Tartan Invaded Trends - Turns-Ups on your Trousers?

Our Tartan Invaded Trends blog post series aims to bring Tartan to the forefront of fashion, illustrating how subtly including hints of tartan in your outfit can be as on trend as the latest fashion trends themselves! Sometimes we are accused (quite fairly) of always talking about women's fashion so in this blog post we go all masculine and discuss whether today's man should have turn-ups on his trousers.

Turn-ups are a very personal thing and not something we initially offered as an option for our tartan trousers. However due to popular demand we have introduced this style and you can even choose the depth of the turn-up from one to two inches. The more we thought about trousers the more we realised that the fashion world has become a little lazy as we try to create cuts that suit every leg shape and take the least amount of work to manufacture, hence details such as pockets, pleats and the trusty turn-up have been heavily simplified or quite simply dropped. We love tailoring and all these extra details that make a garment feel and look a bit special so watch this space for more and more options to create an individual pair of trousers or better still email us your suggestions.

The History of the Turn-Up

King Edward VII was a bit of a style icon and his name comes up as the inventor of the turn-up for purely practical reasons to keep the hem of his trouser out of the mud. He used to simple roll them up but around the turn of the 20th century he had this feature incorporated into the tailoring of his trousers and the trend began in earnest. In 1941 the British Government introduced clothes rationing and a utility concept to save wool and make clothes last longer resulting in turn-ups, broad lapels and pocket flaps being made illegal, even for the Royal family. This was a very unpopular decision and Sir High Dalton, President of the Board of Trade made a very strong press statement on the subject including the following: "The two inches removed from the bottom of a man's shirt and the elimination of double cuffs altogether saved about 4 million square yards of cotton annually, and about 1000 operatives in the cloth manufacture alone". We are perhaps no longer bound by austerity and utility regulations but companies mass producing trousers are working on similar principles.

Turn-ups or cuffs are often thought to make your legs appear shorter and therefore less flattering whereas in fact we would have to argue that properly made turn-ups actually give shape to the leg and help the trousers to drape as they add some weight to the hem. If you are shorter go for a 1 inch turn-up and taller gentlemen we suggest a deeper up to 2 inch hem.

We would advise choosing pleats on the waistband to give your trousers some body at the top to balance the body at the hem, and this gives you a nice crease down the front which helps the shape of the trousers and makes it more flattering. Rather than a slim or tight fit give us your thigh, knee and calf measurements and we can make your trouser so they follow the natural taper of your leg and then you will have the full effect of a well made turn-up.

Finally to the length, another contentious area and one that can completely change the look. For the traditional effect your turn-ups should sit just on top of your shoelaces and this is the most flattering way to wear them. However current fashion would encourage you to wear a slimmer fit turn-up, wear them shorter and with a natty pair of boots or brogues with plenty detail. And of course you need to think about your socks. Statement socks are key!