Corduroy never really went away. It just spent a few decades being quietly unfashionable, hiding in the wardrobes of retired geography teachers and country walkers, waiting for the rest of us to catch up. And catch up we have. The ribbed fabric that defined the 1970s is back on the high street, back in editorial spreads, and back in the everyday wardrobes of people who want something with a bit of texture and character rather than another pair of plain chinos.
The interesting thing about corduroy’s return isn’t that it’s being reinvented, exactly. It’s that people have stopped treating it as costume and started wearing it like a perfectly normal fabric choice, which, to be fair, it is. The wale (that’s the name for the ridged lines, for those who didn’t know, and I only found this out embarrassingly recently) gives the cloth warmth, depth, and a slightly old-fashioned quality that actually looks quite considered in 2024 rather than dated.
What Makes Corduroy Worth Wearing Again
The practical case for cord is stronger than people give it credit for. It’s thicker than standard cotton drill, which means it handles autumn and winter temperatures far better than most trouser fabrics. It doesn’t crease as aggressively as linen. It drapes reasonably well. And unlike a lot of synthetic fabrics that have crept into menswear in the last decade, corduroy tends to age decently rather than going shiny at the knees after eighteen months.
Colour is where cord really earns its place too. The fabric takes rich, earthy tones beautifully. Burnt orange, olive, dark navy, a deep burgundy, these shades look flat and a bit cheap on plain cotton but take on real depth in corduroy. There’s a reason that classic autumnal colour palette has always been associated with the fabric. It’s not just nostalgia; the texture genuinely does something to the colour that a smoother weave can’t replicate.
Fit matters too, and this is where older cord trousers sometimes struggled. The traditional cut was often quite roomy through the thigh and tapered awkwardly at the ankle. Modern versions have moved toward a more contemporary straight leg, which avoids both the baggy and the overly skinny extremes that neither flatter nor age well.
Where Chums Comes Into the Picture
Chums has built its reputation on practical, well-priced clothing for older men, and it’s not a brand that’s particularly interested in chasing trends for the sake of it. Which is actually why its cord offering is worth paying attention to. The Chums corduroy trousers are designed with comfort and wearability at the front of mind, with features like elasticated or partially elasticated waistbands that make them considerably more liveable for everyday use than a rigid formal cut.
That elasticated waistband gets dismissed as an “older man” thing, but honestly, once you’ve worn trousers with any waistband flexibility during a long day, it’s hard to understand why anyone suffers through a stiff waistband by choice. There’s no shame in it. The trousers still look neat and presentable; they just don’t punish you for sitting down after lunch.
The colour range tends toward the reliable rather than the adventurous, which suits the brand’s customer base well enough. You’re looking at classic shades like tobacco, navy, and stone rather than anything that’ll raise eyebrows, and the prices sit at a point where replacing them after a few seasons isn’t a financial event. That’s not a criticism, it’s genuinely part of the appeal for a lot of buyers who want decent quality without being precious about it.
How to Actually Wear Corduroy Without Looking Like You’ve Raided a Lost Property Box
The simplest approach is to treat cord trousers exactly as you’d treat a pair of plain chinos. A plain shirt, a crew-neck jumper, a simple jacket. The texture of the fabric is already doing the visual work, so you don’t need to pile on pattern or detail elsewhere. Earth tones alongside other earth tones tends to look naturally put-together without any real effort.
For footwear, leather boots or brogues sit well with corduroy in a way that white trainers typically don’t, though darker cord in navy or charcoal can take a clean casual trainer reasonably well. Loafers work well too if the trouser has a slimmer cut.
Corduroy’s reputation as fusty and old-fashioned probably says more about how it was styled in the past than about the fabric itself. Worn well, with a decent fit and sensible colour choices, it holds up as well as anything else in a winter wardrobe. Better, in a lot of cases.
