Perhaps a pair of "men's" pants that looks great on a manly model is supremely unflattering on your body. Why? They might be a similar shape to women's pants. Men's and women's pant patterns are traditionally drafted from body measurements in more or less the same way, with resulting pattern pieces that look something like this:
If you are looking for a more masculine look, a great option is pants with straight (or nearly straight) side seams. Pattern pieces for the same body measurements as the previous picture might look like this:
Why does the side seam shape matter? If the silhouette of the pants falls straight down, or even angles outward, below the hips, then the hips don't appear to be the widest part of your lower body. But if the silhouette is narrower below the hips, then the hips look like they stick out more. The figures below compare two pairs of pants with different shaping (on the exact same body).
Whether you are looking for sewing patterns, pattern drafting instructions, or ready-to-wear clothes, you can try searching for "straight-leg" or "selvage" pants or jeans. Look for the following in terms of fit and ease:
- The pants can be tight around your low hip, but they should be looser around your thigh than other styles.
- The crotch should fall much lower than you might expect from "women's" pants. If you pull up the pants as far as they can go, that's a perfectly good fashion choice that can show off your butt, but it will probably not help you look more masculine.