skinny jeans are a style of denim jeans that have straight legs and tend to crumple around the ankles. they are called "skinny jeans" because they give you a thin figure. this style was started in the 1980s to make a retro-punk look. this style came to life again in late 2006 by avril lavigne in one of her music videos. they are usually used for a gothic-punk look or retroand hip-hop