Khaki pants, on the other hand, tend to be pants made of heavier materials like canvas, cut looser or boxier, and can be used for a variety of rugged purposes. They are typically too casual for a traditional office environment, but might function sufficiently for casual outings to the park or other outdoor activities. They were introduced to the American military in the early 20th century and were popular during both World Wars for American troops.
Troops returning from both World Wars and college students after World War I in particular integrated khakis and chinos into everyday life and they have survived ever since. Today they are offered in a variety of colors, cotton blends and synthetic fabrics, and offer leg styles from straight to slim.
The main reason for this is that wool slacks are more likely to shrink when you machine wash them. Chinos are easier to clean as the cotton twill is suitable for a machine wash. Do try and wash them with similar fabric and color, however.
Conveniently, chinos are able to tolerate high temperatures and withstand a tumble dry. However, hanging it to dry will always reduce the risk of shrinkage. Although there are no hard-and-fast rules, there will be instances where chinos would be more appropriate than slacks and vice versa. For the reasons I explained earlier, dress pants generally look more formal than chinos.
Because of this, there are certain times when dress pants would be more appropriate than chinos. Ultimately, the shinier finish and texture of dress pants will always give off a more formal vibe. Rocking a pair of chinos to a wedding, for instance, would be a pretty big risk indeed. A job interview is also one to be careful with. Having said that, truly formal settings are really the only ones where chinos would be considered inappropriate.
In contrast, dress pants would be inappropriate in casual settings and paired with more casual items of clothing. Both chinos and dress pants go great with blazers and sports coats. These jackets are casual enough to pair with chinos and formal enough to pair with dress pants. Khakis will look more blocky; chinos more streamlined. Or at least that's the theory. The first khaki trousers were made in when a British officer serving in the Punjab region traded his company's hot wool trousers and jackets for lighter cloth and looser cuts made from native cotton.
The colonial military stationed in India adopted khakis as their uniform trouser by , and it spread through the rest of the British Empire until the entire British army formally adopted the style as their uniform in Chino cloth was a lightweight twill weave from China hence the name. The British and French military were both using chino to make their khaki uniform trousers by the latter half of the 19th century. When American soldiers serving in the Philippines during the Spanish-American war needed uniform trousers, they found it cheaper and quicker to import from China rather than the United States.
Their trousers were made simple and tapered, without pleated fronts, to save on cloth costs, resulting in a smooth, simple style. The same basic style was used for uniform trousers during World War One, and returning soldiers from both wars brought them into civilian settings.
University students in particular took to chinos after WWI, and they have been part of the fashion landscape ever since.
So why are they called khakis?
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