These pants had been such a good thing to own, I was fully prepared to pay full retail for a new pair. I may be a self avowed cheapskate, but I think $50 is more than a fair price for nice looking warm pants. Then, just in the nick of time, what should find me but these:
A vintage pair, in my size, $4.89
The flannel is a nice shade of dusty orange, and at least twice as thick as the flannel in my first pair.
Serious vintage L.L. Bean. How long has it been since they switched from this old script logo? Maybe Heavy Tweed Jacket can come out of the woodwork and give us a short history lesson on these.Best of all, they have a really trim cut, short in the legs with no break. The cut, plus the logo, plus the weight and quality of the cotton leads me to date these pants in the 60's or 70's.
They have a kind of funny, asymmetrical placement to the belt loops. Kind of reminds of the old the cut of the old thread-bare Dickie's my grandfather was so fond of. Note how well they go with the vintage buffalo plaid wool Chippewa pop-over I purchased a while back.
Red wool socks and Bean gum shoes are, of course, de riguer. Too bad I didn't have some lumber to split or something.p.s. I know I've been known to rail against the current trend in work wear as fashion, and this outfit flies in the face of that. It's not the clothes I have a problem with, it's the millionaire price tags...the clothes are actually pretty cool, on occasion.
Giuseppe,
ReplyDeleteMany of us are waiting with bated breath for HTJ to come out of the woodwork.
"Workwear" isn't faux if you're working; ditto "outdoor gear" if you're in real outdoors. I also get a little ill when I see work boots on someone who's never had a sore-feet-dirty-hands job
ReplyDeleteMr G,
ReplyDeleteThis is too wild I shoveled my drive this morning in the same type of Beanpants. Found them last summer for $5.99 , my buffalo plaid shirt was tan and black though ($2.99). My Bean boots are 8" ers I bought new many a moon ago.
Yea, seriously, screw olive oil stains. They've ruined many a pant.
ReplyDeleteNo hat with earflaps?? A full body pic would be great.
ReplyDelete"No hat with earflaps??"
ReplyDeleteWho do you think writes this blog--Elmer Fudd?
On a more serious note, that's the kind of hat that can be worn only if there are others around you wear it, too. Otherwise, it's geeky costume.
Olive oil stains?
ReplyDeleteFels-Naptha Heavy Duty Laundry Bar Soap.
Wet the stain. Wet the soap bar. Rub in lots of the soap. Let it sit for an hour. Don't rinse it out. Run trousers through regular cycle with any laundry detergent.
Please tell us you were sitting down when the "feet" picture was taken.
ReplyDeleteI hiked my pants up intentionally to show the socks.
ReplyDeleteIf not Elmer Fudd, perhaps Ron Weasley in "The Prisoner of Azbakan":
ReplyDeletehttp://2.bp.blogspot.com/_PsOG36Dd0Wo/SyctLiXeXYI/AAAAAAAABS0/HWPLfqQLA8I/s1600-h/Harry-Potter-Hermoine_l.jpg
YF - If G is going to shovel snow, I think a hat with earflaps wouldn't be out of place with this outfit. This item is all about function.
ReplyDeleteG doesn't seem like the kind of person that needs 20 other guys wearing the same hat because he's afraid of not blending in. That's for Williamsburg hipsters.
Someone in the NY Times a few weeks back said something to the effect of "never has it cost so much to look like a lumber jack," my point is I share the opinion express in your last statement. Also I must add those pants are a great find.
ReplyDeleteWith all these days of sub-freezing temperatures in DC, I may break down and buy a pair myself...
ReplyDeleteI have a pair of flannel-lined Eddie Bauer jeans from years ago that see service every winter. I'm not even sure if they sell them anymore, but they're a great option for those of us that have to bear the brunt of winter.
ReplyDeleteL.L. Bean changed their label design in the early eighties.
ReplyDeleteOrganic grease stain huh? Olive oil, bacon grease, etc. Use dish soap (like Palmolive). It's worked for me.
ReplyDeleteSomeone gave me a pair of those flannel lined pants from Bean when I was driving an old Chevy blazer with no heat. They were a godsend. But a bit too hot indoors.
ReplyDelete