Real stories · Smart trousers, no digging in

The smart trousers that hold me in comfortably and never dig in

Smart trousers that don't punish you for wearing them all day — I'd started to think they'd stopped making those. I'm 67, and my old tailored pairs looked lovely at nine in the morning, but by lunch the waistband was digging in, and by four I was counting the minutes till I could change. The comfy pull-on ones, meanwhile, always looked just a bit too casual for lunch out or church.

What I wanted was one smart pair I could wear from morning to evening — polished enough for anything, with a waist that stayed comfortable after a proper lunch.

Then I found the Marlowe trousers from a British label called York Boutique — sculpting high-rise trousers, and I chose the dark blue because it goes with everything.

They're the answer. The high waist sits above where trousers usually pinch, and the fabric has a soft give to it — which is why they hold you in neatly without ever digging, even sitting down after lunch. The wide legs fall in a lovely straight crease, so they look properly tailored, and they're light and airy to wear. I put them on for a morning and ended up wearing them till bedtime.

Smart enough for anything, and by four o'clock nothing is digging in. I'd forgotten trousers could do both.

Trousers this well cut, I assumed, would be seventy pounds. But York Boutique sells direct, so they were £34.95 in the summer sale. I went back for a second colour within the week.

My daughter said they made me look taller, which I'll happily take. I'll admit I checked before ordering that I could send them back if they didn't fit — you can, within a fortnight, and the delivery's free — which made trying them an easy decision. They come in eight colours and in sizes up to a 3XL.

If your smart trousers punish you by lunchtime like mine did, do treat yourself to a look. The Marlowe is rated 4.7 out of 5 by more than 300 women, it's £34.95 in the summer sale instead of £70 — half price — and the middle sizes always seem to go first.