Gap Windowpane Pants
$48 (on sale)
Yeah, we know. This is our second article about Gap pants in only two weeks’ time.
A friend of mine recently told me that the last thing he bought from Gap was a sweatshirt 10 years ago, and he’s never reconsidered Gap as a solid option until we recommended these cool pants. So hey, we are objective reviewers and we will look for value wherever we find it! Even in Gap (which we think is without question a solid enough place for some very good buys)! This is especially true since we couldn’t find a single review of these pants online. So, on to the review.
Quality & Construction
These pants are a “wool blend,” so they are not 100% wool. There’s 40% wool, 30% polyester, 29% rayon and 1% polyurethane. It’s got a smooth wool-twill-weave, with some very slight stretch.
Two immediate complaints: (1) The material is a bit scratchy/itchy. This is a common complaint I have with lower quality wool, or fabrics that aren’t 100% wool. When I’m standing and walking I really don’t feel it, but when I’m sitting in my chair for an extended period of time the material gets a bit itchy. If this was a high quality pair of merino or alpaca wool pants, the scratchiness would definitely be less. This wool fabric is definitely a bit coarse. (Side note: it’s not just the quality or percentage of wool that that matters, it also depends on the health of the sheep and processing practices.) (2) Like the prior Gap pants we discussed, the pockets are very shallow. My cellphone has already fallen out of my pocket when I sat down. It’s really annoying!
Here’s the bottom line: these pants are certainly not of the “super comfortable” variety. In fact, I’d say they lean in the “slightly uncomfortable” direction due to the itch mentioned above. Does this ruin the pants for me? No. This is exactly what I would expect from a fairly cheap wool pant, and it’s not so bad as to stop me from wearing them. Just don’t expect to be blown away by the quality here.
(Care note: these pants are good to go after a gentle machine cycle on cold and then hanging them to dry. It’s definitely a plus not to have to send these pants to the dry cleaners.)
Style
There is no question that these pants are dressy pants and should only be worn with complementary formal clothing. The windowpane styling and colors are a bit atypical and stand out a bit, and I really like the pattern. I got five complements the first day I wore these pants. They are not subtle, but they’re also not loud, in-your-face statement pants. They’re classy with some personality. Just the way I like it. And these are exactly the sort of dress pants that really spice up your wardrobe.
These happen to be the first dress pants with cuffs that I have purchased in many years, so let’s talk about the cuffs that come on these pants for a second: I won’t wade deep into the conversation of cuffs vs. hem (and a lot of this conversation has to do with your height, bespoke vs. OTR, and other tangential considerations perhaps for another post), but suffice it to say that I almost always prefer a hem to a cuff, especially with flat front pants. I generally associate cuffs with pleated pants (and my grandad). But I think that the 1.75 inch cuff on these pants looks fantastic and gives me some real variety. This might make them a bit harder to tailor or adjust if the length is not quite right, but when it comes to these “not 100% dress pants, but not casual pants either,” this sort of thing is a common tradeoff.
The Fit
I love the mid-rise on these pants, plus the fact that they are slim through the leg with a tapered leg opening. My view on the fit here is almost exactly similar to the other Gap pants we review: These pants are only available in Gap’s slimmest fit, which is quite similar to the J Crew 484 fit, and it’s certainly got that perfect slim fit look (the Gap pants are just a touch less slim than the 484). However, it’s not at all like yoga pants or any “skinny-fits” where the pants are super snug. So, if you generally find that a slim fit works for you, this fit will be perfect. Take a look at our measurements table to be sure:
Value & Conclusion
If you are not super-sensitive to itchy pants and can live with shallow pockets, then these are a great pair of wool dress pants to add to any wardrobe. And, as we’ve mentioned before, Gap constantly has 40% off codes (and often with free shipping as well), so ignore the retail price of $80 and think of it as a $48 pair of pant. That’s a more than fair price for these wool pants. Is it an awesome deal? Not quite. But it’s a reasonable deal. Find me another quality slim fit wool pants at this price and we’ll certainly buy and review it!