Teh One Who Knocks
06-04-2019, 10:59 AM
By Tyler Watamanuk - GQ Magazine
https://i.imgur.com/nWCi6eDh.jpg
Not too long ago, men turned to one of two options for pants: skinny jeans with names like Petit Standard or slim-cut chinos that resembled a slightly cooler pair of old-school Dockers. (Both choices, naturally, were neatly pin-rolled with the precision of a professional cigar roller.) But flash forward to 2019, and pants have gotten both delightfully eccentric and extremely fashionable. There are wavy pleated trousers, luxurious warm-ups, and the rugged-but-fashionable work pants. However, the most surprisingly stylish pants in the mix are something else entirely. To explain, we need to use an extremely technical menswear term: welcome to the golden age of the swishy pant.
The swishy pant can be a lot of things, but it is usually made of ripstop nylon or polyester, comes in a breezy, relaxed fit with a slight taper at the bottom, and features an elasticated waistband. (The nickname comes the swishy sound made by the ripstop fabric.) There are also sometimes side-zippers or elastic cuffs at the ankles, and another telltale sign is that the pant usually comes in outrageous colors or bold patterns. An excellent real-world example is this pair of pastel purple warm-ups made by Acne Studios. They've got it all: groovy color, shiny fabric, and slouchy fit. In fact, comedian and loud streetwear fanatic Pete Davidson found these exact pants so irresistible during a GQ photo shoot and that he wore them home with him from the photoshoot. (It's OK, Pete—looking at those pants, we don't blame you.)
The style comes in a range of prices, too, from Stüssy’s $100 “Drift” pant to a pair of $815 “Garbardin” trousers made by Prada. Browse through the recent collections of most brands, and you’ll spot the swish: from big names like Stone Island and Moncler to smaller labels like Rhude and Kiko Kostadinov. The Swoosh makes swish, naturally. If you’re looking for a pair in tangerine orange or banana yellow, you won’t have to look far. Perhaps ones with exaggerated cargo pockets and an elongated drawstring? Here you go. This is all to say that designers have expanded the idea of the nylon track pant into something bolder and more extroverted, just the type of garment that fits right in with the big brazen sneakers and loud camp-collar shirts we spend our days in.
https://i.imgur.com/LUvNiau.png
And there's no better time than now: spring weather and the swishy ripstop material are a perfect match for each other. Ripstop is a woven fabric made using a unique reinforcing technique so that it is resistant to tearing and ripping—all while remaining incredibly lightweight. That means it can stand up to wet weather and a stiff breeze, but it isn’t so hot and dense that you’ll be begging for shorts after a walk around the block. The spring season is when it’s not warm enough to entirely run to linen trousers and shorts, but you certainly don’t want to be walking around in flannel trousers or fleece sweatpants. In other words: it's swishy pants season.
The rising popularity of the swishy pant among style-forward men means a few things. First, everyone is tired of skinny jeans—and rightfully so. Nylon pants are comfortable, offer a flattering fit on most men—and they're just a lot more fun to wear than slim-cut denim. Grabbing a pair lets you work some eccentric flair into your wardrobe without veering too far from the sun. The pant also pairs incredibly well with many of today’s most popular sneaker styles: the taper highlights whatever shoes you’re wearing, and the flowy silhouette is complementary to the bulked-up kicks most guys are wearing.
It’s like designers learned from the mistakes of their 1980s parachute pants—too baggy, weird zippers, bad dropped crotches—and the dorky over-primped cuffs of the 2010s jogger pant, and distilled those lessons into the swishy pant. Think of it as the modern-day track pant with a jolt of Capital-F fashion. If over-the-top pants aren’t your thing, opt for a pair that skews more low-key. But if you’re ready to swing for the fences, there are plenty of weird, wonderful, and extremely swishy pants to be had.
https://i.imgur.com/nWCi6eDh.jpg
Not too long ago, men turned to one of two options for pants: skinny jeans with names like Petit Standard or slim-cut chinos that resembled a slightly cooler pair of old-school Dockers. (Both choices, naturally, were neatly pin-rolled with the precision of a professional cigar roller.) But flash forward to 2019, and pants have gotten both delightfully eccentric and extremely fashionable. There are wavy pleated trousers, luxurious warm-ups, and the rugged-but-fashionable work pants. However, the most surprisingly stylish pants in the mix are something else entirely. To explain, we need to use an extremely technical menswear term: welcome to the golden age of the swishy pant.
The swishy pant can be a lot of things, but it is usually made of ripstop nylon or polyester, comes in a breezy, relaxed fit with a slight taper at the bottom, and features an elasticated waistband. (The nickname comes the swishy sound made by the ripstop fabric.) There are also sometimes side-zippers or elastic cuffs at the ankles, and another telltale sign is that the pant usually comes in outrageous colors or bold patterns. An excellent real-world example is this pair of pastel purple warm-ups made by Acne Studios. They've got it all: groovy color, shiny fabric, and slouchy fit. In fact, comedian and loud streetwear fanatic Pete Davidson found these exact pants so irresistible during a GQ photo shoot and that he wore them home with him from the photoshoot. (It's OK, Pete—looking at those pants, we don't blame you.)
The style comes in a range of prices, too, from Stüssy’s $100 “Drift” pant to a pair of $815 “Garbardin” trousers made by Prada. Browse through the recent collections of most brands, and you’ll spot the swish: from big names like Stone Island and Moncler to smaller labels like Rhude and Kiko Kostadinov. The Swoosh makes swish, naturally. If you’re looking for a pair in tangerine orange or banana yellow, you won’t have to look far. Perhaps ones with exaggerated cargo pockets and an elongated drawstring? Here you go. This is all to say that designers have expanded the idea of the nylon track pant into something bolder and more extroverted, just the type of garment that fits right in with the big brazen sneakers and loud camp-collar shirts we spend our days in.
https://i.imgur.com/LUvNiau.png
And there's no better time than now: spring weather and the swishy ripstop material are a perfect match for each other. Ripstop is a woven fabric made using a unique reinforcing technique so that it is resistant to tearing and ripping—all while remaining incredibly lightweight. That means it can stand up to wet weather and a stiff breeze, but it isn’t so hot and dense that you’ll be begging for shorts after a walk around the block. The spring season is when it’s not warm enough to entirely run to linen trousers and shorts, but you certainly don’t want to be walking around in flannel trousers or fleece sweatpants. In other words: it's swishy pants season.
The rising popularity of the swishy pant among style-forward men means a few things. First, everyone is tired of skinny jeans—and rightfully so. Nylon pants are comfortable, offer a flattering fit on most men—and they're just a lot more fun to wear than slim-cut denim. Grabbing a pair lets you work some eccentric flair into your wardrobe without veering too far from the sun. The pant also pairs incredibly well with many of today’s most popular sneaker styles: the taper highlights whatever shoes you’re wearing, and the flowy silhouette is complementary to the bulked-up kicks most guys are wearing.
It’s like designers learned from the mistakes of their 1980s parachute pants—too baggy, weird zippers, bad dropped crotches—and the dorky over-primped cuffs of the 2010s jogger pant, and distilled those lessons into the swishy pant. Think of it as the modern-day track pant with a jolt of Capital-F fashion. If over-the-top pants aren’t your thing, opt for a pair that skews more low-key. But if you’re ready to swing for the fences, there are plenty of weird, wonderful, and extremely swishy pants to be had.