I think those are fine options though I'd drop the tan and olive. Just don't care for them.

I notice there's no navy listed.

 

I think those are fine options though I'd drop the tan and olive. Just don't care for them.

I notice there's no navy listed.

I have navy as an odd trouser in my wardrobe. As the "color theory for men…" page indicates,navy goes with gray, tan, and olive sports jackets. In addition, it can go with a lightblue. I've also worn them with aburgundy cardigan. I find navy to be aversatile color odd trouser, so I add it to my collection.

 

With all due respect to SG67, I wouldn't be without tan and olive trousers. I consider them essential.

 

With all due respect to SG67, I wouldn't be without tan and olive trousers. I consider them essential.

Without tan and olive the list would just be about 4 shades of gray (granted - 4 shades of gray is a lot better than 50)

 

If limited to 10 I would replace olive trousers a medium grey or charcoal cavalry twill. I'd also get rid of the navy whipcord in favor of something in navy. Personally I have navy flannels, navy fresco, and navy tropical wool. I find that color very versatile no matter what people say.

Tan is useful but I'd find tan gabardine and tropical wool a bit overlapping. For my own uses a tan hopsack would cover both.

 

If limited to 10 I would replace olive trousers a medium grey or charcoal cavalry twill. I'd also get rid of the navy whipcord in favor of something in navy. Personally I have navy flannels, navy fresco, and navy tropical wool. I find that color very versatile no matter what people say.

Tan is useful but I'd find tan gabardine and tropical wool a bit overlapping. For my own uses a tan hopsack would cover both.

Agree that Navy is very useful.

 

With all due respect to SG67, I wouldn't be without tan and olive trousers. I consider them essential.

I completely understand. I've just never been able to bring myself to like them.

 

I was going to start a similar thread. I have a lot of gray and a few pairs of navy and want something else. I just don't know about olive especially in a dress chino, would seem too dickies like to me? Olive or brown wool gab probably better? What color dress chinos are ideal and what works better in wool?

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With all due respect to SG67, I wouldn't be without tan and olive trousers. I consider them essential.

Without tan and olive the list would just be about 4 shades of gray (granted - 4 shades of gray is a lot better than 50)

LOL. Were it not for Tan/khaki hued trousers, I fear I would be venturing out into the world more than just a bit overexposed from the waist down, perhaps 80% of the time! :redface: Oh-my...that would never do.

 

What color dress chinos are ideal and what works better in wool?

I've heard, and agree, that tan woks better in cotton than wool, and the opposite for grey. White cotton trousers in the summer are almost a must (or at least off white).

In terms of essential odd trousers for me, for fall/winter I get a lot of use from light grey flannel (with navy and brown sport coats) and navy flannel (with grey tweed and again, brown sport coats).

 

I don't think ten pairs are essential. The majority of men do not require ten different pairs of pants on top of the jeans and suits they may already wear.

If you really want to drill down to the two most essential colours, I would pick medium grey and something in the brown family. That way you are covered for cool or warm colour combinations. Everything else is luxury, not essential.

 

This is actually a topic I've been pondering for a while. I fully agree that grey flannels, be they light or mid grey, are essential for the fall/winter. I also love my cavalry twills, which I think of as a little more formal than chinos and perfect for a business casual outfit in the fall/winter (I have brown, olive and tan). Both flannels and cavalry twills pair very nicely with blazers and tweeds. Anything more formal and I'll just go for a full worsted wool suit. Anything more casual and I'll go for the moleskins or corduroys (although I guess this is where jeans would fit in too).

For the spring and summer I find linen and cotton twill chinos to be excellent for casual occasions (usually tan and stone), and for more formal occasions I tend to go with tropical/fresco wool, usually as part of a more casual-leaning suit.

Which means I've always wondered who wears gabardines and whipcords and why would they be considered a superior choice to any of the above? Under what circumstances are they to be worn, let alone considered essential? Gabardines in particular I've always found to just be a more formal version of cavalry twills, but I've also always leaned towards the notion that if you need more formal odd trousers than cavalry twills you'd likely be better off with a full suit, be it gabardine (I suppose) or worsted.

 

I don't think ten pairs are essential. The majority of men do not require ten different pairs of pants on top of the jeans and suits they may already wear.

If you really want to drill down to the two most essential colours, I would pick medium grey and something in the brown family. That way you are covered for cool or warm colour combinations. Everything else is luxury, not essential.

It depends. Many of us in the US work in environments where suits are no longer worn but jeans are not acceptable. In which case, 2 or 3 pairs of dress pants are not nearly enough.

 

Which means I've always wondered who wears gabardines and whipcords and why would they be considered a superior choice to any of the above? Under what circumstances are they to be worn, let alone considered essential? Gabardines in particular I've always found to just be a more formal version of cavalry twills, but I've also always leaned towards the notion that if you need more formal odd trousers than cavalry twills you'd likely be better off with a full suit, be it gabardine (I suppose) or worsted.

Whipcord is very similar to cavalry twill. I've read conflicting accounts of the differences - some sources state that cavalry twill is double ribbed and whipcord single ribbed, other sources state that either can be double or single ribbed but that cavalry twill has slightly steeper ribbing.

Gabardines are classic workwear trousers for a navy blazer or any other relatively smooth sport coat. In a business casual environment, I would take a navy blazer (or gray herringbone sport coat) with medium gray or tan gabardines over the "suit with no tie" look any day.

 

I also wear a lot of more smooth sports coats/blazers at work. Cotton chinos do not drape nearly as well for me, and linen trousers are not compatible with all day use moving between seated and standing position frequently. Plus it gives off a bit of I wish I wasn't at work vibe to me.

+1 for navy odd trousers, mine are gabardine but thinking of getting flannel as well.

For shades of grey my approach has been: charcoal, med grey, pearl grey gab, then 2 flannels covering the in between shades

To a certain extent it really depends on which odd jackets you have, I find myself usually ordering the odd jacket and some compatible trousers at the same time, usually at tailors recommendation.

 

With block colour sport coats I often wear patterned trousers, e.g. puppytooth. In the same way that if I buy a brown cap-toed Oxford, I'd say, 'Why not a punched-cap too?', if I'm not wearing a suit, why not go nuts?

 

I also wear a lot of more smooth sports coats/blazers at work. Cotton chinos do not drape nearly as well for me, and linen trousers are not compatible with all day use moving between seated and standing position frequently. Plus it gives off a bit of I wish I wasn't at work vibe to me.

Agreed on both counts.

I don't like the way chinos drape when paired with a sport coat. And the navy blazer + stone or khaki chinos just has a "resort" vibe to me.

I have a pair of light tan linen pants, but I hardly wear them. They feel fantastic and are very cool in the summer heat, but it seems that they start to wrinkle the moment I take them off the ironing board and after wearing them for about 15 minutes they look like I slept in them.

 

Whipcord is very similar to cavalry twill. I've read conflicting accounts of the differences - some sources state that cavalry twill is double ribbed and whipcord single ribbed, other sources state that either can be double or single ribbed but that cavalry twill has slightly steeper ribbing.

Gabardines are classic workwear trousers for a navy blazer or any other relatively smooth sport coat. In a business casual environment, I would take a navy blazer (or gray herringbone sport coat) with medium gray or tan gabardines over the "suit with no tie" look any day.

I agree with this. Whipcord and gabardine are around the same formality as cavalry twill. The weather needs to be cool to wear cavalry twill and whipcord. If the weather is too warm for those but too cool for tropical wool, then you wear gabardine.

 

Pardon my ignorance on this; I've always read, and most of the gentlemen above have stated, that charcoal wools are an essential odd trouser for the man's wardrobe. Maybe it is due to my limited imagination, but I have always had a difficult time coming up with an ensemble that includes charcoal trousers. Especially if there is a sports jacket involved. Medium gray, lighter gray, sure. But true charcoal... I just do not know. What do most of you find a good match to these?

 

Pardon my ignorance on this; I've always read, and most of the gentlemen above have stated, that charcoal wools are an essential odd trouser for the man's wardrobe. Maybe it is due to my limited imagination, but I have always had a difficult time coming up with an ensemble that includes charcoal trousers. Especially if there is a sports jacket involved. Medium gray, lighter gray, sure. But true charcoal... I just do not know. What do most of you find a good match to these?

I agree. I don't find charcoal grey useful to me at all. The only time I would consider wearing it is with a lighter grey herringbone tweed jacket, or no jacket at all. Too dark to be paired with navy and I really, really don't like the look of a tan or taupe jacket with grey.

 

Pardon my ignorance on this; I've always read, and most of the gentlemen above have stated, that charcoal wools are an essential odd trouser for the man's wardrobe. Maybe it is due to my limited imagination, but I have always had a difficult time coming up with an ensemble that includes charcoal trousers. Especially if there is a sports jacket involved. Medium gray, lighter gray, sure. But true charcoal... I just do not know. What do most of you find a good match to these?

Either a light to medium gray or a medium blue. The right shade of olive can also work. But you are correct that a medium gray odd trouser is more versatile than a charcoal gray one.

 

I know that medium or dark gray flannel slacks are customarily regarded as an essential element in a well-clad gentleman's wardrobe, but in my part of the world I've never felt the need for them, gray worsteds in all but the lightest weights serving just fine in our mild winters.

 

should flannel and linen trousers have somekind of pattern ( or other feature) to distinguish them from suit trousers?

 

^ on the contrary I don't care for odd slacks that have a pattern to them unless very, very subtle.

 

I like odd trousers with a (slight, as SG_67 mentioned) pattern, but find it can make pairing them with a jacket more difficult.