Porto Trousers
Evening Coppice

I could make this really brief and just say “I have always wanted a pair of kecks like this, so I made them,” but where would the fun be in that? So, come with me as we roll all the way back to 2005 when I first started discovering very expensive Japanese street style magazines and realised that it would be almost impossible to ever look as cool as the people in the photos… until now.

The Porto trousers are my take on those perfectly cropped trousers that only the coolest people wear. I always wanted a pair of trousers that showed off your shoes and socks a bit, without looking like a Victorian orphan. They should be made from a cloth that looked great and performed like workwear. So here we are, welcome to the Porto trousers.

Like always, we start with the cloth, this one is a custom-woven dark olive green canvas that seems only get better and better with age. The fabric has been created to maximise drape and ruggedness so that you can fix a car, have a pint with your mate, secure a big deal at the office and then head out to a Mechlin-starred restaurant, all without changing your kecks. You’re paying the bill at the restaurant mind.

The style is informed by a mixture of traditional Portuguese work trousers and the very famous French carpenter trouser, the ‘largeot.’ The style is loose through the thigh and knee, coming to a nice and slim taper at your ankle, meaning that should you wish to do any work in them, you will be fine. On the right leg is an open jet pocket which can store anything from a bag of sweets to your essentials for daily life. The largeot trousers usually had a small space for a knife or hammer, but with phones being the major tool most of us use every day, I decided that you needed enough space in the pocket for your smart device.

The trousers are manufactured by Antonio and his team in Porto to the very highest of standards. The lovely shade of olive green is called ‘Evening Coppice’ as it represents the colour of the trees during a summer evening in Accrington. The trousers are designed to be worn a little short, but should you wish to make them slightly longer, there is enough fabric in the hem to make them 1-1.5″ longer, but ask your local alterations place to do this for you. My advice is to go for your normal waist length and if you are usually a 28-30″ inseam, go for the short length and if you are usually a 31-33″ inseam, go for the regular. People with longer legs than that are probably used to trousers not being too long in the leg, so these are most definitely not for you!

The trousers can be dressed up or down depending on your mood. I think these would look good with white trainers, an oxford shirt and unstructured blazer as well as with a sweatshirt and wallabees. If you want to go for the whole ‘Iain Trickett’ look, wear them with a baseball cap, hoodie, cow print Paraboots and a Charlie Bigham’s curry in  your hand…but that is the advanced level.

A lovely fabric, great details, Accrington-inspired and you can dress them up or down, sounds good to me.

100% cotton.