size and wash them until they come down to the fit you want. I went through a few pairs of 501s, but I didn’t like having to go at least a few weeks between washings. The dark color quickly faded to what my wife called “highlighter blue”. That wasn’t a compliment.

Then I tried these 31×36 clean rinse 512s from Amazon, and my first reaction was, “Where have you been all my life 512s?” They are dark enough to dress up or down. They’ve kept their color much more than the 501 STFs ever did. And I don’t have to do any complicated wash/dry processes to get to the right size. They fit right away. Machine washing on cold and hanging to dry has kept them from shrinking up and left the inky clean rinse color. On top of that, for less than $40 a pair I could buy 2-3 for the cost of one pair of Lucky jeans.

Some people have commented on the lower quality of denim in these pants. From what I understand Levis made a switch in recent years from US manufacturing to foreign locations such as Mexico and China. Supposedly ever since then the denim has run lighter and less durable. I haven’t been wearing Levis for long enough to be able to compare, but it’s honestly not an issue for me. I don’t work outside but maybe once or twice a year. For those times I’ll wear some beat up pants. The rest of the year, I’ll be sporting my 512s. These are some great jeans.

I would call these “sensibly-stylish-low-rise-jeans-for-the-more-mature-taste-crowd” …”mature” in this case definitly *not* refering to beer belly and severe love handle embellished body types; consider these a goal for that weight loss or exercise program. They are also not the strict domain of the anorexic male model body type either; regular, non-gut bearing guys in halfway decent condition can wear these no problemo …and look good. The waist sits lower than regular fit jeans but not radically so, they’re sort of a mid rise …no one’s gonna be graced with viewing your choice of undergear or given a rendition of SNL’s “Norge Man” routine when you bend over.

No matter your views regarding the modern day Levi Strauss Company, they *do* know how to make blue jeans that fit, are stylish and reasonably priced; the quality is still there. The 514’s are called “Slim Straight fit” …forget the “slim” part of it; they fit like Levi’s 501’s in the seat, thigh and legs with the leg openings the same size as 501’s. I purchased a pair of 501’s at the same time I bought the two pair of 514’s so I had real time comparisons. The crotch on the 514 feels slightly higher than the 501’s, but nothing radical or uncomfortable, and the cut of the jeans does help flatter the male anatomy …your results may vary. If ya look good in 501’s you’ll probably look just as good, maybe better, in 514’s.

Sizing of the jeans is a bit different; my usual 33×32 501 size translated into a 33×30 for the 514’s. Shrinkage was not a problem in the waist (these were pre-washed) and the legs shrunk just a bit making them perfect in legnth for my taste. The only thing making these jeans better would be knowing they were proudly made here in the US of A …like they used to be. My 514’s were made in Egypt and Bangladesh …hooray for the global economy. Okay, so much for the soapbox.

Do not fear the 514. In short, they fit great, feel comfortable and look good. Just like 501’s without buttons.

In short, Levi’s 501 jeans still set the bar for blue jeans, and to date nothing else comes close.