Winter Whites

Men’s style circles abide by the unspoken rule that it’s improper to wear white after Labor Day.  Not white shirts, which are the dress shirt of choice year-round, but white shoes and - moreso - white pants.  The brightness of these garments has a summer look to them; they’re more relaxed and nonchalant in appearance than their cold-weather counterparts.

McQueen's jeans.

Since most Northerners need a double dose of Vitamin D when winter comes around, there’s no better time to break out white pants than in the dark doldrums of February.  The brightness is an instant mood-lightener, and they complement the dark color palette favored in winter.  Plus, they’re favored by the stylish set worldwide, whose joie de vivre in dress often translates to their mood.  I’ve had a girlfriend and several friends comment on my habit of wearing winter whites before I show them several photos from The Sartorialist and the New York Times’ fashion section.  After that, they get used to it.

For wintry purposes, white pants work better in rugged fabrics like denim or twill.  White jeans were popular in the 1970s (and still have a strong following in certain parts of Europe and the American South) and they’re due for a renaissance since they’re as versatile as any pair of blue denim, likewise with white chinos and cords.  I recently retired a pair of white Uniqlo chinos that I loved to death, a death by stains and marks that taught me the importance of not wearing white pants while cooking or when it rains or sleets.  My new Sid Mashburn white jeans and white Eidos Napoli trousers should get me through the rest of winter with frequent white-pant wearing.

Peter Saville makes the case for white jeans and turtlenecks.

Few people wore white jeans as well as Steve McQueen, who made the case for not treating them too preciously (grease stains are easier to remove from white pants than cooking stains).  As far as living legends go, Mr. Mashburn himself and famed graphic designer Peter Saville (he who designed album covers for Joy Division/New Order and a logo for Kanye West) carry the white pant torch high.  Mashburn’s signature blazer-oxford-white jean ensemble is an outfit every man can put their own riff on, and Saville makes the case for pairing white jeans and turtlenecks, since they’re more urbane than rugged blue denim.  It’s a style move I incorporated this winter to great effect.  

The other guys who get white pants right are The Armoury crew in New York and Hong Kong.  The Armoury is a haberdashery that carries the finest in craft menswear - think Ring Jacket blazers, Drake's and Ascot Chang shirts and frequent trunk shows from the likes of Florentine tailors Liverano & Liverano and trouser legends Ambrosi Napoli.  Their selection of clothes merges the best of Italian, English country house and American style to create a sophisticated wardrobe for the modern man.  Part of this wardrobe includes white pants, which several of their current and past employees - including natty co-founder Mark Cho and former sales associate Jake Grantham - wear with ease.  Their vendors share a similar sensibility, especially Takahiro Osaki of Liverano & Liverano who not only is keeping tailoring alive with a younger crowd, but knows how to wear white pants well. 

White pants aren’t for the faint of heart or those afraid of stains.  They’re expressive and bold, which is why they’re only worn by men who dare.  We can all be men who dare, though, since they look so good with a chunky sweater and button-down and with a sportcoat and tie.  Few pieces are as versatile - just make sure you don’t wear them while cooking tomato sauce.

Pants (top-bottom): Levi's (Sid Mashburn), Eidos Napoli, Uniqlo

Past and present employees of The Armoury.  Jake Grantham (second from left) shows how white pants are done.

Take of Liverano & Liverano shows how to wear white pants as a neutralizer.

The inimitable Mark Cho.