As I write this, I am sitting in the airport waiting for a flight, thinking about the things that I packed for a five-day trip. Packing for short stays is an exercise in moderation; I’m always trying to bring fewer things while still including enough to make it easy to find something that I want to wear once I’m far, far away from my closet. Among the things that I packed are two pairs of jeans, and as far as I’m concerned, these are the most essential pieces in my luggage. With jeans, it’s possible to dress for pretty much anything. Okay, so you probably won’t go to the opera in a pair of jeans, but how many of us are going to do that anyway? In any case, we’ll cover the little black dress in a couple of weeks. Jeans are such an important part of a classic wardrobe, simply because they’re durable, easy to wear (or at least, they should be), and with the right pair or two you can create endless outfit combinations.

As with any other piece of clothing, but particularly important for wardrobe staples like jeans, it’s worth a lot of time and a bit more money to find ones that fit to a T. So while it seems as though the waistline of jeans has gradually become lower and lower-slung, this doesn’t mean that the fads are going to work for your body type. Finding the perfect pair of jeans might mean taking a serious look at what you love about your body; what assets do you want to highlight? Your height? Butt? Waist? Different rises in jeans create dramatically different effects in the way that the jeans will look on.

One thing pretty much everyone can agree on is that the high waisted “mom jeans” don’t do a thing for anyone. The high waist paired with a tapered leg creates a sort of petal effect that completely obliterates anything that could be considered shape in the seat, while making hips and thighs look enormous. In essence, mom jeans throw off the proportions so that you look like a fun house version of your gorgeous self. These should be off limits for everyone.

Look, instead, for a pair of jeans that you can wear on a casual basis, and a pair of trouser fit jeans, which might be worn for slightly dressier events. For the casual pair, think seriously about looking for something that you can do all kinds of things in, like shopping and sitting for long periods of time. Make sure that you can bend over in these jeans, or risk never wanting to wear them no matter how great you look while standing up. While skinny jeans are all the rage, if you have lovely curves, they may create an ice cream cone effect that won’t be slimming or elongating. Think instead about something with a straight leg that falls from the hip. Trouser jeans will fit similarly, and should hold away from the body a little more than standard casual jeans.

While a little more expensive, it’s worth checking out brands like Lucky Jeans, Seven Jeans, and the denim collection at Banana Republic. By finding one or two pairs that fit, you’ll ensure that you won’t have to go through another five or six that don’t, and will probably end up saving money in the long run. Also, check out Zafu.com, which is a website dedicated to helping people find the right fit of jeans. Isn’t technology amazing?

And this goes without saying, but I’ll iterate it just in case someone needs to be reminded: acid wash is bad, bad, bad. Find a darker wash for a more classic effect.