Summer Pants: The Best in Comfort and Style

Summer Pants. They are probably among the least talked about summer wardrobe item. We seem to always see lists for the best dresses and shorts, but what about pants? There are times in the summer when only pants will do. So we’ve put together a list of our favorite summer pants that are both comfortable and stylish. They can create the perfect summer outfit.

A women wearing blue striped lined summer pants.
My pants are shown below. I got them just this season from Gap Factory.

Summer Pants: Linen

Jen:

I’m a big fan of linen pants in the summer for an easy, breezy outfit! They can be dressed up, or dressed down for completely different looks. Like a bodysuit and scrappy sandals, or a tucked in t-shirt and comfy slides.

Linen pants are a trend I’m going to be living in all summer long!

Dianne:

I know what you’re thinking – linen pants wrinkle pretty quickly. You’re not wrong, but I think the chic, casual look outweighs the wrinkles. I find that they are also the “coolest” pants – as in temperature. The linen breathes well and I’ve never worn them and felt too hot in them. They are also the pair of pants that I love to wear the most as wide leg pants.

We actually styled some wide leg linen pants last year in our “How to Wear it at Any Age Volume 2”. The pants are no longer available but you can see the different ways we styled them.

Our linen pant picks:

Use the link for my blue striped pants in the picture caption above. There seem to be a problem with the link below that we can’t seem to fix. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Colored Jeans

Jen:

If you know me, you know I stick to a lot of neutral colors. But sometimes I do stray from regular blue jeans, to white and black (ha!). I do like the look of colored jeans though, especially with a striped top (that I consider a neutral in my wardrobe)! If you’re not sure of colored jeans, check out places like Target and Old Navy where you can try the trend for less money!

Dianne:

Colored jeans are new to me this year and I’ve fallen in love with them. I’ve worn colored pants in the summer before but they tended to be a little more dressy and I’d wear them with a heeled sandal. What I love about the colored jeans is that they are still summery and look great with sneakers as well as sandals. Since I wore these yellow jeans for a photo shoot, I did go with the dressier sandal look. But I would definitely pair these with a tee shirt and sneakers.

A woman at a park wearing yellow jeans and a white top/
My yellow jeans are from Kohl’s. They did a partnership with Reese Witherspoon’s Draper James brand and I love them. I just ordered them in red.

Our colored jean picks:

Drawstring and Comfy Pants

Jen:

Comfy pants is where I shine. I’ve become quite the connoisseur over the past two years while working from home! I won’t pretend to be like the “kids” these days and wearing the baggiest sweatpants they own and looking effortlessly cool. But, I will wear joggers out occasionally to run errands with a tucked in t-shirt and sneakers!

Dianne:
Who doesn’t like a nice elastic waist pant? These are more a vacation/errand running pant for me. Even a walking on the beach pant. Once again, there are times when it’s a little cool – especially sunrises and sunsets at the ocean. These are just perfect.

Our drawstring and comfy pants picks:

Casual Pants (Chinos, etc.)

Jen:

Chinos are a great option for when I don’t need to wear dress pants at work, but still want to be a little a little more dressed up than jeans. I’d balance these casual pants with a less preppy top to keep in line with my style a little more. Maybe something a little edgy even!

Dianne:

These are the classic casual pants. I love that you can modernize them with trending colors. I especially like the bright kelly green pants shown below. They are so summery and is on trend for the preppy look this season. I’m not a preppy person, but I would add this color of pants to my wardrobe.

Our casual pants picks:

Tan Pants

We had a special request to find some great pants in a neutral tan/beige color. They are three-season pants for sure, but you can wear them in winter as well (especially if you want a change from black)

Jen:

Tan pants are a classic style, and can go with pretty much anything that you have in your closet! A white button-down is a clean and classic look, or pair them with a black t-shirt or even a denim shirt! I love wearing denim shirts, and would wear a baggy pair of chinos with some loafers!

Dianne:

Tan pants as we mentioned, are a clean neutral alternative to black in the summer. The really isn’t any color that you can’t pair with tan/khaki/beige. They are more neutral than summery, but pair them with a bright floral top and you are all set!

Our tan pants picks:

Summer Pants: Dress Pants

Jen:

If I were going into the office, I would need some warm-weather friendly dress pants for meetings with clients. In the summer, I like wearing straight-leg pants, especially ones that come to my ankles that I can wear with heels or flats. Even pleated dress pants are back in style!

Dianne

Once again, I am looking to pants other than basic black for the summer. Of course, you can always go with a white pant all summer long. We did an entire post on “How to Wear White” that included white pants that you may want to check out. It also includes white tops, accessories and even black/white and navy/white combinations.

Our summer dress pants picks:

If you’re looking for some great sneakers to go with some of these pants, then check out our blog post, “Summer Sneakers: The Best Fabrics and Colors”