Sartorial confusion is something we must all face today.
My trousers are too short. Or are they too long? Oh no, hang on. I think I‘ve got it wrong. My trousers are just right. Or are they too tight? Ah, that’s it, but… don’t I look a fright? If you’re anything like me, you’ll have been somewhat flummoxed in recent times by the varying cuts and lengths of men’s trousers. How long should they be? How narrow should they be? Nobody seems to know. You’d think the optimum size of a pair of trousers would be based on the length and girth of the legs that were wearing them. Sadly, it’s not this simple.
When I was growing up, as a teenager in the noughties, you really knew where you were. Trousers were all baggy and jeans were all boot-cut. It was cool if your trousers hung over your shoes. In fact, the really cool people – of whom I was not one – had their jeans hanging so low over their shoes that the hem got frayed from dragging along the ground. When it rained, the bottom of your trousers got wet and grubby. Those were the days.
Now, we’re faced with a full spectrum of styles and fits. Some of you will no doubt be sporting trousers of a fairly full cut, rolled up several turns and flashing much sock and maybe even some leg. Others will have squeezed yourselves into trousers that end just above the ankle and that are so skinny they’re probably cutting off your circulation. I know this might seem like a wondrous period of sartorial freedom – an open and pluralistic age in which you’re free to wear whatever the hell you want and no one will bat an eyelid. But for those of us of a more conservative bent, this degree of choice is actually rather a nuisance.
Yes, believe it or not, there are people in this world who like rules, traditions and structure. We don’t all want to float about at music festivals as though we’re in a socialist utopia, nor turn every last building into an open-plan, co-working space. Have you ever tried studying in a library while there’s a mother-and-baby group singing “Old MacDonald” across the one, enormous undivided room? I have. It’s f**king chaos! Any thought of trying to concentrate on your work is a pipe dream. Bring back shushing librarians, I say. Well, likewise, the world of menswear is now such a limitless free-for-all that it can be quite hard to function.
Read the complete article at Menswear Style, an online men’s fashion and lifestyle magazine and one of the leading digital publications in the UK.
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