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A leg up on pants

Trousers add both comfort and style to your wardrobe

It is often believed that trousers are simply an alternative for jeans, which is not true! Trousers and jeans are completely different in terms of look and fabric. Trousers have numerous unique characteristics that jeans do not have. First of all, trousers are made with soft materials, such as cotton and wool, which give you maximum comfort and warmth, whereas jeans are made with denim, which is usually stiff and rough. Trousers are known for comfort and versatility, but not so much for fashion potential. However, I am sure that some of you jeans-guys will turn into trousers-guys after reading this.

Trousers can be either flat-fronted or pleated. Flat-fronted trousers have no fold on the waist area, whereas pleated trousers have at least two folds on the waist area. If you are looking for a safe choice, I strongly recommend purchasing flat-fronted trousers since they are more versatile due to simplicity. Pleated trousers make you look bulky because they are made with more fabric. However, pleated trousers give a little more vibe of formality, so if you want to look a little formal, but not too much, they will be perfect for you.

Unlike jeans, trousers are very commonly manufactured with a variety of different colors. Trousers are able to pull off crazy colors fantastically without actually looking crazy. For instance, let’s try to imagine a guy wearing a pair of yellow trousers with a shirt on. It looks alright. Let’s imagine yellow jeans with a shirt on. It is a little bit weird, right? This is why guys who love color often go for trousers over jeans. However, if you can only afford one pair of trousers, then you can opt for beige or navy ones. I have both, and I love them equally.

Beige is better for casual styles, while navy is more formal. For example, T-shirts and casual shirts look great with beige, while oxford shirts and blazers look great with navy. But, don’t worry too much about the choice of clothing with trousers because trousers are so versatile that they can be worn with anything regardless of color.

One thing I really like about trousers is that they don’t need any breaking in. They come as comfortable as if they have already been worn for a long time. Also, they don’t wear out quickly, so they can look fresh and clean forever as long as you wash and dry them properly. Most of the time, I carefully hand-wash my trousers because their fabric is so soft that it may get damaged by a laundry machine. Thus, it is better to invest some money in one pair of high-quality trousers than to have several cheap ones. They will never go out of style either, so why not buy a great pair?

As opposed to jeans, which have many different kinds of fit, trousers only have a couple. Trousers come in loose, straight, slim, or skinny, but I strongly recommend purchasing either straight or slim because they are classic and timeless. Try pairing them up with a crisp oxford shirt, cardigan and brown loafers for a smart and dandy look, or a T-shirt, denim jacket, and white sneakers for a casual and naughty look. There are so many other ways to build your own style with trousers, so find something that flatters you the best!

1 Comment
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Anonymous over 10 years ago

See also Nick Park's seminal work on this topic, "Wallace Grommit - The Wrong Trousers."