Style on Wednesday
Kick-flares, culottes & cords ... the ultimate rules for trousers
LISA ARMSTRONG CROPPED KICK FLARES
I used to hate my feet. We argued all the time. We almost broke up when I went through a flippy-hemmed pencil skirt phase, because the feet couldn’t be doing with the pointy stilettos. You can’t wear a flippy-hemmed pencil skirt with flats. Not when you’re 5ft 3¾in.
Enter kick flares – not the exaggerated bells, but the barely perceptible speech marks that frame your ankles. I love them because they’re neat and deceptive – a thigh balancing flare without any flappy excess. They’re also feminine. Team them with a silky blouse with a neck tie and the overall effect is sleek and glamorous – not unlike the flippy-hemmed pencil skirt, but more modern and gamine.
You have to get the length exactly right – just on or above your ankle, but if you’re small, taking trousers to be shortened is second nature. I love them with mules or slim ankle boots, and they even work with some (thick soled) trainers.
I also like the way you can go bare legged into late winter – a cosy sweater or jacket plus a glimpse of bare foot is quite doable until November, at which point you can break out your wardrobe of ankle socks.
Weirdly, there are always fewer kick flares around than there are flares and skinnies. But Joseph, Me & Em, Goat, Arket, Zara, Whistles and Alexander Mcqueen usually sort me out for a pair or two. You only need a few to see you through.
KRISSY TURNER CULOTTES
While many would argue that culottes aren’t appropriate post-september, I beg to differ.
I wear mine year round as they work equally well with sliders, trainers, and ankle boots, and – when the temperature drops – with heeled knee-high boots, which has lately become my favourite combination.
I find the wide cropped cut of culottes singularly flattering; they skim my thighs and hit an inch or two above my ankle, giving the illusion that my legs are that slim all the way up. They’re also surprisingly versatile – think of culottes as an alternative to a midi skirt, without the extra hassle of choosing shoes to match, as the loose fit offers a more casual feel. However, if you’re like me and can’t stand a skirt or dress being longer than your coat, culottes also create that same dilemma, so I pair mine with ankle skimming coats.
My favourites are largely from COS and Zara; I’ve worn the latter’s smart, navy high-waisted culottes nearly to death. Currently in my shopping basket is a velvet pleated pair from & Other Stories which will come in handy over party season.
OLIVIA BUXTON SMITH FLARES
Flared trousers have become my wardrobe saviour. I couldn’t tell you exactly when it happened, or what the catalyst for my move away from narrower styles was, just that I have accumulated quite the collection over a short period of time.
As a tall person – 5ft 9in to be exact – flares work well for me, emphasising my leg length and, unlike straight leg or cropped trousers, never coming up too short. Among my favourites are a pair of indigo flared jeans by BDG – the affordable denim line stocked at Urban Outfitters (a purchase made all the sweeter because they were
£7 in the sale), a black velvety pair from M.i.h Jeans (the brand’s signature Marrakesh trouser), and some navy wide-leg trousers from & Other Stories. Worn with a silk shirt or ruffled blouse, all of these provide the base for an easy -desk-to-dinner outfit.
The most flattering styles skim the thigh (rather than gripping or gaping) and flare out to cover about two thirds of your shoe. And the beauty of flared trousers is that you aren’t restricted when it comes to footwear. Trainers, loafers, platforms, sleek knee-high boots or chunky ankle styles. Take your pick.
CHARLIE GOWANS-EGLINTON PYJAMA TROUSERS
Packing for a fleeting 48-hour visit to Los Angeles a few weeks ago, I found myself dithering over what to wear on the plane, especially as I was coming straight to the office from my return flight. My solution was a pair of printed pyjama trousers (though read Isabel Spearman’s column, below, for more corporate friendly options). As I was turning right, not left, I didn’t want the faff of changing on the plane, and my actual PJ bottoms, sold as a set at Liberty, were both comfortable enough to sleep in and to arrive at the office in – I just layered a navy blazer from Frame over the top to smarten them up. I wore mine with a pointed flat shoe, though if you’re willowier than me you can probably get away with trainers.
I now see no reason why I shouldn’t be so supremely comfortable all the time, especially as silk trousers look so much smarter than jeans. It’s worth investing in quality, as 100 per cent silk pairs won’t cling or bag around the bum.
Prints are much more forgiving than block colours and will disguise any wobbly bits, since there’s no holding-in magic where silk’s involved
– Liberty has brilliant prints, and if you’ve got the budget, try For Restless Sleepers.
And though they’re mostly sold as sets, I’d avoid wearing them as one, unless it’s for evening with a jewelled shoe and big pair of earrings – team the trousers with a crisp white cotton shirt and a blazer for day, and save the matching blouse for the weekends when you can tuck it into jeans.
SARAH ROYCE-GREENSILL WIDE-LEG TROUSERS
I’ve always been more of a skirt or jeans girl – to me, “proper” trousers had a whiff of school uniform about them. Various attempts at finding a well-fitting pair on the high street left me unconvinced – but at some point I decided I needed a more “grown up” work wardrobe, and a pair of high-waisted, wideleg trousers from Zara were my saviour. Zipping up to the narrowest part of my waist just above my belly-button, they’re plain black with two big gold buttons and are the most flattering pair of trousers I own.
Counter-intuitively, the wide legs are slimming, the widest point further emphasising the nipped-in waist. I’m tallish (5ft 7in), and I wear them with a pair of three-inch chunky-heeled ankle boots, so the leg-lengthening effect doesn’t go unnoticed. I wish I’d bought a second pair and had them shortened to wear with trainers.
Since then I’ve added crushed velvet and mustard-yellow pairs to my wide leg wardrobe – the former became a Christmas party staple last year paired with a silk shirt or lacetrimmed camisole, while the latter were a more modern alternative to dresses for summer events, worn with a slightly cropped top to expose the tiniest sliver of flesh: another trend I said I’d never succumb to.
Fickle maybe, but that’s the wonder of wide-leg trousers.
CAROLINE LEAPER CORDUROY
With about 20 pairs of jeans in circulation at any one time, it would be fair to describe me as a bit of a denim addict. But when Marc Jacobs, Isabel Marant, Mulberry et al put corduroy on the catwalk for autumn, I tuned in. Never, ever, would I personally want a pair of beige geography teacheresque cords. But the new incarnations come in exciting colours and flattering cuts. In many cases, I can see, they could act as a direct, more on-trend substitute for my beloved jeans.
The construction of corduroy fabric is just as hard-wearing and satisfyingly stiff as denim, and most cord trousers have the familiar, bum-defining pockets. In indigo, black, or pale grey, you can mindlessly style them with everything you would wear with jeans, rendering this the easiest fashion update ever. On the high street, new label The Cords is wholly dedicated to helping you make the switch, allowing you to shop their trousers by shape (boot cut, straight, skinny – all your favourite jean silhouettes are there) as well as by colour – why not branch out into wine red or khaki? Just as with denim, there’s something out there for every budget and, just as with denim, they’ll suit everyone.
BIBBY SOWRAY CIGARETTE TROUSERS
I spent so many years wearing skinny jeans that when I finally decided to ease myself out of them – a decision that came with career progression, age and a changing body shape – I needed a happy medium. That’s what tailored cigarette trousers are. They’re slim in the leg, so not too far a departure, but ultimately far more flattering because they skim any lumps and bumps to create a neat, tapered silhouette. They need to be cropped just above the ankle and a crisp crease down the centre of each leg is essential; without this they have a tendency to just look like chinos. If I need to be super-smart for work, I wear them with a pyjamastyle blazer or shirt and backless Gucci loafers, if not then I dress them down with Adidas Gazelles and a plain T-shirt or my favourite oversized roll-neck jumper.
My four-year-old navy and black pairs from Zara are the most-worn (they’ve both been repaired multiple times), but I also have a couple in colourful printed jacquards, from COS and Jcrew, and a tuxedo-style pair with a satin stripe that are perfect for dressier occasions.