Advice requested on fabric for trousers

[Ratomir]

With working from home more or less a permanent arrangement and new professional duties, I no longer need to wear suits every working day.
I will gladly switch to jackets in light wool, donegal, tweed or linnen. However, what trousers are fitting? Style, elegance and comfort can be reconciled, I hope.

No, I am not going to wear jeans, least of all the ones with the slashes and holes around the knees pre-cut by the designer. Chinos, maybe, but they age rapidly. Flannel pants offer little structure, are hard to maintain and mostly too warm, gabardine too heavy. Only had very poor experiences with corduroy. Can linnen in trousers ever look cared for and not wrinkled or neglected?

So, which fabric is, under the circumstances, in the opinion and wisdom of the forum the best choice for MTM or bespoke pants? The pants must be worn with braces/suspenders, must have buttons, no zip. Colours very welcome. There are no restrictions related to size or girth, which still range between average and unproblematic.

Thank you

 

[breakaway01]

I am a little uncertain about the look you're going for. Are you planning to wear sportcoats/odd jackets with these trousers (since you referenced "jackets in light wool, donegal, tweed...")? If so it sounds like you'll end up with pretty conventional dress trousers, especially since you intend them to wear them with braces. IMO the fabric and styling of your trousers would be dictated more by the formality/styling of your jackets and your climate rather than whether you are wearing them at home or in an office. More specifics or even photos of what you're envisioning would be helpful.

 

[ValidusLA]

Hard to know what you are looking for exactly. Saying chinos age rapidly - do you mean you don't want to wear cotton? Chinos vary greatly in their build, styling, and the fabric content. For example, a slim fit monstrosity in cheap dyed hues from J Crew is not comparable to something made of Japanese cotton from Collaro or certainly not to something made bespoke. Fox has a new book - Fox Khaki - which would certainly make some sturdy and well built trousers with the touch of a good tailor.

If you are looking for fabric for non-suit trousers and don't want cotton, flannel, or gabardine, I suppose I would recommend cavalry twill?

 

[Ratomir]

@breakaway01, yes, I want to wear simple trousers with odd jackets. Indeed, dress trousers, but I am not sure what fabric to choose. I had trousers made in flannel which were a nightmare - too warm, creased in the wrong places and became baggy. The style should be a bit formal.

@ValidusLA Thank you for suggesting there is more than one chinos fabric. The chinos I bought from a Japanese high street brand lost all structure after two years. They turned into rags. I am glad you mention Fox since that is for suit fabric my preferred brand. Nothing against cotton, it is just that the lack of structure looks odd.
What weight of cavalry twill do you recommend? And is there sense in getting mohair trousers, as in a 60/40 wool/mohair blend?

Do you have experience with the Proper cloth trousers, please?

 

[ValidusLA]

I have used Cavalry Twill from Huddersfield Fine Worsted for off trousers a few times - I have stone, olive, and bronze. I quite like the stone ones. They are a 340g/12oz fabric.

I have not done any PC trousers. I have done some shirts, and decided I liked other makers more.

 

[TheIronDandy]

Cavalry twill all the way. It's hard wearing but relatively cool for it's weight. It also hangs well, which I find helps reduce wrinkles (but any fabric which you sit in a lot will eventually crease a bit in the wrong places).

Runner up is heavy Irish linnen (I use a 400 gram one from W. Bill). It WILL wrinkle, but heavy linnen wrinkle very differently than cheap, flimsy fabrics. I find it helps to give a casual feel to an outfit that they don't maintain razor-sharp creases for that long, but that's obviously a personal style choice.

 

[breakaway01]

Definitely like cavalry twill as well. Covert is good too.
depending on your climate I wouldn’t give up on flannel yet. I am not usually a big fan of lightweight woolen flannels but a heavier woolen or a worsted flannel is a very versatile fabric IMO.

 

[Ratomir]

@TheIronDandy Thank you. Any particular cavalry twill manufacturer you favour? Holland and Sherry seem to have the most imaginative colours, so I will err in their direction first. Your endorsement of W.Bill is good news too.

@breakaway01 Oh of course I remain loyal to flannel, but the pants I got from a fabric called Gorina were not good. There are many favourable reports on trousers using Fox Air too.

Thank you

 

[breakaway01]

@TheIronDandy Thank you. Any particular cavalry twill manufacturer you favour? Holland and Sherry seem to have the most imaginative colours, so I will err in their direction first. Your endorsement of W.Bill is good news too.

@breakaway01 Oh of course I remain loyal to flannel, but the pants I got from a fabric called Gorina were not good. There are many favourable reports on trousers using Fox Air too.

Thank you

If your tailor has access to Dugdale, I like their cavalry twill as well as their worsted flannel.

 

[dieworkwear]

Are you wearing these at home? Meaning, the sport coats and the trousers?

 

[Ratomir]

Are you wearing these at home? Meaning, the sport coats and the trousers?

Obviously not as a self pleasing home entertainment, no. But there is just less travel, less presence at the office and in general, to my great regret, much less professional activity. And I refuse to fake the Zoom calls, where people wear a shirt and tie, but their bottom part is the pyjama's or just underwear.

 

[dieworkwear]

Obviously not as a self pleasing home entertainment, no. But there is just less travel, less presence at the office and in general, to my great regret, much less professional activity. And I refuse to fake the Zoom calls, where people wear a shirt and tie, but their bottom part is the pyjama's or just underwear.

The only reason why I ask is because custom trousers made from H&S Dakota fabric are expensive, commonly north of $1,000. If these are something you plan to wear a home, and you feel that chinos "wear out too quickly," you might be disappointed with these types of wool trousers.

If you're wearing these out in the world, then I think your trousers can be as seasonal as your coats. I mostly wear tropical wool trousers in the spring/ summer months (Draper's Ascot 4-ply and H&S Crispaire); then cav twill, whipcord, and flannel in the fall/ winter months (mostly H&S Dakota, but also some HFW fabrics). Also getting a pair of Bedford cord trousers made to wear with tweed, but have not yet gotten them.

If this is something you'll wear at home, I think you'll be happier in ready-made cotton pants, such as chinos in a lighter color, which won't show wear as easily. They are also just as hard-wearing as many of these wool fabrics, sometimes even moreso. In ready-made options, they won't feel as painful when they wear out. Depending on the construction, you can also throw them into a wet wash.

 

[TheIronDandy]

@TheIronDandy Thank you. Any particular cavalry twill manufacturer you favour? Holland and Sherry seem to have the most imaginative colours, so I will err in their direction first. Your endorsement of W.Bill is good news too.

@breakaway01 Oh of course I remain loyal to flannel, but the pants I got from a fabric called Gorina were not good. There are many favourable reports on trousers using Fox Air too.

Thank you

I believe I have a pair made from 17oz Huddersfield beige cavalry twill, and a pair made from Holland&Sherry 13,5oz dark grey cavalry twill. The beige ones were one of my first bespoke orders, and they've stood up to a LOT of wear as I often walk well over 10 000 steps a day while wearing my casual tailored clothes (bought them to wear them, after all).

Both are great, though I agree H&S has more variety in color. I'm considering a third pair, in either H&S biscuit cavalry twill (15,8oz) or chocolate brown cavalry twill from dugdale bros. And the lighter grey from H&S could be a great option to grey flannel trousers as a smart-casual choice.

 

[Ratomir]

@TheIronDandy @dieworkwear @breakaway01

Many thanks, reading your informative replies I am investigating Fox Khaki, Dugdale Lisburn and W.Bill Linen.
You helped investing in an improved bottom half!