Relaxed trousers get filed under "give up trying" in most wardrobes, the thing you reach for when you can't face a waistband that argues with you. I don't think that's fair, and I've got years of evidence on my side. A proper relaxed trouser is doing something quite specific with the cut, not just abandoning structure altogether, and on a frame like mine, where ordinary trousers stop a good inch above where they should, a well drafted relaxed leg can actually be the only pair in the shop that reaches my ankle bone without a single alteration. Inside leg 35 needed, several relaxed styles have given me 35 in the regular range. REGULAR RANGE. I checked the label twice because I didn't believe it.
They don't want much company above the waist. A boxy jumper or an oversized shirt on top of an already roomy leg turns the whole thing into something you could sleep in, and not in a good way, so a fitted top or something tucked is doing more work than you'd expect to keep the silhouette looking chosen rather than surrendered to. The difference between the ones that earn a second wear and the ones that end up folded at the bottom of a drawer is almost always the fabric weight and the waist construction. A heavy drape, a proper facing at the waistband rather than a flimsy fold of the same fabric, and a hem with enough weight to sit still when you walk, that's what keeps them looking like trousers rather than pyjama bottoms after three washes. The cheap version goes thin and clingy exactly where it shouldn't, usually across the seat, and no amount of ironing brings it back.
Where they genuinely fall short is anywhere you need a sharp line, an interview, a wedding where you want the outline to read as deliberate, or any situation involving a desk and other people's knees under a conference table, because the volume simply gets in the way. For a long train journey, a weekend away folded into a bag without creasing badly, or a day that starts at a desk and ends somewhere less formal, they are close to unbeatable, and they come out of a washing machine looking like you've done something clever rather than nothing at all. I'd start in a soft charcoal, dark enough to hide the inevitable crease from being sat in all day, before I went anywhere near cream.
Where to Find the Best Yellow Relaxed Trousers
White TrousersWhite Relaxed Tailored Trousers You’ll Wear Week After Week
White TrousersWhite Relaxed Trousers That Work From Desk to Dinner
White TrousersEasy White Relaxed Wide Leg Trousers for Every Day
Pleated TrousersRelaxed Pleated Trousers We Can’t Stop Looking At
Slim TrousersRelaxed Slim Trousers That Go With Everything
Straight Leg TrousersRelaxed Straight Leg Trousers on Our Radar
Tailored TrousersOur Shortlist of Relaxed Tailored Trousers
Relaxed Trousers to Build Outfits AroundAlso worth a lookTailored TrousersYou can spot a good pair of tailored trousers from right across a room, and it's not about the fabric catching the light.See the collections →
Wide Leg TrousersThe Relaxed Wide Leg Trousers We Swear By
Flared TrousersRelaxed Flared Trousers That Have Caught Our Eye
Leather TrousersRelaxed Leather Trousers: The Edit
Linen TrousersRelaxed Linen Trousers We Rate
Cargo TrousersRelaxed Cargo Trousers That Go With Everything
Straight Leg TrousersRed Relaxed Straight Leg Trousers That Work From Desk to Dinner
Red Relaxed Trousers That Tick Every Box
Pink TrousersOur Pick of the Best Pink Relaxed Straight Leg Trousers
Pink TrousersPink Relaxed Trousers: What We’d Buy NowAlso worth a lookWide Leg TrousersThe hem is the thing that catches people out.See the collections →
Our Shortlist of Orange Relaxed Trousers
Green TrousersFinding the Best Green Relaxed Slim Trousers
Green TrousersGreen Relaxed Straight Leg Trousers Edited Down to the Best
Green TrousersThe Green Relaxed Tailored Trousers Your Wardrobe Is Missing
Green TrousersGreen Relaxed Wide Leg Trousers: What We’d Buy Now
Cream TrousersCream Relaxed Straight Leg Trousers: Our Current Favourites
Cream TrousersCream Relaxed Tailored Trousers for Monday to Friday
Cream TrousersCream Relaxed Trousers That Work From Desk to Dinner
Shop Our Favourite Burgundy Relaxed TrousersAlso worth a lookBlack TrousersThere's a particular stretch from late September through to about March when black trousers stop being an option…See the collections →
Brown TrousersThe Edit: Brown Relaxed Straight Leg Trousers
Brown TrousersBrown Relaxed Trousers That Feel Special
Cargo TrousersBlack Relaxed Cargo Trousers That Go With Everything
Leather TrousersThe Black Relaxed Leather Trousers We Swear By
Straight Leg TrousersBlack Relaxed Straight Leg Trousers Worth Adding to Your Wardrobe
Black TrousersBlack Relaxed Tailored Trousers to Build Outfits Around
Black TrousersBlack Relaxed Trousers Worth Adding to Your Wardrobe
Black TrousersFinding the Best Black Relaxed Wide Leg Trousers
