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Menswear details — including blazers, vests and button-downs — have been invading women’s fashion trends for a while.

That’s why it’s no surprise that the hottest trend this fall is pants.

Dresses have been dominant for several seasons. Effortless clothes are appealing, after all.

But pants are powerful, utilitarian and versatile — and that seems to be what women are craving for.

“I don’t need to tell the girls in the room how practical pants are. A great [pair of] black pants goes [from] desk to dinner, morning to evening. It’s easy and you don’t have to think about it too much,” says Simon Kneen, creative director at Banana Republic.

“We see pants as the next ‘it’ item,” says Colin Dyne, chief executive officer of William Rast. “The categories we’re focused on for fall and going into spring are chinos, cargos, pants that utilize silk blends and other fabrications.”

And that is what’s new about pants this time around: Pretty much anything goes. The runways, and now the racks, are stocked with wide-legged pairs and narrow ones, high waists and low.

These styles are all practical and wearable — not kooky concoctions meant only for the catwalk.

“There’s a return to the idea of a flattering [pair of] pants,” says Mark Holgate, fashion news director of Vogue. “We were knee-deep — no pun intended — in the world of crazy pants and then what happened was women wore leggings.”

“But now the trend is coming back like in the 1990s: wonderful Helmut Lang pants that are boyish and womanly, that could be worn with jacket shirts, evening tops, heels, flats or boots,” Holgate says.

He also sees a nod to the ‘70s, which Holgate calls “the great years of pants.”

Susan Cernek, Glamour’s senior online fashion and beauty editor, says she was recently flipping through a book of Yves Saint Laurent’s archival work and had to do a triple take at the date.

“There was a 1974 runway look but it looked like so many styles from the runway this year. It was worn with a bow blouse, loose jacket and tailored trousers.”

Cernek says pants create an image of strength “not because they are borrowed from the boys, but because you have to be committed to this look. You literally suit up from head to toe.”

The top you choose, the shoes you wear and the scarf wrapped around the neck all become more important when your outfit is built around pants, Kneen says.

It’s almost ironic, but wearing pants can be dressier than a dress.

Dyne sees movement toward a more refined look, even for William Rast’s cool, casual customers.

Even cargo pants are getting cleaned up, and you’ll see people wearing them with blazers out at night, he says.

Lexi Tawes, vice president of women’s merchandising for Gap, says the company’s new black pants collection is a reaction to consumer demand.

People want a pair of pants that can be worn seven days a week, and, for many women, that’s their black pants. “The challenge for us was, ‘How do we make black pants cool and sexy again?’”

Fit might be the key. “You’d be surprised what flattering pockets and tailored waistband can do,” Tawes says.

At Banana Republic, the design starts in the rear. “It’s what a woman looks at first in the changing room,” Kneen says. “If that fits, it means you’re fitting well around the hips.”

Cernek says finding the best pants for your figure requires a little trial and error.

“It’s worth investing time to find trousers that fit and flatter you, but you might have to go with your game face on.”

She says high heels are perfect accessories for trousers, and that might entail buying pants that are longer than what you are used to.

“The heel line can change the entire line of the body. You should take shopping your most frequently worn pair of heels,” Cernek says, adding that a sharp, single pleat down the leg creates a strong vertical line and elongates the silhouette.

The three go-to pants in Cernek’s closet are tailored black pants, camel-colored trousers (a more work-appropriate version of khakis) and a pair of Katharine Hepburn-inspired gray flannels. “You can keep those for 10 years and be happy,” she says.

Kneen advises balancing simple, chic trousers with other seasonal trends, such as frilly feminine tops, or embellishments like bows and ribbons.

A great pair of pants don’t have an expiration date in the way that a hemline on a dress does. Even as tastes and trends change, pants are always in style.

“Pants are a good investment piece,” Holgate says. “It feels like you’re in familiar territory and that your legs are back on steady land.” 


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