Pants for women--June trip
 

Ladies, what kind of pants do you wear that travel well, are cool in the heat and look nice? I will be in Italy from mid to late June.

Thanks

I buy from Travelsmith, Tilley and Railriders - all on the web.

In the heat of summer, I prefer skirts, but I do take at least one pair of long or capri-length slacks. I have a few pairs of Liz Claibourne golf pants in CoolMax fabric which have good perspiration-wicking and wrinkle resistance. They're also easy to hand wash and drip dry.

Hi Connie
Good question! What is your style and size?

2-3 pair for Italy travels. One black, very lightweight fabric such as washable silk for day or evening; one khaki pair, cropped; and often one lightweight black cargo style (pockets) for walking, hiking, train/boat travel.

Also bring a reversible light gauzy skirt. I've shopped Travelsmith but for pants have better luck with Chico's, JJill, and got a good silk drawstring pair at Soft Surroundings, on the web.

Skirts and summer dresses are the way to go for Italian summer wear. Otherwise, dockers are a good alternative; I never take white pants on travel, opt for the olive green color. Capris only, and only if I plan to be by the water and will be wearing sandals; otherwise, bad, bad choice. Jeans in the summer only if I plan to go horse-riding :-D

Why do you consider capris to be a bad, bad choice?

I have a couple of pairs by Danskin. They're made of a cool, dressy material. They're very comfortabe and can be dressed up with cute tops and cute shoes.

I realize I will be taken as a tourist ( which I will be) but will I look terribly out of place?

Thanks.

Capri length trousers are very normal here in Holland - all year round (they are worn with boot in the winter)so If you are seen as a tourist it doesn't mean you are seen as an American tourist.
nothing wrong with capris - loads better than shorts in any case. And if you feel comfortable wearing them then why not? Better that than being unhappy in a dress or skirt.

Lightweight cotton

Linen blend that doesn't wrinkle

Silk pant suits for evening

RE: Capri pants.

From experience and quiet observations: A lot of women that wear capri pants are either ignorant or not honest about their body shape. Capri pants are very unflatering if you are not tall nor slim; otherwise, very, very few can pull it off and end up looking stubby, cropped, or more appropriately, like a gelato cone. Again, nothing cooler than a playful summer skirt; much more versatile, too.

ctoner

I am 5"7' and 138 lbs.

I'm doing lots of research and one group says to totally stay away from cotton because it doesn't wash, dry and wear well but the other group says to stay away from synthetics and go with cotton, linen or silk.

It seems to be hard to find something that will be cool in warm temps but also wash and wear well.

Another thing, don't cotton slacks like Dockers wrinkle in your luggage? I own a few pair and I definitely have to iron them and that's after drying them in the dryer. If I air dried them, they would look terrible.

From what I've read irons aren't plentiful in most hotel rooms.

Check out the Eileen Fisher website. I love their clothes for travel. In fact, I love their clothes every day. annie

I like the CoolMax fabric precisely because it doesn't wrinkle, is easy to hand wash and is designed to keep you cool. But I'd still rather wear a skirt in hot weather.

To me, the capri question is moot. As long as my clothes are clean and look decent and I'm comfortable, I don't care if a stranger thinks they're unflattering. I'm not tall and slim, so I guess I'm doomed to the "quiet observation" of others. Tough.

I have to agree with you Jean!
At least I'm providing a topic of conversation in my capris :)

Hello Connie, I tend to take a few dresses when in Italy during warm/hot weather as I have lots of Italian friends in Italy and the women tend to wear dresses more than pants unless they take a walk in the country. I do take a few pants however. I like a linen blend and I also like a washable silk. I note that nytraveler who travels much more than I do prefers the same fabrics. I prefer to pack pants and tops that are an outfit versus say pants and some Tshirts as I don't feel "good" in Tshirts. I usually pack a skirt or two again with a matching top. Light cotton or again washable silk.

Viajero2-Love your sense of humor and descriptions!

Ok. I can see your point about capris--like the end point of a Gelato cone--that's a riot! But, thank goodness, they do look great on some bodies. I think I'm somewhere in the middle. Not necessarily great, but not shabby either.

I'll try not to offend too many Italians. After all, my dh is 1/2 Italian! I will compromise and bring a couple of skirts too.

Ciao.

travlintoes-- thank you girl! Somebody around here has a sense of humor:-D (and sounds like a sense of style, too...you go, girl!!) B-)

Capris are the ones like the gelato cone are hard to wear unless you are thin. but CROPPED pants that are called by various names are fine

Banana Republic usually has a good selection of cotton chinos, if this is what they are called, nicely cut, with pockets, and in several colors (khaki, dark green, brown, black). There will also be a good selection of coordinating tops. As far as wrickles, I roll my packed clothes and one should have an access to an iron for touch ups.

As far as capris pants go, I find that the biggest challenge is finding shoes to go with them that do not look bulky. And, since I normally wear very comfortable, lace-up walking shoes, capris are out of the question. At least I can hide my nun-looking shoes under the long pants.

Anna Roz

I would think chinos are too heavy. I go for the very light weight - almost handkerchief cotton. They can be washed and dry in a few hours - and any wrinkles will come out in the shower steam.

Connie - we were in Italy this past summer mid to late June - Milan, Tuscany, Amalfi Coast, Sicily. I took 2 light cotton skirts and 2 pants that come almost to my ankle - would you call those "crop" pants or capris? They were from Ann Taylor Loft. Key was that they were VERY lightweight cotton. I think the stuff that doesn't dry well is heavy cotton knit shirts like polo style shirts but I've love my cotton skirts & capris. I wear them with Mephisto or Naot sandals and I think I look fine. You'll never look as good as the Italians but you will be neat and respectable, look good in your pictures, and most of all be cool. Best thing about summer clothes is that you can pack more than usual because the stuff IS so lightweight.

I usually take Dockers style pants on trips.

Because I do lots of photography while on trips and tend to lay down in the dirt, etc. to get the right angle, I don't like skirts or the more fragile fabrics. For me silk is just too fragile, so I skip it.

With Dockers, it's good to remember that there are several different fabric styles:

cotton sheeting - wrinkles quickly but very lightweight

cotton twill - doesn't wrinkle much, but slightly heavier weight

brushed cotton - heavy like denim.

The cotton sheeting will air dry without wrinkles if you hang it up.

I took my JJill cropped pants from their "wearever" collection to Italy last summer and they were perfect! Packed well, any wrinkles came out with a little wear, they are lightweight and super comfortable. They also make full length and gauchos. The full length are very wide at the bottom, not as good for walking...especially if you are clumsy on the cobblestones like me!!

I wear capris or cropped length in natural fabrics (linen, cotton, or cotton knit) with nice looking comfortable sandals. I also wear loose fitting knee-length shorts that look almost like a skirt. Loose 'palazzo' style pants in a rayon print are another versatile option.

Normal jeans or khakis are too warm for me.

I don't wear skirts or dresses, simply not my style, no other reason.

I don't like synthetics like the Danskins mentioned, or Chico's Traveler... way too hot for spring & summer traveling.

LOVE Naot sandals

Thanks for all your replies. You've been very helpful.

patterns, subtle prints and dark colors travel better than plain light colors
;-) sorry couldn't resist giving more advice -lol

Hey, I'll take all the help I can get. I just wanted to let everyone know I appreciated them taking time to respond.