# Zanella Pants/Trousers



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

Hello

I have a colleague who is something of a snappy dresser. He was telling me yesterday that he makes a habit of dropping by Nordstrom Rack and Off 5th Saks regularly.

He says he used to find what he considers to be a top-flight make of pants there, Zanella.

It was the first time I had heard of them.  I just searched AAAC and there are some threads but they are a few years old, mostly with guys who are selling them.

So, does anyone here have any experience with them? Are they really that great, and if so why?

I see that they come in different styles, a flat front and a double reversed pleat at least, and perhaps more.

Thanks!

:thumbs-up:


----------



## DukeGrad (Dec 28, 2003)

Morning

Yes my friend. I thought I told you in a PM these , especially in a wool gabardine 120. Run new about 250-295 dollars.
Onsale can get under 150.
I just got a couple pair myself, and the Hickey Freeman slack (250) new can get for about 150 or under.
The Zanella is a very nice slack, at the 250 dollar price point.
A very nice slack on sale.
Zanella/Hickey Freeman/Berle/and corbin not bad as well

Nice day


----------



## CuffDaddy (Feb 26, 2009)

I've had a few pairs of these. They often have very nice Italian fabrics, with the usual Italian fragility/non-durability. If the fit is like it was 5 years ago, men with large thighs/hips/seat may have to size up and have the waist taken in.


----------



## firedancer (Jan 11, 2011)

I also have a couple pair. I have the virgin wool/ almost light flannel types. I find them to drape extremely well and wear great. I disagree with cuffs remarks about fragility. Of course this may be more true with the supers and gab fabrics. 
They are excellent trousers for the price point on sale. And they always have tons of color options which is nice.


----------



## CuffDaddy (Feb 26, 2009)

The light flannels are one of the two types I have tried. And, to be clear, I don't mean that they fall apart in a few wearings, just that they won't last forever, or even a decade. At least not for those who are prone to crotch/inseam wear on trousers.


----------



## DukeGrad (Dec 28, 2003)

Gentlemen

For me get at least 10 years out of these, Hickey more for some reason.
Actually, the Nick Hilton that gets bad reviews here, makes the best gabardine at this price point.
I actually have both the zanella and Hickey Freeman 250 slack. They are equivocal.
Zanella makes a nice slack

Nice day


----------



## firedancer (Jan 11, 2011)

^^ I could agree with that cuff. There are more durable trousers out there. Paul Stuart flannels and older PRL gabardines come to mind. Of course these are much thicker fabrics. 
My clothing rotations are such that wear just doesn't play into my equations. I usually will stain or snag a piece of clothing before I wear it out. 
Of course, with some of my less thought out purchases, they go out of style before they're worn out. I'm trying to avoid that now that I'm a little older and seem to have my own evolved style.


----------



## TheGreatTwizz (Oct 27, 2010)

CuffDaddy said:


> I've had a few pairs of these. They often have very nice Italian fabrics, with the usual Italian fragility/non-durability. If the fit is like it was 5 years ago, men with large thighs/hips/seat may have to size up and have the waist taken in.


Precisely the case. I do, however, love my Zanellas.


----------



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

Thanks you guys, and Jimmy now that you mention it I suppose you did mention that, hey which one of us is supposed to have oldtimers disease anyway, you or me? ? ? It just didn't register with me, I suppose I was focused on jackets and suits.

I notice they have lots of them for sale on ebay. Maybe I'll go to Nordstrom and buy a pair in my best fitting style and size, and from there could look at other sources.

Costco has some nice looking Italian trousers ($80), but they all have double pleats. This former waterpoloist and swimmer is pudgy through the torso but more spare through the hips. So the pleats seem seem too baggy. * I am finding that flat front pants are more flattering.*

This was the case when I measured up and tried on the samples at mytailor (Hemanjani) a couple of weeks ago, the flat fronts worked best for me.

Which begs the question, since the MTM slacks at Hemranjani are $250 for the standard fabrics (super 110s), I wonder if that would be a better option? That assumes:
a) the MTM fit will be better than OTR Zanella 
b) the workmanship/features are also at least equal.

But, I don't know how the OTR Zanella's fit yet nor am I knowledgeable about comparing features and workmanship. I wonder if economies of scale allow the Zanellas any advantages in this regard?

Guess I'll have to try both. (I have a suit on order from Hemranjani currently.)

I anticipate rather light use, since for work I hit the locker room change out of my street clothes as soon as I arrive, almost always.

Just double checked the ebay listings, the Zanellas are 120s ($155 - 175) and 130s (~$190).


----------



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

Just looked at ebay and used the sort by price, there are some in the range of $100 - 150 as well.

Just trying to keep the damage to a minimum!

:icon_hailthee:


----------



## ykurtz (Mar 7, 2007)

I own 5 pair of Zanellas. Some are quite 'thin' and flap around a lot, and others are quite hefty (13 oz wool). I like them and on eBay they are quite often a bargain. Flat front off the rack is interesting as I find that most will wrinkle far more in the crotch area than pleated. Since I wear a jacket most of the time I prefer the looser fit of the higher waisted, pleated models myself. The flat front are hit and miss and at least for me work better if they are MTM/bespoke. I'm not a fan of the thousand wrinkles by the crotch look.


----------



## firedancer (Jan 11, 2011)

Just stopped in the rack last night. They had lots of models, plain and pleated, in lots of sizes for ~$120 or so.


----------



## Benjamin E. (Mar 2, 2007)

I've had a few pairs over the years. Compared to Hickey Freeman, my Zanellas have held up better and have taken quite a beating. I've had a tough time finding a good fit in trousers and Zanella also works very well for me.


----------



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

firedancer said:


> Just stopped in the rack last night. They had lots of models, plain and pleated, in lots of sizes for ~$120 or so.


Wow, maybe I'll stop by the Rack today.


----------



## DukeGrad (Dec 28, 2003)

Gentlemen

I usually like a gabardine. The drape, and look I find attractive.
To me it is a solid wearing slack at 120.
And have had no problems, justa nice drape at this weight.

ZZDOC my friend. I understand your issue with slacks especially with pleats.
I am a big fan of pleats, just a nice complement to a gabardine.

Yea, I am the one with Altzheimers, your are forgetting stuff yourself!!!

Stay away from any NEUROPSYCHOLOGIST!! and their 3 hour exams!
And a head CT, you will be fine. LoL

Nice day my friends.


----------



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

Went by Nordstrom to get my shoes shined and went upstairs to kill some time.

I tried on some Zanella Todd flat fronts, wow great fit and feel ! ! !

Picked up a pair on ebay, tailor hemmed them, very nice.

But yes susceptible to crotch wrinkles. So _*is the accepted wisdom that pleated pants will have less*_ of that?

Bought two pair more on ebay, they are at the tailor getting hemmed. They are both flat front also.

All are wool, they fit so nicely and now I'm wondering if they make any cotton khaki type trousers for a somewhat more casual application.


----------



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

Jimmy glad to see you were logged in recently, I was a little worried about you.


----------



## Checkerboard 13 (Oct 6, 2009)

zzdocxx said:


> But yes susceptible to crotch wrinkles. So _*is the accepted wisdom that pleated pants will have less*_ of that?


Yes.



zzdocxx said:


> Jimmy glad to see you were logged in recently, I was a little worried about you.


I don't know whether you noticed that his last post in this thread was actually a year ago.


----------



## dks202 (Jun 20, 2008)

DukeGrad said:


> Morning
> 
> Yes my friend. I thought I told you in a PM these , especially in a wool gabardine 120. Run new about 250-295 dollars.
> Onsale can get under 150.
> ...


I don't think Corbin is in the same league as the others. You left out Oxxford,,


----------



## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

Checkerboard 13 said:


> Yes.
> 
> I don't know whether you noticed that his last post in this thread was actually a year ago.


Uh...actually it was two years past.  Seriously, I do hope Jimmy is doing well and wish only good days for him. What a splendid gentleman!


----------



## Acme (Oct 5, 2011)

dks202 said:


> DukeGrad said:
> 
> 
> > Morning
> ...


Some of Corbin's stuff is made by Incotex.



eagle2250 said:


> Uh...actually it was two years past.  Seriously, I do hope Jimmy is doing well and wish only good days for him. What a splendid gentleman!


Agreed. I always enjoy his posts.


----------



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

Just to clarify, Jimmy's profile page says he last logged in Jan 2014 which is what I meant by "recently".

Yes I do recognize it is almost two years since his last post in this thread or for that matter on this site. Which was why I was a little worried about him.

But getting back to crotch wrinkles -- interesting that in my size, almost all the ebay listings for Zanella are in the flat-front Todd model.

There are a couple of "Bennett" models which have double pleats. I haven't had the chance to try those on yet.

_*Bless you Jimmy, we'd like to hear from you!*_


----------



## peterc (Oct 25, 2007)

Zanella makes nice pants. Always has. Picked up a pair of flat front tan h-bone mid weight wool ones at Last Call over Christmas. Until the Italians start to embrace forward pleats, no Italian pleated pants for me, as they are 99% reverse pleated, Barbera excepted - I have a pair.


----------



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

Hey Peter what practical difference do reverse vs. forward pleats make in terms of fit, wear, etc?


----------



## peterc (Oct 25, 2007)

I find forward pleats very flattering on almost anyone; reverse pleats the opposite. Plus, with forward pleats, you have the added benefit of not looking like everyone else. I think they are iconic too. Bottom line, they just plain look better.


----------



## Matt S (Jun 15, 2006)

peterc said:


> I find forward pleats very flattering on almost anyone; reverse pleats the opposite. Plus, with forward pleats, you have the added benefit of not looking like everyone else. I think they are iconic too. Bottom line, they just plain look better.


+1. Forward pleats fit differently than reverse pleats since they are cut differently. The extra cloth from the pleats is tucked away more neatly in forward pleats. The standard reverse pleats often look baggy.


----------



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

I had to google images the geometry and architecture and structure of forward vs. reverse.

Why exactly is it they look better?

Is it because the crease is visualized from the waist where it is sharply delineated? ? ?

Or what else and why?


----------



## peterc (Oct 25, 2007)

zzdocxx said:


> I had to google images the geometry and architecture and structure of forward vs. reverse.
> 
> Why exactly is it they look better?
> 
> ...


If you can't see the difference in photos and when you try them on, then the difference may not mean much to you. Not trying to be sarcastic, but I find your question perplexing.


----------



## zzdocxx (Sep 26, 2011)

Ok.

I googled to see exactly what's meant by F vs R.

I can understand the case made that F looks better than R.

Question is in visual, architecectural, geometric terms, what qualities does that design posess that might cause it to be more aesthetically pleasing to the eye of those who favor it ? ? ?

Break it down, not just "it obviously looks better".

How so, and why? 

Why do the stylish Italians think otherwise? Is it because they are thinner and that changes the equation? ? ?

Etc.


----------

