What to wear when you can’t wear shorts: 7 Styles of Summer Pants

Whether it’s a workplace dress code, dressing up for a date, or trying to keep the sun (and bugs) off your legs, sometimes you just can’t (or don’t want to) wear shorts. These are the pants to pick for those summer occasions when your shorts have to stay on the shelf.

 

Lighter (& Brighter) Cotton or Cotton-Blend Chinos

• Bonobos Lightweight Chinos – $99
• JCF Slim or Straight-fit TruTemp365 Chino Pant – $59
• Buck Mason Poplin Pants – $148
• BR Slim Core Temp Pants – $100
• BR Factory Summerweight Chinos – $40ish

Pros: Often cheaper than the other options. Easy to launder. Often available in fun, brighter, seasonal colors. Looks great dressed up or dressed down.

Cons: Can feel a little more stuffy compared to performance fabric, linen, and wool. If they’re 100% cotton or mainly cotton, they won’t dry quick.

 

Linen or Linen-Cotton Blend Trousers

• J. Crew Classic Fit Linen Trousers – $62.50 (128) (similar to above)
• Spier & Mackay Cotton Linen Dress Trousers – $134.30 ($158)
• Nordstrom Flat Front Linen Blend Chinos – $89.50
• Abercrombie Straight Fit Linen Blend Pants – $80
• Spier & Mackay Cotton-Linen Chinos – $74.80 ($88)
• Lands’ End Linen Cotton Side-Tab Trousers – $49.97 w/ SHOP50 ($99.95)
• Old Navy Straight Linen-Blend Chino Pants – $34.99 ($49.99)
• GAP Linen-Cotton Pants – $30.60 w/ ADDON ($59.95)

Pros: Linen has been used as a hot-weather fabric for thousands of years because of its breathability. Can be cheaper than some other fabrics (wool, some performance materials). Has that telltale texture which looks and feels summery.

Cons: Wrinkles like crazy. Cheaper options in lighter shades can sometimes be translucent.

 

E-Waist (aka dock / deck / pier pants)

• Lands’ End Deck Pants – $34.97 w/ SHOP50 ($69.95) (above)
• Made in the USA Save Khaki Twill Easy Drawstring Chino – $150
• Marine Layer Saturday Stretch Beach Pant – $128
• Abercrombie Loose Linen-Blend Pull-On Pant – $80
• J. Crew Pier Pants in Cotton-Linen Blend – $56.50 FINAL ($118)
• Target Goodfellow Straight Fit Pull-On Pants – $30
• Old Navy Straight Everyday Flex-Waist Pants – $21.99 ($44.99)

Pros: Super comfortable. On-trend… until they’re not. Found in a variety of fabrics, but it’s the elastic waist which makes them bridge the formality gap between shorts and trousers.

Cons: Has a very low ceiling for dressing up. Not flattering in the opinion of some.

 

Oxford Cloth Pants

• J. Crew Slim or Straight Fit Tech Oxford Pants – $44.50 FINAL ($128) (above)
• Made in the USA American Trench Oxford Pants – $158

Pros: Made in the same pindot-looking oxford weave your favorite OCBD shirt comes in. Made in lighter/brighter colors. Easy to dress up or down.

Cons: While they are comfortable, they don’t wick like a tech/performance fabric pant will, or breathe quite as well as linen in suffocating heat and humidity. Great for drier climates, and they certainly LOOK summery. Not as widely available, as most brands stick to regular cotton chino fabrics.

 

Performance Fabric “Chinos”/5 pockets

• Dick’s VRST Limitless Slim or Athletic Fit Pants – $88 (above)
  
• Dick’s VRST Limitless Slim or Athletic Fit 5-Pocket Pants – $88
• lululemon ABC Warpstreme 5-Pocket Pants or Trousers – $128
• Old Navy Slim Fit Or Straight Fit “tech hybrid” 5 Pockets – $43.99 – $54.99
• Target All in Motion 360 Lifestyle Trouser Pants – $40
• GAP “Hybrid” Pants – $35.10 w/ ADDON ($79.95)

Pros: Science! Engineered fibers breathe, wick, and stretch. More expensive versions of these tend to have a gusset, which makes moving around extra comfortable.

Cons: Can get expensive in a hurry. Cheaper options can sometimes make a “swish swish” noise when you walk.

 

Linen-Cotton or Summer-Weight Cotton “Jeans”

• BR Slim Linen-Cotton Traveler Pants – $90 – $130 (above)
• Bonobos Coastal 5-Pocket Pants – $139
• Bonobos Stretch Lightweight Jeans – $119
• BR Factory Summerweight Jeans – $45ish
• Old Navy Slim Lightweight Traveler Jean – $40ish

Pros: Great warm-weather alternatives for jeans-addicts. Delivers some texture in the warmer months, especially if they have linen woven in.

Cons: Often heavier/stiffer feeling than the other options on this list as these are built off a brand’s jeans or other 5-pocket templates.

 

Tropical/Fresco Wool Trousers

• Spier & Mackay Tropical Wool Trousers – $102.40 ($128) (above)
• J. Crew Relaxed-fit Trouser in Italian Tropical Wool – $199.50 ($298)
• Banana Republic Italian Wool Ventile Trouser – $200
• Todd Snyder Tropical Wool Trousers – $268
• Suitsupply Tropical Wool Havana Fit Suit – $499
• PROOF 72 Hour Merino Blend Pants – $168 (a rare 5-pocket style)

Pros: Wool = the ultimate performance fabric, and tropical or “fresco” wool is lighter in weight, crisp, and breathable.

Cons: Significantly more expensive than the other options. Also, not as versatile as they can look out of place with a t-shirt and sneakers.

 

BONUS: Subtle Hiking / EDC Pants

• PROOF EDC Pants – $64 – $96 ($128) (above)
• KUHL Silencr Pants – $99
• Patagonia Sandy Cay Pants – $109

Pros: We see you, cargo shorts crowd. And just like cargos, these have extra-pockets too. Although modern designers have gotten creative in helping those pockets stylistically blend in. As these are made for hiking or working hard in, they should be rugged but also breathable and flexible.

Cons: Can’t really dress them up thanks to those random zippers, extra pockets, etc. hanging about. They’re also often a bit heavier than other options due to their ruggedness.

 

Also related:

• How To Sweat Less – 10 Tips for perspiring less while dressed to impress
• 10 Men’s Summer Style mistakes
• How to Dress Really Well when it’s Really Hot