work pants Archives - Gindi Vincent

You may not have a job that has a dress code like mine.

But a lot of you do.

And that means your work uniform includes full length professional work trousers on most days.

Maybe you pair it with a sweater and flats or a blazer and heels, but trousers are one of the most critical staples in a working woman’s wardrobe.

Do you know what I found?

My staple pants were WORN OUT.

Those things that don’t catch our eye in the store window don’t regularly get replaced, and there’s nothing less interesting than a pair of black work trousers.

Yet there’s nothing more important.

So we wear our neutral work trousers week after week and month after month and they get pretty dilapidated.

Which means on today’s Fashion Friday we’re sounding off on where we’ve found the BEST WORK PANTS.

First things first. Go through every single pair of pants hanging in your closet. Seriously.

Which ones haven’t you worn in two years (or longer) because they don’t fit right? Get rid of them. Which ones are faded or torn or pilling or stained? Get rid of them. (In the trash. A woman in need doesn’t need your worn out old pants.)

Then, assess what you need. Are you down to one pair of black or camel? No navy or ivory or gray anymore? Check what you need and go shopping.

You can absolutely try on-line but pants vary from store to store and even cut to cut within a store.

You may need different styles or fabrics depending on the formality of your work place but look for a few basics:

1. Mid rise, straight legged trouser. We’ve talked ankle pants and how to unique up your wardrobe but in your basic work trousers that work for all seasons and all events you need to stay basic. These from Nordstrom’s are that simple, the Halogen are a hundred dollars less than the Classiques Entier but the later will hold up for years:

2. Fabric with staying power. This is harder. One of my biggest pet peeves is getting a new pair of work pants and watching them attract every piece of link it’s ever seen. It just happened to me with a beautiful pair of wool pants from Talbot’s. Some fabrics fade and some look cheap. Stick to simple fabrics in simple colors. This takes some experimentation. I love the way crepe works for a more formal work environment (these from BOSS are too pricey for my wardrobe) but these Editor pants from Express (for $69!) have a sturdy fabric that I expect to wear well for a long time.

3. Specialty stores and get to know what suits you. If you go from women’s specialty store to specialty store you will see every style, fit, cut, and fabric. Find a store that generally cuts a pant to suit your figure and keep going back. Now they’ll change up their cut and styling periodically and throw you a curve ball, but at least you have a starting place. I’ve had luck with Banana Republic (because I’m tall) and I used to shop Ann Taylor (because I’m not narrow), but the latter is doing bizarre stuff now. There are a lot of size and height options at J. Crew still (though many wouldn’t work for traditional work spaces). And you may have notice above that Express, hello store I haven’t visited since 1992, has a decent suite of work wardrobing items now.

This is where we need you: Where do you buy your work pants? Petite or tall? Narrow or curvy? What store, brand, or style do you love best for work?