How To Dress Chinos Up & Down (2024)

FAQs

Can chinos be dressed down? ›

Like jeans, you can dress chinos up, or dress them down but you'll typically find they'll help you look smarter than jeans without being overdressed for any occasion as they naturally carry an understated cool vibe. You'd be hard pressed to come up with an outfit that a great pair of chinos won't complement.

For around the house, and out and about comfort, try pairing your chinos with a basic GAZMAN T-Shirt. Pair back your look with a boat shoe or sneakers for effortless, ready to go style. For a smart event or business, casual try pairing your chinos with linen or a classic button-down long sleeve shirt.

Chinos (and lightweight denim) are prime targets for a relaxed roll or two. The key? Don't let it look too clinical. “A 1in roll two to three times does the trick,” says Mr Lack.

Formal: If you are getting ready for a formal occasion, we recommend snazzing up your outfit with a contrasting sports jacket, tie, dress belt, and long sleeve shirt to really bring out your chinos.

The versatility and elegance of chinos pair easily with almost any type of shoe. You can wear chinos with classic sneakers, trainers, loafers, boat shoes, Chelsea boots, chukka boots, sandals, and more styles.

Because they can be relaxed or formal, chinos can be styled just like jeans, but can also be worn with business attire. They work equally well with trainers and a T-shirt as they do with smarter shoes, a shirt and a jacket.

We recommend your chinos end right where your shoe meets your ankle. You want to avoid chinos that are “stacking,” which means the bottom fabric of your chinos will start piling on top of itself. This is what's referred to as the “break” in your pants.

Wear with a casual shoe.

Chinos are not to be worn with an uber-dressy shoe. Personally, we like a nice low-top Chuck for this look, though chukka boots or a boat shoe would look nice, too, depending on the season.

For a weekend look, pair your chinos with a casual shirt or a jumper. A chambray shirt is a great option for a relaxed yet stylish look, and it also looks particularly great with a pair of men's chinos. When it comes to footwear, chinos pair well with both trainers and smart shoes.

Your goal should be to get your chino pants to fit with a slim-straight look - straight from the waist down to your shoes. You should be able to see the silhouette of your legs.

How should chinos fall on shoes? ›

If you're going to roll your chinos, only roll them once so they end at your ankles – otherwise, you'll look like you're going for a paddle in the sea. If you're not rolling the ends, then your chinos should typically hit the top of your shoes.

For casual looks, we recommend to wear chinos with sneakers – but different sneakers can of course bring out the best in the chino in very different ways. Here, we suggest three of our favourite casual styles that elegantly combine chinos with sneakers: Sneakers are the best way to style chinos casually.

Are chinos still in fashion in 2023? Of course they are! We wouldn't be seeing the sales that we do if this style of pants weren't being widely worn by all types of men. The best chinos for men are those you can wear in any situation.

Chinos may require ironing, but they should be pressed flat rather than have a crease down the front. A pair of grey flannels or suit trousers, however, deserve to have a crease that is sharp enough to take your leg off at the knee, so press them after dry cleaning.

Chinos are a middle ground between formal and casual attire. They are not considered dress pants, but they are dressier than jeans. They are suitable for anything business casual, but they are not suitable for formal situations where a suit may be required.

A lot of (older) guys think their chinos should fit like long drapes on their legs. Unlike jeans, wool pants and trousers and suit pants, you want your chino pants to be hemmed to leave a slight or no break.

Don't Follow Suit

You don't always have to wear a suit to a wedding. A pair of smart chinos and a blazer is perfectly suitable. Dress up this smart casual ensemble with a silk bow tie worn with a crisp white cotton shirt.

Difference Between Khakis & Chinos

Chinos are a bit dressier than Khakis, and come in colors navy, blue, stone, and hence the terms khaki and chinos are frequently used interchangeably. Khakis are a classic style staple for the smart-casual dress codes in many offices and work environments.

Sneakers are almost always a good choice, especially with chinos. We recommend you stick with white or black sneakers, as these are the most versatile colors. For a casual look, you can simply combine your chinos with a sweatshirt or a T-shirt and combine it with a jacket on top.

As a general rule, be it on shoes or suits, the lighter the colour, the less formal the piece. As such, beige chinos are ideal for casual settings – like a day in the park or happy hour drinks. Pair yours with a shirt that's navy blue, burgundy or dark grey; as these dark hues will help balance the look.

What Colour chinos go best with brown shoes? ›

Wear Brown Shoes With Any Color of Chinos

As with suit pants, navy chinos work with any shade of brown shoe. Grey chinos look best with a lighter shade of brown, and the same rule applies for wearing black pants with brown shoes (yes, you can wear the two together!)

Every man needs at least one or two pairs of chino pants in their wardrobe. These are incredibly versatile. You can dress them up for more formal occasions, or dress them down for casual wear. They help you fill in the gaps where jeans are too casual and dress pants are too formal.

For instance, a dark blue patterned pair of socks would work well with a light blue or white pair of chinos. As for a grey pair of chinos, almost any colour pair of socks works, whether they're green, orange, red, blue or purple.

Loafers and chinos are a perfect combo, immediately establishing a smart casual look. Pair with a blazer or a band collar shirt for an elegant, simple aesthetic.

Aside from this, black chinos also compose a good contrast with black, grey, dark brown, and beige colour shoes. More precisely, low and high-top sneakers (closure-laced up with black canvas), athletic shoes, suede desert boots, loafers, and oxford shoes (in above mentioned colours).

With chinos, one to two cuffs is a classic look. In the summer I roll my cuff twice to show some ankle (which is a great hack if you're on the shorter side because a narrow cuff rolled two or three times with a little skin showing will make you look taller). Roll all your pants once or twice with a 1.5” cuff.

Are high waisted pants out of style 2023? High waist pants are out of fashion for spring 2023 – especially the carrot pants, paper bag pants and palazzo pants. And high waisted pants will be out of style for fall winter 2023/24, too. In fact, the high waist pants were not seen on the fall winter 2023/24 runways.

Cargo pants are the look of choice for 2023 with baggy legs, long hems, and maximum pocket space. While the trend has definite early '00s roots, the waists are higher than their super low-rise counterparts at the turn of millennium—which comes as welcome news to most.

What colour trousers with navy shirt? We recommend stone and beige as two safe options when wearing a navy shirt. For those with more confidence try red, light blue and white.

The thigh area of your chinos should leave enough space for your legs to move freely. We suggest about an inch of fabric if you pinch the excess around your thigh. With a slim fit, this will stay roughly the same through the rest of your legs.

How many chinos should you own? ›

You should at least have two colors of chinos because they'll pair well with all the other items in your Essential Wardrobe.

Men's Chinos are probably the most versatile pants you can wear, easily dressed up with a sport coat, shirt, and tie, paired with some well-polished oxford shoes, and equally easily worn with just a t-shirt and sneakers.

Do… Wear them with colorful chinos: Colorful trousers and boat shoes are a great combo, but it has to be done thoughtfully. Make sure the color of your pants contrasts the color of your boat shoes to balance things out.

Developed in the mid-19th century for British and French military uniforms, it has since migrated into civilian wear. Trousers of such a fabric gained popularity in the U.S. when Spanish–American War veterans returned from the Philippines with their twill military trousers.

Leggings Are Officially Runway Approved—5 Trends We're Eyeing for 2023. There was once a time when practically no one I knew left the house without wearing a pair of leggings.

Still, it was only at the beginning of the 20th century that those coloured cotton trousers so-called “chino”, became famous thanks to an equally legendary international trade, through China and United States Army, spreading all over the world and becoming in the 80s a classic item of cloth of male wardrobe.

Chinos should be snug but comfortable around your waist, with no fear of them dropping down even without a belt. For chinos, the waist will sit lower than suit pants but should hit exactly where the waist of your jeans should be (between the upper and mid-hip bone area).

It's true that chinos are by no means a formal type of pants. However, they are more formal than jeans. And thus, if you're looking for semi-formal or business casual pants, stick with custom chinos.

Chinos are another versatile piece that you can easily plug into your everyday wardrobe. Women love them because they look more put together than your average jeans or khakis — are you starting to sense a theme here? Just like a suit, proper fit is essential.

Anyone who owns a pair knows that chinos are just as suitable for the office as they are for after-work events – and most men love them for the weekends, too. After all, they are elegant enough for a business-casual dress code and yet so casual that they are perfect for a weekend outing as well.

Do chinos go with everything? ›

Like jeans, you can dress chinos up, or dress them down.

The beauty of a great pair of chinos is that they go with literally everything. Get preppy with a white dress shirt, navy blazer, and tie. Go for that simple Scandinavian aesthetic with a pocket tee and fresh sneakers.

While many manufacturers today will use the terms “chino” and “khakis” interchangeably, the notable differences are that chinos are an offshoot of the original “khaki” pants and tend to have lighter fabrics, a cleaner line and a dressier look while khakis are more utilitarian.