Men’s Style Tips: Don’t Make these Mistakes with Your Trousers

If you have an exquisite pair of casual trousers that fit you like a glove, you’ve already taken care of one of the most glaring holes in your wardrobe. But simply buying the right clothes doesn’t always mean you’ll erase the possibility of fashion mistakes, or faux pas.

To make it easy to learn what not to do, here are some of the most common—yet subtle—trouser mistakes you’ll see. Use these men’s style tips to know what mistakes to avoid with your men’s trousers.

Matching Your Socks to Your Shoes Instead of Your Trousers

You take pride in selecting just the right pair of socks to go with your outfit. The problem? You’ve only considered what shoes you’re wearing, not the trousers that will go over your socks. Here are a few reasons you should to start coordinating your socks to your trousers rather than your shoes or boots:

• Matching socks to shoes gives you a “big boot” look. Light brown socks with dark brown shoes will have the visual effect of elongating the shoe. Unless you plan on slogging through a fly fishing trip, this is not the look you’re after.
• Matching socks to pants gives you more “visual height.” If you’ve ever believed in the slimming power of vertical stripes, then you know how important the use of color is in “playing” with the shape of your outfit. And you don’t have to use socks that are identical to the color of your pants, either. Simply sticking to a color palette will give you the elongation you seek.

Pairing Dark Pants with Light Socks

A final word on socks: pairing dark pants with light socks is another fashion faux pas to avoid. It might have worked for Michael Jackson, but unless you plan on pulling some serious dance moves and traveling back to the 1980s, it won’t work now. Anything darker than navy blue—see these Super 100s Gabardine Pleated in Navy—will require a darker touch in the sock department.

Wearing a Belt and Suspenders at the Same Time

Your trousers should fit well enough that you don’t need a belt or suspenders to hold them up. Yet you wear a belt as an accessory—just as some people wear suspenders as accessories. What’s wrong with wearing them both?

Even if you can’t articulate quite why it looks wrong, it should be obvious: either accessory is enough to hold your pants up. One accessory is stylish and even sophisticated. Two accessories when one will do? It’s the pants equivalent of wearing non-prescription glasses.

Brown Shoes, Black Belt—or Vice Versa

Don’t worry about matching your socks to your shoes. But you should take a few seconds to think about where your belt will fit in with your shoes. It might feel like you’re wearing your Sunday best when you don black shoes and a brown belt—or vice versa—but the truth is, something will likely seem off. You may be wearing nice clothes, but you haven’t put a coordinated outfit together. Match the belt with the shoes and you’ll have a simpler, sleeker look.

With these men’s style tips in mind, browse our extensive collection of men’s khakis and trousers.