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Pants, Shorts and Sweats to Build Your Wardrobe Around

Pants make up — roughly, we’re estimating here — 40 percent of your outfit. Wear them wisely.

new essentials bottoms

By Evan Malachosky

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A version of this story first appeared in Gear Patrol Magazine. Subscribe today.

Even though pants play an important role in the wardrobe, most men own the same two or three styles in the same two or three different colors. Expand your repertoire; you shouldn’t limit yourself to just blue jeans and basic khaki chinos. These two examples make excellent pillars in your pant rotation, but there are so many other options to explore.

What about wider-fit chinos with billowing bottoms? Work trousers with designer paint splatters? Sweatpants with a heavy cashmere construction? These all sound cool, right? They are, along with a handful of others you’ll have to keep reading to uncover, the new essentials — the must-haves. Each signals you’re as in the know — aka on top of trends — because you’re aware of what makes something classic.

We’ve covered all of the bases: standout pants you can wear around town or to the office, antibacterial underwear to wear underneath them and loungewear you can, well, lounge in, but also wear to basketball games or even the bar. (Gasp!)

Jeans that are the right of mix of ’90s and new.

These are made with the environment front of mind. They were cut, sewn and washed at the world’s foremost sustainable denim factory with denim made by Candiani, an Italian company championing eco-friendlier raw materials.

What more can I say about this classic jean? They’re 501s, the denim that defined American fashion.

Alex Mill’s Flat Front Pants aren’t bell bottoms by any means. They’re form-fitting at the hip, wide through the thighs and tapered through the leg.

Looking for a super, super straight fit that suddenly seems wide? Well, RRL’s Field Chino is just for you.

The Twill Volk Trousers are fashion-forward. Kind of cropped? Check. Pleated? Check. Available in a few norm core colors? Check, check, check.

Lyocell is smoother than silk and more gentle on the skin than cotton. Plus, it’s naturally anti-bacterial, meaning your underwear will smell clean for far longer.

Moisture-wicking and odor-resistant, Merino Wool is the material of choice for Smartwool’s 150 boxer briefs. Although wool doesn’t look like it’d sit nicely on the skin, these are super, super soft.

As the name implies, Mack Weldon’s AIRKNITx Boxer Briefs let air in to keep you cool and dry and air circulated, lessening the likelihood of lingering odors.

Drake once said he was physically incapable of taking a knee, because he was wearing all white. But he totally could’ve if he was wearing Dickies’ double-knees. They’re stylish in a workwear kind of way and come clean with simple bleach.

You know Carhartt and Carhartt WIP, the fashion wing of the workwear brand, but there are a million brands reimagining work styles for the modern wearer. See: JieDa’s Duck Work Trousers, a classic-looking brown work pant with designer-made paint splatters. No, the $405 dollar price tag isn’t for the speckles, but rather the hefty duck construction. Don’t be fooled.

No, these aren’t official standard issue fatigues from decades ago. They’re made by Japanese repro brand Orslow to the near exact specifications of vintage pairs.

If you’re into luxury, you shouldn’t exclude it from your own home. So what if no one will see you in your $946 sweatpants? Surely they’re softer than the rest of the pairs piled up on the floor of your closet. And comfort is priceless.

When’s the last time you splurged on something exclusively for you? Sure, someone could swipe them from your drawer, but these sweatpants are yours, damn it!

It’s hard to call $270 dollar sweatpants the affordable alternative. But, here they are, the affordable alternative: $270 Frack Face Sweatpants from Acne Studios.

These are short — ’70s-era “going on a run” short. As practical as they are for cross-country courses, they work well under the sweltering heat of summer.

Rowing Blazers’ Mesh Shorts sit above the knee but don’t ride up into the inner thigh when you sit down. There’s plenty of coverage, but they still make a statement.

Take the look to an extreme level. Relax’s lacrosse shorts became so popular that American Trench commissioned a few custom colors, and dubbed the assortment the Old School Mesh Shorts.

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