Bespoke Trousers
Chinos.
The trouser you will wear more than any suit — and the one most often bought in the wrong rise.
A chino is a cotton twill trouser, and it is the most-worn garment in most wardrobes that also contain a suit. It is also the garment where the gap between bought and made shows up fastest, because a chino has nowhere to hide: no jacket covers the seat, no tie draws the eye up. The rise is either right for your body or it is not, and almost every pair bought off a rack is cut to a rise that belongs to somebody else.
The cloth — cotton twill, and what weight to ask for
Chino cloth is cotton twill: a diagonal weave that is harder wearing than a plain weave of the same weight and drapes rather better. The weight is the decision. Too light and the trouser loses its line by lunchtime; too heavy and you will not wear it from March to October, which in this city is most of the year.
For Chennai we cut most chinos in a mid-weight twill, with a lighter cloth for anyone who spends the day outdoors. A small proportion of elastane is available and we will tell you honestly when it helps — it holds a seat better through a long day — and when it simply means the trouser will bag out faster.
The colours that earn their keep are khaki, stone, sand and a mid beige. A good grey-beige is the most useful trouser most men do not own.
Rise, seat and taper — where bought chinos fail
Three measurements decide whether a chino looks considered or careless.
The rise is the distance from crotch to waistband. Rack chinos are mostly cut low, which shortens the leg, pushes the waistband onto the hip where it slides, and leaves a horizontal pull across the front. Cut to your own rise, the trouser sits at your natural waist and the leg reads longer.
The seat is where a chino is most often too tight or too full, and either is immediately visible from behind. We fit it on you rather than to a size chart.
The taper should follow your own calf. A standard taper applied to an unstandard leg produces either a pooled hem or a trouser that grips the shin.
We finish chinos with belt loops as standard, side adjusters on request, and a single rear pocket with a button — the detail that keeps the back of the trouser clean.
What to wear with khaki, stone and beige trousers
This is the question we are asked most, and the answer is more generous than people expect. A khaki, stone or beige trouser is a neutral, which means it will take almost any shirt — the trick is choosing the one that sets the formality you actually want.
A striped shirt is the strongest pairing. A navy ground with a fine white or tan stripe against a beige trouser is one of the most reliable combinations in menswear: the dark top and light bottom give the eye a clear structure, and the stripe supplies interest without pattern-clashing against a plain trouser. Our striped shirts in Giza cotton were practically designed for this.
Plain white or pale blue is the safe and correct answer for anything with a jacket over it.
A darker solid — navy, deep olive, charcoal — takes the pairing towards evening, particularly with a stone trouser rather than a pale khaki.
What to avoid is another mid-tone. A beige trouser with a beige-adjacent shirt reads as a uniform, and not a flattering one. Keep a clear step in value between the two.
Commissioning a pair
Chinos are the least expensive thing we make and frequently the first commission a new customer places, which suits us — it is a low-risk way to find out whether you like how we cut. One fitting is normally enough.
Most customers order two pairs at once in different tones, because the pattern is already cut and the second costs less effort for everyone. See also flat-front trousers and linen trousers for the hotter months.
Commission your trousers.
Visit us at 4 Sardar Patel Road, Adyar, Chennai — Mon–Sat, 11am–9pm. First consultation free.