Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette!
Today's video, we discuss chinos and khakis, what colors to buy, what to avoid, how to
wear them, the history, and anything else you wanted to know about this classic style
staple.
So first of all, what's a khaki?
What's a chino?
What's the difference between them?
In a nutshell, khakis are khaki colored, cotton twill pants, as you can see here.
Chinos are a bit dressier than khakis and they come in other colors such as navy, sand,
Nantucket red, or baby blue.
Today, the two terms are often used interchangeably even though there are slight differences.
We'll discuss them in this video.
First off, let's talk about the history of khaki pants.
Just like many other items in men's wardrobe such as madras, seersucker, or jodhpurs, khakis
have an Indian heritage.
In 1848, the corps of guides wore it as part of their uniform in India.
In the 19th century, a British military had realized that their scarlet red uniforms looked
really great, but it also made them easily visible to their enemies and so they realized
it was time for a change.
the uniforms also soiled very easily whereas the dust-colored pants of the Indian uniforms
never looked dirty.
The word khaki is derived from Hindi and means as much as dust-colored or soil colored which
explains the perfect name for the khaki pants.
For the same reason, khaki pants today are still within a spectrum of dust and sand-colored,
never anything else.
Enamored with the looks of khaki pants, the British military adopted it as part of their
uniform for the Mahdist War and the second world war.
For more history about khaki pants and chinos and how they made they way from India, over
Britain, to the US, please check out our in-depth guide here.
Today, Chinos and khakis are one of the most popular men's pants on the planet because
they've been adopted by many companies as their standard dress code which falls in between
super casual and formal.
So now, let's take a closer look at the hallmarks of khaki pants.
First of all, they come in flat front styles and pleated styles.
There is no right or wrong, it simply depends on what your legs look like.
If you have thin legs, flat front may look very pleasing, whereas if you have bigger
thighs, a pleated khaki gives you more room and is more comfortable and looks better.
Typically, cotton twill is made from cotton twill material and it's very sturdy and they're
very tight weave so it's not very breathable.
It's very popular with big companies such as target or best buy and they usually mix
polyester or other artificial fibers to the cotton to make them more sturdy.
If you want to wear them as dress pants or as casual pants, I suggest you stick with
100% cotton, they're more comfortable on your skin and you'll sweat less.
Khakis are a great alternative to wool dress pants especially in the summer and because
it's usually a heavier material, they don't wrinkle as much as regular cotton.
Traditionally, they always have belt loops and never suspender buttons.
They're very easy to take care of, you don't have to bring them to the dry cleaner, you
can just launder them in your washing machine.
They match really well with polo shirts, long sleeve or short sleeve.
You can wear them with dress shirts such as button down colored shirts, even regular dress
shirts that you wear unbuttoned but you can even wear a tie with them and a blazer.
Right now, I'm wearing chinos with a navy jacket, an ascot, and a pocket square which
makes for a perfect business casual outfit in more relaxed environments.
If you want to learn more about the business casual dress code, please check out our in-depth
guide, here.
Now let's talk about chinos, the name chino is derived from China, which is where the
pants were made really popular.
Ultimately, they were a little dressier than khakis but today, they're basically the same
thing.
The big difference with chinos is the color variety.
As you can see here, chinos come in different colors.
Navy, light blue, Nantucket red, or sand, you can even add light pastel colors in green
or yellow.
They sometimes also come as the "Go to hell" pants and if you want to learn more about
this specific style that has its origins in the prep culture, please check out this guide.
Chinos have belt loops, zip fly, can have pleats, and usually have cuffs.
Of course, you don't need turn ups or cuffs and sometimes they come without them.
Personally, I like them because they add a little more weight and it means the pants
fall more nicely and drape more beautifully.
Most chinos come with either a one inch or one and a half inch cuff, personally, I think
that's not enough and I prefer a 2 inch cuff.
While some may think that it's not classic, if you look back at the 30s, 40s, 50s, that's
actually what men wore and seomtimes the cuffs were even bigger.
If you want larger cuffs and you cannot find the pants, simply get a longer pair and then
use the excess material to have your alterations tailor create the turn ups.
One thing that's often confused as khakis or chinos are the so-called cargo pants.
Especially in the IT field, men wear these cargo pants with patched pockets and they
think those are chinos and khakis and appropriate for office wear, but in fact, they're not.
They're good for construction workers where functionality is key and you need all the
pockets to store your stuff but in an office environment, they're simply wrong.
Of course, many brands today use the terms khakis or chinos as part of their brand name
and so you can find denim chinos, or corduroy chinos but technically, they're not chinos
or khakis, they're just something else renamed.
Last but not the least, how should you wear and combine khakis and chinos?
Personally, I love to wear them in a more casual setting with boat shoes, without socks
and a polo shirt, however, you can also wear them with a dress shirt, always wear a belt,
ideally some brown shoes and in terms of style, I would say a derby, a monk, loafer, or even
a pair of boots look really well.
You should avoid black especially with khaki tones because it clashes even though it creates
a contrast.
If you want something darker, go with a dark brown, burgundy, oxblood red shoe color.
In terms of shirt fabrics, you can go with solids, you can pair it with Bengal stripes
which are wider stripes, finer stripes, small checks, just what I'm wearing right now.
You can also wear oxford cloth button down shirts which is great because of the 2 tone
look of the fabric and it works well with khakis because they share the casual nature
of the garment.
You can wear it with a necktie, ideally a more casual necktie such as knit ties, grenadine,
shantung.
You can also go with bow ties to make it more colorful, maybe not in the business casual
setting, in a board meeting but, in any other situations.
When you want a business casual outfit, colors to stick with are sand, khakis, maybe light
gray.
Avoid navy if you wear a blazer because the colors won't be identical and it will clash.
You always want a certain amount of contrast.
Colors like Nantucket red and baby blue are not really suited for the office, they're
better for the beach, garden parties, and summer events.
Another color with a military heritage is Olive green, I personally like it a lot during
fall because it works well with autumn colors however, for the office, I think it's not
quite suited.
So if you want to learn more about khakis and chinos, please check out our in-depth
guide on our website here.
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