Have you ever had one item of outdoor clothing that surpassed your expectations? I did, and it was the Cloudveil Kovan Women’s ski pant.

It fits AND it’s flattering! I can honestly say this is the first ski pant of my entire life that gives me an actual body shape. It is fitted but not body hugging tight. I can bend over and my behind is still covered. I can squat and not feel like I’m going to split the seams. The crotch is normal, it doesn’t hang down to your knees. The waist is high, but not too high, and the best part; the waist is stretchy, comfortable and gives me room to breathe! Some pants have elastic so tight you feel like you’re wearing a girdle. Not these pants, they are forgiving, without making you look like the Michelin man.

It has zippers, where needed! These pants have two zippers for the front pockets, and they are so comfortable to put your hands in you’ll wonder why your jeans don’t have pockets that are vertical. There is one more pocket, high on the right thigh. This is for easy access to your trail map, camera, cell phone or energy bar. Three pockets are all you really need in a ski pant, as every jacket comes with a half dozen.

And more zippers…there are side vent zippers on each leg. This comes in handy if you are hiking and need to vent some heat out, or if you have knee pads on and need to adjust them.

Here are some additional features. They have wide belt loops, so if you feel the desire to throw on a fashionable belt, you’ll be quite pleased with these. The ski cuff at the bottom of the pant utilizes both Velcro and a snap button. The suspenders are removable. The pants are fully seam sealed, which means they are waterproof tight against the elements.

The Cloudveil Kovan pants are made with a high strength woven fabric that they claim is “puncture-resistant and tear-proof”. My last ski pants I caught on a tree branch and filleted them wide open. So far I’ve been wearing these pants for a year, and although I tore my jacket recently (also on a tree branch), these pants are holding up strong.

The biggest form of flattery is when you buy something new, and people comment on it. Within a month of buying these ski pants, I received more compliments (Those pants look nice!) and questions (What kind of pants are those?) than I ever could have imagined. It’s fun to have function and fashion meet in the middle to create the ultimate ski pant.