Trouser collection

I've been recently stepping up my game when it comes to my daily work clothing. I'm pretty good for suits in terms of colors, patterns etc. and although I've bought all kinds of variations of shirts I'm starting to realize that my pants are all pretty plain. After reviewing the shoe threads on here I've figured out I need a more diversified pant collection.

Does anyone have any advice on styles / colors I should be stocking up on? Right now my wardrobe is largely made up of 3 blacks, 2 gray, 2 charcoal and 3 tan / linen. All of these have no pattern on them and I prefer a flat pleat with a straight cuff on all my pants. My work environment is more relaxed than most but my day in, day out look is business casual and wear a long sleeve shirt (french or straight cuff), pants and when required a tie.

I've largely stuck to the darker colors but I'm not sure what the staples are to have in my wardrobe or what I should be looking out for. Input appreciated!

I think it's generally advisable to concentrate on having plain pants that fit well. Patterned pants are whack in my opinion.

I'd be happy w/ six pairs, three summer and three winter, one each in stone, khaki and light gray. Cotton twill, linen, cotton/linen blends, and fresco for summer. Corduroy, flannel, and cavalry twill for winter.

But if I could have more, I'd add med/dark gray in fresco and cavalry twill or flannel and olive in cotton canvas and moleskin. That'd be ten pairs and be good year round for odd dress pants.



Willin said:

Patterned pants are whack in my opinion.

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Subtle patterns are fine.

I try to have a few variations of grey (dark grey being the most versatile), navy, maybe throw in a brown and olive. 6 total seems like a good number to rotate. I don't include khaki's in this rotation, they are too casual but I do wear them from time to time during the summer.

You can be very well dressed for your entire life without owning a single pair of patterned odd trousers. But if you want some inspiration, check the thread in my signature.

The better way to expand and improve IMHO is to have more seasonal variety and texture. Linen for summer is a good start. Get some flannels and tweeds for winter. 6 different trousers in solid gray in different shades and textures and seasons is way better than six different patterns.

Also, ditch the black pants, or just wear them in the evening at least.

If most of your jackets are light coloured, stick with darker trousers, but if your jackets are dark (which is most common) lighter pants are advisable IMO. I'd go for lighter greys and stones. Light grey flannels are always a nice addition.



bobbyz said:

Right now my wardrobe is largely made up of 3 blacks, 2 gray, 2 charcoal and 3 tan / linen. All of these have no pattern on them

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Are they all the same type of cloth; for example, someone could have many pairs of light grey trousers but different cloth types (e.g. fresco, cords, flannel, mohair, tweed, etc). It is very important to have plain trousers; however, all plain collection does get boring.

There are three areas to look at i. different cloth types, ii, patterns like plaid, windowpane and iii. different shades (e.g. royal air force blue, white).

Do add patterns, this should be your priority for your next trousers
Brown is a nice shade and very underrated, although I prefer it for casual trousers
You could add navy although some people do not like this shade for odd-trousers, maybe in flannel
I like RAF blue or dark blue for trousers
You could look for a pair or two of standout trousers like white, red, etc

List all your jackets

A couple pics of my top ten, mentioned above, with and w/o flash:



They can be clicked for larger image.

3rd from the top on the left hand side: Ambrosi?

I really need a pair of light grey flannels. That's about the only garment I'm craving right now.

Yep. Here are the rest in case anyone's curious:

Lands End moleskins -- American Apparel canvas
Ambrosi cavalry twill -- Louis Vuitton tropical wool
Ambrosi woolen flannel -- WW Chan crispaire
Ambrosi cavalry twill -- unknown, thrifted fresco
Perry Ellis poly/nylon cords -- Banana Republic cotton/linen

Love the poly/nylon cords. Have had them for several years. Very warm, water resistant, durable, and breathable. Just bought a duplicate pair on eBay.

Edit: Oops. Wrote Vinci fresco, but those are the ones from Chan.

Macallan said:

Are they all the same type of cloth; for example, someone could have many pairs of light grey trousers but different cloth types (e.g. fresco, cords, flannel, mohair, tweed, etc). It is very important to have plain trousers; however, all plain collection does get boring.
There are three areas to look at i. different cloth types, ii, patterns like plaid, windowpane and iii. different shades (e.g. royal air force blue, white).
Do add patterns, this should be your priority for your next trousers
Brown is a nice shade and very underrated, although I prefer it for casual trousers
You could add navy although some people do not like this shade for odd-trousers, maybe in flannel
I like RAF blue or dark blue for trousers
You could look for a pair or two of standout trousers like white, red, etc
List all your jackets

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I think a definite weakness I have is they are all plain cloth and relatively darker colours. I've sort of stuck to this thinking that I could pretty much wear any shirt with darker pants and have flexibility. Are there limitations of what would go with stone versus charcoal or am I in safe territory to match most shirts with these colours?

I also don't usually wear a jacket at work but when I do its typically darker brown or gray. I assume you mean suit jacket versus outerwear.

I think a good next step for me would be to branch out (as per the suggestions) to look at different materials and lighter colours. I took a walk through the traditional Canadian department stores today and came up short (as usual) for any kind of variety. Are there any suggestions where I can spend between $60-100 to get my collection started? Right now the pants I have are from Banana Republic during sales that put them in my price point.

I typically don't buy pants online since I've been worried about getting a good fit without trying them on. Any tips on making a safer choices online when it comes to pants?

After reading even more in styleforum, it looks like its difficult to find quality trousers in the $60-100 that folks recommend. Also, thanks to vendors using UPS its a pain to buy without getting slapped with duties. So far I've narrowed down the options to

Lands End ($40-140 UPS)
Brooks Brothers($80-100 UPS)
Howard Yount ($200 but uses USPS which typically saves on duty but no returns from Canada)
Banana Republic ($110-200 Canadian store so free shipping no duty)
Epaulet ($160-200 but uses USPS which typically saves on duty)

I think i'm leaning towards getting one pair of the HY and crossing my fingers on how they fit. This means I would get one pair as opposed to 2/3 of cheaper alternatives.

I'll take a picture of the colours I have now to get some advice on what I should be going for adding to my wardrobe.

Also plan for about $20-$30 for alterations and post your impressions on the HY thread. I think they are worth every penny.

Here are the main variety of trousers that I have. Advice on what colours would be good staples to add would be appreciated.