Trousers pt. 3: fit
This is the last part of the trouser series. It’s only fitting (intended) we should end this on a note about fit, alterations and preferences. If you’re interested in the build up, you can read the first two parts from the links below.
A lot of what you see when you look at trousers people wear comes down to alterations done after acquiring the trousers, or preferences the wearer has when ordering mtm or bespoke.
I get a lot of specific questions about measures, which to be honest is not the most constructive approach. What I prefer might be too tight or too loose for someone else, not to mention all of my trousers aren’t the same measures.
Even if you prefer a fit similar to mine you have to take into consideration your own build, muscle size and insertion points. I know this sounds like very obvious points to make, but for instance, if you have a low quad insertion point, the taper will have to start more abruptly from your knees and down, thus the proportions might not look as flattering.
My personal preferences when doing final adjustments, which essentially creates the preferred fit and silhouette has evolved over the last couple of years.
Generally when I talk about “my trouser fit” these days I am specifically referring to my custom Ring Jacket trousers, whether odd trousers or suits.
My older Ring Jacket suits and my Universal Language suits and odd trousers are all altered to an even more tapered fit, not to mention I used to wear them lower which means they are slightly too short. This is not a problem with regards to summer trousers in my opinion. But now that we’ve entered the colder months I can tell that some of my winter trousers aren’t what I would call a good fit for winter.
Thoughts on preferred fit
First of all, I’ve moved away from the extremely tapered style which I used to prefer. It took me a while to realise that, even though I liked it that way it wasn’t ideal.
Also, I do cater some of my preferences depending on these factors:
Season: I might for instance opt for a slightly shorter leg length on summer trousers (as mentioned above).
Fabric and colour: Usually with regards to leg opening. For instance, some colours naturally make the garment look more fitted and as such I will add a little more width to the leg opening.
Also, flannels can be a pain if you taper them too much so I tend to go for a slightly more relaxed fit with flannels.
Measures
The base measures I go by are the following:
A leg opening of either 17 or 18cm, depending on pattern, colour and fabric.
For the thighs I usually ask them to taper them to about 33cm/31cm and then finishing off with a natural taper down until the leg opening. This part about the natural taper from thigh to leg opening is where the earlier point about muscle insertion point is relevant to take into consideration.
As you’ve also probably noticed, I prefer turn-ups. Although mine are quite tall I would generally advice others to go about 4-5 centimeter if you’er into that style. You could do as you please but one more advice is to take your hight into consideration.
I mentioned moving away from the extremely tapered style and I know to some the above mentioned measures might still seem very narrow and tapered. As emphasised so many times; don’t be afraid of wearing what you like and in my case, I won’t change this unless I see so fit myself. There will always be someone not agreeing with your preferences and I can tell you, catering your preferences to someones else’s opinion will be the death of your style. Stand strong (and fitted).
So, about length.
Looking at the pictures above it’s not completely obvious what my preferred length is. It easily gets distorted by how I stand and how high I wear my trousers at that particular moment not to mention which shoes I am wearing.
But the length we go for during alterations is made as to not have any break. All my laced shoes are from the TLB Artista line, thus, I know that I can request the same length every time.
When everything is ideal, as in how I stand and so on, the trousers should stop just at the tongue of the shoes. This is a preference, it’s not up for debate whether this is right or wrong.
Seeing as certain people seemingly don’t understand that loafers has a lower tongue I’ll emphasize that yes, they look shorter while wearing loafers. And 1+1 is 2. The pictures above is a good example of this. The first thing you’ll notice is that on the right the loafers reveal more of the socks and the edge of the pants is perceived to be higher. Granted, wearing braces also has an affect on this. On the left picture, if you look at where the front ends, it just touches the tongue of the oxfords. Then, seeing as there’s always someone not getting this, take into consideration that my knees are slightly leaning forward, thus the back will rise a little
The two trousers shown here are the exact same measures, yet, as mentioned, how I wear them on a particular day, how I am standing when the photo was taken or with which shoes, might completely alter the perceived length.
Now that we’re done spoon feeding.
I’ll sign off with some reasons as to why I ended up at said preferences, which probably is as controversial as my preferences themselves.
A final note on preferences
I was never a big fan of the straight, fairly wide leg look.
I have no issue with it on others whatsoever, but for me, I just find that it looks unnatural, as if the legs are part of a generic building set and stuck on the body like a lego piece.
Neither did I ever like trousers covering greater parts of the upper of the shoes, nor slanted as to cover the back of the shoe either.
In conclusion, to prevent all of the above, a tapered leg opening ending just above/just touching the tongue of the shoe is where I landed.
Again, these are personal opinions and preferences and as much as I preserve my right to choose what I like, I encourage people whom like the previously mentioned fit to do so too. If we all looked the same the world would be a boring place.
Furthermore, I really enjoy seeing styles that are completely different from my own. The lego comparison, for instance, is how I feel if wearing said measures, not how I perceive others wearing it. I would suggest having a look at the instagram account of Mr. Ginga Ayuha to see how said trouser fit is done to perfection. Also it’s a good example to compare my preferred fit to his, in your own quest for finding what’s right.
Lastly, some parts of this article is written seemingly as an answer/comment to criticism, which might set a somewhat negative tone, but I can assure you that is not the intent. There’s a rational thought behind my style and a picture will never tell the whole story. So explaining all these points seemed usefull.
Also, I would never change my style based on opinions of others. The reason I sometimes add these comments or write in a way that suggests I am answering a question, is to encourage people whom are insecure about their choices to stay strong and never focus on the negative comments that might come crawling out of the woodwork. It’s disheartening to see so many fellow menswear enthusiasts being discouraged and I hope you can find some inspiration in reading this to stand your ground.
We all experience both the positive and negative aspects of style, the latter usually being people trying to pull us down. What I think you should ask yourself when you encounter these people (after they’ve crawled out from beneath the rock), is:
Will I meet them? No? Thus they should have absolutely no impact on your life.
Do you agree with them? No? So there’s really nothing to think about.
Your style and preferences are perfect if you think they are. That’s all that matters.
At the same time I want to encourage people to be open to new ideas, not necessarily to implement in their own style but to see the beauty in diversity.
