Let’s start with the basics first, men’s pant sizes. The first battleground is, do we talk in imperial or metric measurements. This blog is aimed at an Australian audience, and Australia converted to metric in the 1970’s so we will talk metric for men’s pants. For men’s dress pants and men’s chinos, waist measurements start at 77cm and can continue to 182cm waist depending on the brand and how committed they are to fit most of the market or all of the market. Most of the audience will be between 77cm to 117cm waist. The next thing to look for is, does the pant come in more than one leg length. Sadly the majority of brands only come in one size length. However, regular and short fittings can be found with brands more fit committed.
Examples City Club and Bracks. A further note worth mentioning is due to metric conversion one brand may have a size 96cm waist, and another brand may have a 97cm waist. 1cm is probably the difference between before lunch and after lunch, therefore treat them as the same size. 1cm on a waist is neither here nor there.
What is the rise on a trouser? Simply it is the measurement between where the seams that meet at the crutch then up the front to the top of the waistband, this is the front rise. The back rise is the same principle except it measures up over the seat to the top of the band. To accommodate a man’s buttock shape, the back rise will always be slightly longer than the front rise. Also, the front rise can then cope to a degree with wearers having the waistband sit under their tummy.
What is the silhouette of the pant? It is where you will notice the shape of the trouser, looking from the side on you will see whether the pant is slim, more regular, or a roomy fit, hence labelling, i.e. slim fit, tapered fit, bootleg, classic fit etc. Understandably a classic fit may also have a higher rise often sought by a more mature aged man.
What is the inleg on pants? A short or regular fitting is determined by the inleg, the measurement from the crutch to the end of the pant leg. The out leg measurement is the top of the waistband to the end of the pant leg. Example 92cm short fitting may have a 77cm inleg, and a 92cm regular fitting may have an 84cm inleg. Thus there is 4 to 5cm between regular and short fittings.
Men’s Chino Pants
Chinos are a trendy item, but they are a casual pant as opposed to a dress pant. The men’s chino pants available today come as a pant style with side pockets or as a jean style with front pockets. Again finding a choice of leg lengths is sometimes an issue. Today’s cotton chinos can be very comfortable as many come with 1, 2 or 3% Elastane or Spandex to give added stretch. Extras to look out for are a fob pocket for loose change, button-down back pockets for security and unique waistbands with internal stretch for extra comfort and choice of two leg lengths. For colour, the vast majority will be earth tones, i.e. stone, sand, beige, tan etc. plus a good dose of navy, black and shades of grey. Black chinos are often used as workwear.
Men’s Dress Pants
Whether you call them men’s dress pants or men’s business trousers or suit pants, they are the same. The most significant difference between cotton chinos and dress pants is the fabric choice for dress pants, stating from cheapest to dearest. 100% polyester, poly/ viscose, wool blended with synthetic, pure wool, merino wool. The fabric has the most considerable impact on the price; the second impact is the quality of make and attention to a good fit. Also country of origin and volume is a price factor. For colour you may have noticed the is an abundance of black, charcoal and navy; however, the bracks pants have a lot more colour options than other brands. Extras to look out for are Flexi, or Ezi fit waistbands with internal elastic at the sides of the band. Fob pockets, buttoned-down rear pockets. Choice of two leg lengths. Other options are pleated trousers, not currently prevalent in mainstream fashion but sought after by some mature gentlemen. It comes with no surprise that black dress pants are the biggest selling colour and at our store, we stock many fabric choices.
Men’s Pant Size Charts
Below is an example of a pant size chart. The waist measurement may well be consistent between brands; however, the in-leg measurement and leg openings will vary from brand to brand.
To Summarise
Finding men’s pants that fit boils down to what brand has the most silhouette shapes and the most size options. We recommend that you see our offer at Business Shirts Plus regarding the right chino pant or dress pant for you and recommend the City Club brand as a strong contender for your next pant purchase.
