THE JOURNAL
From left: Mr Timothée Chalamet in Rome, 12 November 2022, photograph by Mr Mario Cartelli/Shutterstock. Mr Troye Sivan in Sydney, 3 November 2022, photograph by Mr Brendon Thorne/Getty Images. Mr Dev Hynes in Los Angeles, 5 November 2022, photograph by Ms Jojo Korsh/BFA.com
Well, well, well, if it isn’t the ol’ leather trouser – in several silhouettes – rearing its naughty head again. Leather trousers on men never really go away – in fact, a former editor at MR PORTER took a pair of Acne Studios pants for a spin just over a year ago to much success, and Mr Lenny Kravitz has been rocking them for years, with varying results.
But they are quite a look. You can’t wear leather trousers without expecting a few people to say to you “wow, leather trousers!” – it’s simply not done. They’re not the kind of pants you can throw on in the morning. No, leather trousers take a bit of preparation and a lot of grit, so let’s jump into how they can be styled, inspired by the gentlemen above.
Mr Timothée Chalamet is kindly modelling something closely akin to a leather legging. They are slim, slim, slim – so slim that he probably cannot carry his phone in the pocket, if there even is a pocket. But who needs a phone when you’re living life so very much to the fullest in your leather leggings.
He’s styled his with an oversized sweater, black boots (made from a very similar black leather, which is chic and leg-lengthening) and a pearl necklace. Not to get all women’s mag on you, but proportions are important, and this is a perfect example of playing with sizing on top when you’re skin-tight on the bottom.
“Perhaps the more leather you can layer on, the better the outcome is?”
Moving on to Mr Troye Sivan in a matte straight-leg pair from Louis Vuitton and a matching varsity-style leather jacket. If he were to wear this to a high-school football game, he would surely be expelled for utter too-coolness. We’re loving the goth-jock mix he’s achieving here, it’s very punchy, very I-don’t-follow-the-rules. The wider cut of the trouser and the heavier weight of the leather is a little more forgiving than Chalamet’s legging. Perfect for the leather-trouser first timer.
Finally, Mr Dev Hynes goes for gloss in Gucci. This is what we might call a formal leather trouser, worn, as it is, with a cropped double-breasted velvet dinner jacket and tie. The fit is tight on top and, like so much else when it comes to the Italian brand, cut with 1970s flair. You could almost see a young Mr John Travolta staying alive in these trousers. As with the other two men in this feature, Hynes is wearing black leather shoes (fringed loafers in this case) that match the trousers but has upped the ante with a leather hat as well – your move Sivan.
If there’s anything to learn with these men, it’s that there don’t seem to be many rules when it comes to wearing leather and perhaps the more leather you can layer on, the better the outcome is? So, we’ll conclude with some encouragement to get some skin in the game and try out a pair yourself this winter, and get ready for those comments to roll in.