FORGET Wagner’s Pat Butcher earrings and Katie Waissel’s bird nest haircuts, there is another fashion crime on The X Factor that has been going criminally unnoticed.
This year the contestants have been styled by Britain’s Next Top Model judge and stylist Grace Woodward. With the contestants sometimes sporting up to four different outfits over the weekend’s shows, it is perhaps no wonder that she has begun to run out of ideas. But is there really a need to dress the boys is girls trousers?
Harem pants have long been a woman’s fashion favorite, first becoming popular in the UK during the 1980s and experienced a renaissance during the latter part of the noughties. With their elasticated waists, tapered ankles and baggy legs and crotches, the shape gives a cross between a skinny jean and a skirt, with their comfort offering a smarter alternative to jogging bottoms.
The carrot fit jeans and chinos were popular with chaps during SS10, and are continuing into autumn/winter, but these harems are experimenting with their loose cut, pushing the boundaries of baggy. Over on The X Factor, Woodward has been pushing contestants on the show into them, perhaps drawing inspiration from one of the show’s fashion icons?
Cheryl Cole is a champion of harem pants
On last night’s results show, One Direction’s Louis Tomlinson became the latest perpetrator of the harem felony, sporting a black pair with his trademark snood and espadrilles, (seriously, summer is over – it’s snowing out there).
One Direction's Louis
Aiden Grimshaw
Although bad, it’s quiff headed Aiden Grimshaw‘s harems that really deserve to be burnt. Wearing them on the night of his elimination two weeks ago, Aiden’s crimpled grey harems took bagginess to excessive new levels with his crotch almost trailing the floor. Woodward chose to team them up with a smart blazer and shirt and military boots, and the result was a mismatched disaster which saw itself deservedly voted off the competition.
The high street is also catching on the trend, adapting the designs. Topman are carrying slightly more tailored harems with their grey super-drop crotches, which come without the elastic waist and ankle.
Grey Herringbone Super Drop Crotch Trousers, Topman, £40
Grey Shark Skin Super Drop Crotch Trousers, Topman, £36
Black Drop Crotch Jogger Trousers, River Island, £26.99
Meanwhile, River Island are playing it slightly more casual with a range of joggers and jeans.
Grey Acid Wash 3/4 length Joggers, River Island, £24.99
So what do you tink of men’s harems? Should we be free to embrace them or should they remain firmly inside our girlfriends’ wardrobes?
Related Articles
- Tired Trends: Harem Pants, Innerwear as Outerwear, Crop Tops, and More (stylelist.com)
- Drooping Diaper Bottoms – Hang Low With the Harem ‘Long Easy Pants’ by Rick Owens (GALLERY) (trendhunter.com)
- Fashion Dictionary: The Harem Pant (modcloth.com)
