Dappered

Affordable Men's Style

The $1500 Wardrobe – Pants

By | Heads up: Buying via our links may result in us getting a commission. Here's why.

Pants – The $1500 Wardrobe Part IV

Creating a versatile, sharp wardrobe doesn’t happen overnight.  By far, the best course of action is to go slow.  But for argument’s sake, let’s say you have to start from scratch. Today.  Over the next 5 days we’ll see how far a strict budget of $1500 can go.  It won’t be easy, some corners will have to be cut, and not every last stitch of clothing (like underwear) will be covered. But the goal is finish with a setup of clothes that can have someone looking great in most situations.  Remember, we’re playing with a total of $1500 here.  So the  focus will be on real affordable goods which can last with reasonable care.  Also, remember that 90% of looking good is fit, and tailoring costs can vary wildly. So those haven’t been added to the final cost.

 

Jeans: Levi’s 511 (slim), 514 (sorta slim), or 505 (straight) – $35.20 w/ GIFT20 ($44)

1500 jeans

There’s hardly a better value in men’s style than a pair of dark wash Levi’s. Once reserved for working (on the railroad or otherwise), denim can now be dressed up quite a bit… as long as it’s dark and free of fading, rips, and tears. Pair it with a sportcoat, or with a collared shirt + sweater combo, and don’t be afraid to wear dress shoes with your dark denim. For the real slim guys, try the 511. If you’ve got a good chunk of muscle on your legs, try the straight fit 505. 514s are somewhere in-between, but know that the rise is pretty low and plenty don’t like that.

 

Chinos: Gap Straight Fit Khaki – $41.97 w/ GAPMORE ($59.95)

1500 chinos

As great as Bonobos are, they’re pricey. And not in the budget right now. You’re looking for a straight or slim fit cotton pant that can work in a business casual workplace, yet is a shade that won’t make you look like a Best Buy employee if you wear a blue polo with it. The standard, almost graham cracker like khaki color that is synonymous with late 90’s Dockers is an okay shade… but muted versions of brown, green, even red look better on most. And don’t give up grey either.

 

Wool Trousers: Wear your suits more often (or, wear the pants separately) 

1500 wool trousers

While a pair of suit pants worn away from its jacket mate looks much better than the reverse situation, why not just wear the whole thing if given the opportunity? Meaning: If you bought a suit or two, don’t let them rot in your closet. Get em’ out and wear them. If you think it’ll look too buttoned up for the occasion, lose the tie. And practice really does make perfect, even when it comes to wearing a suit. Guys who wear a suit only once or twice a year, no matter how nice the cut, fabric, and tailoring is, don’t always look the most comfortable. You gotta live in the thing a little bit. So while stand alone wool trousers aren’t a bad idea for plenty, consider wearing your suits more. If you do choose to wear the suit pants on their own with say, a sweater + button up, try to do so sparingly. You risk wearing out the pants well before the jacket.

TOTAL COST: $77.17
CASH REMAINING: $134.42

Upcoming Categories: The Rest.

Comments

  1. When you get a custom tailored suit, the tailor will often make an extra pair of trousers because they wear and tear almost twice as fast as jackets. So saying to just wear the trousers separately doesn’t quite work.

    I know you’re running really low on your budget, but a $40 pair of Bar 3 grey wool slacks from Macys would work wonders.

  3. About to jump on some Dockers Alpha Khaki’s after reading reviews and they have a solid sale right now… Can anyone give me their thoughts on those?

  4. On the JCFactory suits that I’ve purchased for cheap <$200, I've purchased an extra set of pants. I make sure to keep the extra pants separate from the suit, so that the other suit pants and jacket wear evenly.

  5. I have to sing the praises of the Levis 513 cut. Slimmer and definitely more tapered than the 514, but no where near as tight as the 511. I use to swear by 514s, but I got sick of how huge the leg opening is on a true straight cut.

  6. Have to agree. If you’re like most people and you hang a suit coat on the back of the chair as soon as you hit the office, you’re already going to have problems with uneven wear–especially if it’s a cheaper suit. Wearing the pants alone often without the jacket will make things even worse.

  7. J Crew Factory chinos are cheaper than the GAP ones. And the Levi’s 508 is a good alternative to the 514 for the folks who want more taper but with a higher rise.

  8. Levi’s 508 are the only jeans I wear now. 14.25″ leg opening but with enough room through the thigh for guys who have ever done a squat. I grabbed a pair of American Eagle Premium Original Taper jeans this weekend (on sale for $37 from $79) and they have almost the exact same cut as the 508s. We’ll see how they hold up.

  9. I love Alpha Khaki’s. My go to khaki pant. Great taper, but with room in the thigh. Like the Levi’s 508 khaki step brother.

  11. I think it does work IF… you’re like a lot of guys and don’t wear a suit, or even wool trousers unless you want to.

    I know one of the major faults of this site is leaning towards an “everyone works in an office” culture. Not everyone works in an office. Some people work in an office… sometimes. And even those who work in an office, the ol’ wool trouser might be foreign. Many if not most wear casual cotton pants, not wool, to work if they’re employed inside an HVAC regulated structure. So there might be some disconnect there with who this $1500 wardrobe is being written for.

    For example, your mention about getting a custom tailored suit. That’s a great point. But it’s not really applicable to most of us who have… never even considered getting a custom tailored suit.

  13. This.

    In the internships I’ve had (I’m still in university), if I’d worn wool pants (outside of my one suit, I don’t have any) I would have been the only person in facilities with 500+ people wearing slacks. Whether I would like a custom suit or not, I’m certainly not going to crawl around an industrial chemical plant wearing one,

  15. I recently purchased the gap chinos and everything seemed to fit great while standing and really liked how they looked but after test driving them at work, they cut into the crotch area so bad while sitting I had to return them it was so uncomfortable. I then bought the relaxed fit and had the same issue. Would this be caused by a short rise or what? I can’t figure it out and it drove me crazy last week. Still in search of some basic chinos

  16. Could be a short rise. Although I’ve found usually that results in my shirt coming untucked constantly and feeling like my ass might be hanging out. I too struggle with finding a solid pair of chinos that fit me well in the leg, waist, and rise all at the same time. Too many straight or slim/straight pants are paired with a ridiculously low rise. I need Levis 505 as chinos. Did just pick up some Lands End tailored khakis. Waist and Rise are good, but not completely thrilled with the leg. Not enough room in the thigh. For the record, I wear 34/30s and have bigger thighs.

  17. Thanks Mike. Yeah, I’m not sure what’s going on but I’m the same way. If I could just find chinos that fit like my jeans…Will have to check out the Lands End chinos. I am a 34/34, bigger thighs as well.

  18. I too was a fan of the 514’s but got sick of the leg opening as well. Ever since trying the 505’s, there is no going back. I am a pretty slim guy, but my thighs are pretty hefty (I love the squat rack), so I can barely pull the 511/513’s up to my waist without sizing up, then the waist is too big and bunches up when tightened with a belt. The 505’s are just right!

  19. I looked at those LE slim chinos on their sale, and avoided getting them because they looked so slim in the legs. They would’ve looked ridiculous on me.

    I did end up getting a pair of tailored fit (perhaps?) “faded navy” chinos instead and the fit is great on me. I compared them to the cut of the BR vintage straight fit chinos I have and they are almost exact, (except that the BR pants have a bit of stretch to them, which is nice and makes them feel softer).

  20. Just a note – I’ve had consistent luck finding dark wash 514’s up here in Canada at Costco for $25. Of course that requires a Costco membership but if you happen to have access to one it’s worth a look.

  22. +1 for the extra pair of pants. I’m old enough to have bought several Brooks 346 “made to measure” suits back in the day, and always got an extra pair of pants. Especially when buying lighter shades. It was worth it then, and it’s easy and cheap now in the age of off-the-rack “separates.”

  23. I was looking forward to this because I absolutely LOATHE shopping for pants. Nothing does more to damage my ego than putting on a bunch of pairs of pants that make me look like an eggplant. Kind of bummed all it ended up saying was “wear your suit.”

  24. I think his point was that trousers wear out quickly and if you wear your suit out you’ve just blown $500 of your $1500 budget that could have been used for a lot of more versatile product.

    Even if you don’t wear out your trousers, wearing suit pants in a regular rotation (and not wearing your jacket) is going to fade them and make the suit irregular.

  25. How is the fit though? Slim fits are tough for my cyclist’s thighs, but “regular fit” makes everybody look like an old man.

  26. If you’re looking for low-cost wool dress pants, Banana Republic has a wonderful selection for under $100, before discounts.

    If you’re looking for low-cost cotton pants, Gap or BR has a nice selection of chinos for around $50/pair, before discounts.

  27. I’m on the 513 bandwagon, too. The leg opening is way better than the 514, and 505s are just a bit baggy for me. It’s not as though I have small legs, either — I’ve got 26″ thighs and 18″ calves, and a pair of 513s in a 36 waist (if I dropped to ~15% body fat, I could squeeze into a 34, probably) are just about perfect on my legs — they hug without restricting, unless I try to do squats in them.

  28. BR wool seems to do strange things to me in the crotchal region. A good fit otherwise, but when I try them on it looks like 40 arrows are pointing at my parts. Frustrating.

  30. I go with Levis 550. For me, a relaxed fit is important. I’m not that young any more and a slimmer jean cut doesn’t do my figure justice.

  31. The great Catch 22: Do I take the office job where I could wear the custom suits, or the chemical engineering position where I could afford them?

    As it is, I’m okay being the guy wearing an OCBD and chinos and being the worker who looks presentable if the regulatory agencies happen to walk through. 🙂