What do I wear instead of Jeans?

November 21, 2019 10:37 PM

I find jeans restrictive and less comfortable, but am not sure what else to wear. Sweats are too casual (and inconvenient pockets) but jeans just feel..... annoying. What else is there?

I now live in California (47, M) and find myself wearing shorts for at least 9 months of the year. I fly a lot and find shorts more comfortable than anything else for flying - just some basic cotton shorts. I love wearing shorts and if I was more tough would do it year round. But alas, my knees get a bit chilly for a short period of the year.

It is a bit colder now and I need some kind of long trouser (pant) solution for this. I am not at all a clothes horse (I care nothing for fashion), and shorts and a t shirt is pretty much my standard. Jeans are about the right hit on the 'formal/not formal' range, they are just ... not comfortable any more. Especially when flying. I don't have room in my suitcase to have a set of extra trousers (so fly in sweats and wear jeans when I get there is out) and I like being minimalist. I want a comfortable set of trousers, with a proper back pocket for my wallet and side pockets that things won't fall out of (like sweat pants do so reliably) but.... what?

Chinos - too formal. What else? Something a bit stretchy, but not looking like I am doing yard work but also not needing actual shoes (I prefer trainers/sneakers) to look right and doesn't need a shirt over it. HALP ME ADULT.

posted by Brockles to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (39 answers total)

Khakis. I wear khakis from the Polo outlet store. In the colder weather I have some Carhartt pants. Sturdy and warm.

For shoes, when I am not wearing sneakers or my Timberlands in the snow, I wear a pair of slip on, no lace, Merrills
posted by AugustWest at 11:00 PM on November 21, 2019 [3 favorites]

Ponte pants (a guide here) - they look like dress pants but feel like leggings. Usually, no pockets but you can pull them off as proper dress code for the office.
posted by augustinetill at 11:44 PM on November 21, 2019 [2 favorites]

You can find joggers in more “regular pants” materials these days. They’re like secret sweatpants, or sweatpants-khaki hybrids. I have even seen some in fake denim. Look for ones that have a regular button and fly as well as a drawstring for extra versatility.
posted by en forme de poire at 11:56 PM on November 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

Traditional all denim jeans are a no go for me, too- they get crunchy? Especially thick fabrics. I like 'jeans' with a bit of elastic in them, they look like jeans but are more comfy.
posted by freethefeet at 12:34 AM on November 22, 2019

Why can't you get yoga/sweatpant pants? The active-wear type pants that are in dark colours and wear them? Uniqlo (I know, I know I keep saying Uniqlo) has a pair of comfort jeans that are basically denim-coloured sweatpants with an elastic waist. I bet other brands have them in the athletic leisure-wear side that look dressy when worn with a regular shirt. If you are boho enough, you can get away with fisherman-style pants that are super-super comfortable, my god, are they comfortable, but they look right on some people and too touristy on others.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 1:31 AM on November 22, 2019

Uniqlo's pants are all too tiny in the butt for me, but jeggings by HUE and Muji have both worked for me. They all have butt pockets and no pantyline.
posted by batter_my_heart at 1:37 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Reminder that the asker is a man; some answers are providing items of women’s clothing that don’t cross the gender divide, at least here in the US.

What about linen trousers? If you care not for fashion, then presumably you won’t mind that it wrinkles, and linen can be extremely comfortable.
posted by ocherdraco at 2:59 AM on November 22, 2019 [17 favorites]

Duluth Trading men’s flex denim and flex fire hose pants Good quality work jeans and pants with 1 to 3% spandex for stretch. Sizing tends to run large, at least in women’s. And they have great roomy pockets!
posted by sizeable beetle at 3:10 AM on November 22, 2019 [4 favorites]

Yeah, if you are letting toxic masculinity keep you from the glory that is stretchy jeans, please reconsider. They are the best.

Also, these Old Navy pants are cut like jeans but made of cotton twill. Incredibly easy to wear and dirt cheap. No stretch in these, but they are very roomy without being baggy.
posted by Rock Steady at 3:47 AM on November 22, 2019 [3 favorites]

My husband also hates jeans and wears chinos and corduroys exclusively. They don’t have to be formal - go to some stores in the Gap-type range and try them on with t-shirts. You just need to get over the mental hump of thinking of them as dressy.
posted by something something at 3:51 AM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

Seconding Duluth Trading. Once I discovered them, I basically stopped wearing jeans.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 3:52 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Cargo pants from Eddie Bauer are my solution to this question.
posted by postel's law at 4:09 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Climbing pants! They look like pants but are made with technical/stretchy fabric.
posted by Kriesa at 4:18 AM on November 22, 2019 [7 favorites]

I have no experience with the brand or with these pants, but I was looking at these the other day (for a family member who also hates jeans and lives in track pants) and they might suit: Public Rep Everyday Pants.
posted by Janta at 4:18 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

If you look at Duluth Trading Co and think "awesome¹ but so expensive!" sign up for their mailing list and just wait. 20-30% off is not uncommon, and individual items, including the "flex fire hose pants" that are my personal favorite for precisely the clothing niche you describe, routinely get discounted beyond that. They'll also give free shipping on a subsequent order in exchange for a review. "Men's" sizes run a bit large too, particularly those marked "relaxed" I think is their term.

¹Check out the sheer number of pockets the carpenter pants pack in without looking like cargos! And, if you're taller, the inseams!
posted by teremala at 5:05 AM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

Similar age, sense of style, and location, and I’m a long time fan of Gramicci pants. Comfortable fit like sweats, but jeans-like cotton material.
posted by doctord at 5:06 AM on November 22, 2019

"Stretchy" fabrics work well with me. Normal denim is often just too heavy and sweaty and inflexible for me in my active working day. Chinos and jeans of about 97% cotton, 3% spandex blend are usually lighter weight and pliable and comfortable. And they don't have to be expensive. My favorite chinos like this were house brand from walmart.
posted by 2N2222 at 5:09 AM on November 22, 2019

What sort of situations are you trying to dress for--I'm trying to figure out what makes chinos "too formal." Or is it just that you don't think they match a t-shirt and sneakers?

You can also get non-denim jeans that pack smaller and lighter, and are less stiff than denim.

Is corduroy an option?
posted by pykrete jungle at 5:51 AM on November 22, 2019

Jeans-cut pants (often called “5-pocket”) come in an outrageous array of fabrics. Personally I’m 95% off denim, even stretch denim, and instead go for technical fabrics. They’re a shade more dressy than denim and can be dressed up or down. My favorites are Outliers but given the $$ I’m a little embarrassed to admit it in a public forum.
posted by supercres at 6:05 AM on November 22, 2019

If you think chinos/khakis are too formal, you're just not looking at the right places. T-shirt, khakis, and tennis shoes has been my daily uniform for like a decade. Look at youth-oriented stores like Gap or American Eagle - "adult" khakis are intended to be worn with a tucked-in shirt to a business meeting, but "teen" khakis aren't. Old Navy has some good, cheap options as well. The key is to treat them like casual pants. Just toss them in the dryer and then fold. Never press them or iron or anything like that.

But yeah, corduroy is the right answer.
posted by kevinbelt at 6:16 AM on November 22, 2019

Skirts! I have six skirts from the Macabi Skirt co and they are the absolute best.

Also you may consider the Utilikilt, which is shorter but less daring gender wise.

Bifurcated garments are really terrible for people with dangling genitalia, like, who designed this garment that intentionally crushes everything? Wear a tube and feel the freedom! Of course sometimes, like, bicycling, there's nothing for it, but that's specialized attire.

(I wear two skirts and knee sox when it gets really cold in Toronto.)
posted by seanmpuckett at 6:37 AM on November 22, 2019 [3 favorites]

Yeah, check out outdoorsy-type options. The technical fabrics usually provide a lot of flex, and, depending on the styling, they can vary from looking like sweats to more like khakis/chinos.

Eddie Bauer Guide pants

Patagonia hiking pants

REI hiking pants
posted by BrashTech at 6:38 AM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

Personally I’d just go for khakis, since a t-shirt, khakis, and Jack Purcells is a look I’ve worn since high school 30 years ago. Some places do seem to be selling dress twill slacks and calling them chinos, but to me chinos are more casual than that. Banana Republic has four standard fits for its chinos, so I’d just go try some on and find the ones that look right to you. (I like the Emerson straight, and my wife likes the Aiden slim fit on me). That said, I’ve found that khakis are a terrible flying pant because they’re invariably dirty before I’ve even arrived. Jeans never look as dirty in the same circumstances.

If you’ve got an REI near you, you could also check out technical pants from Prana or Kuhl, which have stretch and useful pockets but don’t look like work wear. And I can’t bring myself to pay the prices, but Lululemon has a couple different styles of men’s pants that fill the same niche.
posted by fedward at 6:39 AM on November 22, 2019

I'm really surprised nobody has suggested cargo pants. Pockets galore!
posted by DarlingBri at 6:47 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Check out the pants offerings in the Lands End Starfish collection. They are expressly designed to be comfortable, yet presentable, and come in a few different options of colors and cuts.

But check the description carefully - not all have pockets. Some don't have any pockets at all, and some just have a tiny zip pocket (for if you just need to throw your house keys in there when you're taking the garbage out or something). There are at least a couple that have back patch pockets.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:59 AM on November 22, 2019

Some kind of cargo pant is the general answer for folks in my industry who wear something other than jeans. I don't really wear them, so I don't have specific recommendations.

I find jeans restrictive and less comfortable

Echoing other answers, this seems like there might be a strong fit/fabric/brand element to this. I also live in shorts and T-shirt, weather permitting, but I live in a place where shorts work about half the year at best, and jeans are my go-to pant otherwise. So I've owned and tried a lot of them, and there's definitely a wide range of possibilities out there.

It's worth thinking about where and how you find jeans restrictive, as there's a chance other non-jean pants may have the same problems. Somewhat counter-intuitively, tighter pants can actually feel less restrictive than looser pants, as they tend to move with your body. So getting into something with a little spandex in it and fitting a little tighter than you might think could be worth a try.

But even without spandex different brands or models within brands can have different fits and fabric. For example, I personally have found that "regular-fit straight-leg" Levis or Uniqlo jeans work pretty well for me, whereas the supposed same thing in Duluth Trading jeans are too baggy in the crotch, while Wranglers tend to be way too "look-at-my-butt-country-music-star" tight.

IOW, however little you may care about fashion (I'm about your age and I totally get the "AArgh I just wanna grab a pair of pants off the shelf!" urge), your best shot for finding comfortable pants, jeans or not, is to try different cuts and styles and brands to see which work for you and which don't. (And then try not to get too frustrated when 2 years after you've found the great pair of pants it turns out they've changed the cut or the name so you can't just buy the same thing again . . . .)
posted by soundguy99 at 7:04 AM on November 22, 2019

I wear the women's version of the Eddie Bauer Guide Pro pants quite often and used to joke, when I was actually working in an office, about having found a way to fit something that felt like pajama pants in under the dress code. They're amazing, they have proper pockets, they look like real pants, but the fabric is relatively light and very flexible. I probably wouldn't want to wear them (at least not without leggings or something under them) if it was really cold and I was going to go do something outside for an extended period, but I've found them to at least make the transition from summer to winter quite well for more routine daily activities.
posted by Sequence at 7:18 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Hey, I hear you're not s'posed to sit on your wallet--it'll give you back problems, apparently. So I agree with everybody who says cargo pants because you can keep the wallet on the side of your leg instead of sitting on it. IDK how it is with the men's, but I can vouch for women's Levis for the first time in history being comfortable to wear because they now incorporate a ton of rubber and are thinner. I'm sure they didn't do it that way for our benefit but because they're way cheaper to make and wear out faster, but they are comfy.
posted by Don Pepino at 7:23 AM on November 22, 2019

Some brands have started adding Lycra to men's pants so they have a little stretch (like women's pants do these days). Not sure about your budget, buy if you wait Bonobos has good sales and lots of colors so their chinos can be dressed with a t-shirt to be more casual. I am a big fan of Corduroy, some of which should be lightweight enough for a California winter or plane travel.
posted by Bunglegirl at 7:38 AM on November 22, 2019

I wear hiking pants. It’s hard to find heavyweight ones for when it’s really cold, but I haven’t worn jeans in quite a while because they’re too restrictive.
posted by leahwrenn at 8:41 AM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

I've been wearing the 'Traveler' pants from Banana republic.
they are cut like 5 pocket jeans, but are a stretchier solid color fabric, so they can play off like a khaki for a more upscale situation or for the office and as jeans with a pair of adidas.

This is coming from a 53 year-old male.
posted by exparrot at 10:37 AM on November 22, 2019

There are a lot of pants out there (for all genders) that look like "nice" pants but are made of comfortable, technical fabric. Lululemon is ridiculously priced, but they have some mens sweats that do not look like sweats at all. Hill City is a new Gap, Inc. brand that's supposed to be mens version of Athleta.
posted by radioamy at 12:13 PM on November 22, 2019

I got these from Taylor Stitch in SF and they are real good. I was a 47 male in California until a couple of weeks ago. I am speaking to you from your future and telling you to get these pants. They are not stretchy I don't think but they are good.

Nice pants.
posted by Kafkaesque at 1:55 PM on November 22, 2019

My pants du jour are from Rhone. Their Commuter pant is 100% synthetic, so it won't feel like jeans. It's stretchy in every direction, so you can have a trim silhouette. And they're formal enough for use at the office.
posted by dobi at 2:19 PM on November 22, 2019

Icebreaker Men's Perpetual Pants are a mix of wool and cotton -- natural give, and nice for travel.
posted by Iris Gambol at 2:31 PM on November 22, 2019

Outlier have some nice pants, that are light, hard-wearing, not-chinos, and are a nice casual/smart balance,
posted by fabius at 9:54 AM on November 23, 2019 [1 favorite]

As a bit of advice because you seem like a non-shopper type, when you find a good fit buy a ridiculous number of those pants in several colors before they discontinue (unless your waist size is increasing every year). If you are a bit on the chunky side a lot of the stores mentioned may not have pants in the store in your size. Uniqlo will let you order larger versions online than they stock in store for example.

If you haven't been using stretch fabric previously and switch to it, run your laundry cold and it'll hold up longer. Hot washing stretch fabric will destroy the elasticity and you'll be stuck with baggy pants.
posted by BrotherCaine at 9:59 AM on November 23, 2019

Response by poster: Update (because I know you were all on tenterhooks): Chino's just look dressy to me. I tried to shake it and I can't. So I am giving Old Navy Flex jeans a go, mainly because everything else that looked worth trying was more than three times the price and that'd not going to happen... So I figure $40 to see if I can tolerate stretchy jeans is worth a shot.
posted by Brockles at 1:46 PM on December 3, 2019 [3 favorites]

Best answer: Also, thanks to all. Forgot that bit.
posted by Brockles at 2:15 PM on December 3, 2019 [1 favorite]