15 Weird and Unusual Jeans for Men 2024:
GQ RecommendsWhy right now is a good time to add some funked-up denim to your rotation.By Louis CheslawNovember 4, 2024Save this storySaveSave this storySaveAll products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.This is a different kind of jeans story.Because we’re in a different kind of jeans moment. For years, if not decades, selvedge jeans—those raw, indigo slacks that stand up almost on their own—dominated the denim discourse. Then, over the past few years, guys seemed to tire of the stiffness and break-in periods required to rock them, and moved away from denim for a while. Wider, softer dress trousers and Dickies took over, and caring intensely about denim was relegated to more of a pastime for a certain kind of craft-minded man (a great type of guy, but a specific one.)But denim is too good of a fabric to stay down for long. As GQ’s Noah Johnson wrote recently, everyone is wearing jeans again. But the jeans they’re wearing aren’t necessarily the raw Japanese strides of the #menswear era. They’re a genre-busting new vanguard—a faux-distressed Supreme pair here, a Kiko Kostadinov X Levi’s collab there. The new crop of jeans are all the colors of the rainbow, rarely selvedge (and therefore comfy from day one) and are designed to be the shining star of your outfit, rather than the grounding anchor of it.I also want to stress something else: I’m actually seeing people wearing these on the street. Which is to say—you can do it too. Like riding without stabilizers, or jumping off the high dive, it might feel new and scary at first. But once you’ve broken the seal, you’ll wonder what you were ever worried about.1/15SunflowerWide Twist Jeans$245 SSENSELet’s start off gently. Sunflower was started by the founder of Copenhagen’s NN07, Ulrik Pedersen, and he’s brought a veteran’s confidence to his denim creations. The brand is already known for these “Twist” jeans, where the outseam curls around the leg like fusilli.2/15Our LegacyThird Cut Jeans$470 SSENSESee those rips? Not real! Our Legacy flexed their tech smarts in a big way here, printing a trompe l’oeil ripped effect onto their already-excellent (not too straight, not too wide) Third Cut silhouette. These are a new classic already: I’ve had plenty of friends take time to visit the store, just to marvel at the trick.3/15Eckhaus LattaBaggy Jeans$475 SSENSENot to be outdone, Eckhaus Latta’s pair looks like puffs of smoke or cloud patterns are swirling across your legs at all times. If you’re into it, take further comfort from the fact Eckhaus Latta are known to make great, comfortable, easy-wearing denim in general—these aren’t just about that amazing look.4/15Acne StudiosStraight-Leg Distressed Jeans$750 Mr PorterAcne Studios ran with Our Legacy’s Trompe l’oeil denim this season, producing this truly bizarro pair of jeans adorned with completely fake but three-dimensional-seeming keychains, accessories, paint splashes and more. Those have unsurprisingly sold out for now, but they also dropped these cheeky light and loose boys, with a low crotch and a print you won’t care about dirtying up further.5/15Our Legacy70s Cut Jeans$380 $239 SSENSEFor the guy who hates ironing. Given that OL have been the guiding hand for plenty of guys into wackier denim (the taupe Third Cut was my gateway) I felt they deserved a couple nods on this list. These have a flared 70s cut, and a mock crease down the legs that actually reads kind of formal somehow. (FWIW, J.Crew’s excellent Wallace & Barnes range has a nice creased jean right now too.)7/15StussyBig Ol' Jean$160 Mohawk General StoreThe lines outside Stüssy stores these days tell you everything there is to know about the renewed moment they’re enjoying. Much of that is down to their Big Ol’ Jean, and Mohawk has it in this handsome washed-out, fatigue-like colorway.8/15MaglianoPioggerella Jeans$810 SSENSEWhen I asked menswear buyers which brands to look out for this fall, Magliano was one of them, because of unexpected flourishes like the kind you see here—a nice speckled print that looks almost like snowfall.9/15Hed MaynerStraight-Leg Mohair-Blend Trimmed Jeans$570 SSENSEHed Mayner remains a brand to watch. Just look at these: A little bit corduroy professor, a little velvet curtain, these could almost double as a blanket. They come with some stretch too, for even more of a relaxed feel.10/15MarniFlocked Jeans$945 Mr PorterWhile we’re talking about unexpected fabrics: Marni added soft, fuzzy mohair patchwork panels to these jeans. Made in Italy, they’re essentially a case study for what the brand’s designers can achieve.11/15KapitalSpeak Easy Straight-Leg Jacquard Jeans$440 Mr PorterNobody freaks denim like Kapital. And even they have moved away from selvedge, in some cases! Like this one, which is slathered in all-seeing eyes to keep your foes on their toes.12/15Dries Van NotenStraight-Leg Jeans$715 Mr PorterThis pink and blue acid-washed piece is plenty trippy. And
All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.
This is a different kind of jeans story.
Because we’re in a different kind of jeans moment. For years, if not decades, selvedge jeans—those raw, indigo slacks that stand up almost on their own—dominated the denim discourse. Then, over the past few years, guys seemed to tire of the stiffness and break-in periods required to rock them, and moved away from denim for a while. Wider, softer dress trousers and Dickies took over, and caring intensely about denim was relegated to more of a pastime for a certain kind of craft-minded man (a great type of guy, but a specific one.)
But denim is too good of a fabric to stay down for long. As GQ’s Noah Johnson wrote recently, everyone is wearing jeans again. But the jeans they’re wearing aren’t necessarily the raw Japanese strides of the #menswear era. They’re a genre-busting new vanguard—a faux-distressed Supreme pair here, a Kiko Kostadinov X Levi’s collab there. The new crop of jeans are all the colors of the rainbow, rarely selvedge (and therefore comfy from day one) and are designed to be the shining star of your outfit, rather than the grounding anchor of it.
I also want to stress something else: I’m actually seeing people wearing these on the street. Which is to say—you can do it too. Like riding without stabilizers, or jumping off the high dive, it might feel new and scary at first. But once you’ve broken the seal, you’ll wonder what you were ever worried about.
2/15Our Legacy
Third Cut Jeans
See those rips? Not real! Our Legacy flexed their tech smarts in a big way here, printing a trompe l’oeil ripped effect onto their already-excellent (not too straight, not too wide) Third Cut silhouette. These are a new classic already: I’ve had plenty of friends take time to visit the store, just to marvel at the trick.
3/15Eckhaus Latta
Baggy Jeans
Not to be outdone, Eckhaus Latta’s pair looks like puffs of smoke or cloud patterns are swirling across your legs at all times. If you’re into it, take further comfort from the fact Eckhaus Latta are known to make great, comfortable, easy-wearing denim in general—these aren’t just about that amazing look.
4/15Acne Studios
Straight-Leg Distressed Jeans
Acne Studios ran with Our Legacy’s Trompe l’oeil denim this season, producing this truly bizarro pair of jeans adorned with completely fake but three-dimensional-seeming keychains, accessories, paint splashes and more. Those have unsurprisingly sold out for now, but they also dropped these cheeky light and loose boys, with a low crotch and a print you won’t care about dirtying up further.
5/15Our Legacy
70s Cut Jeans
For the guy who hates ironing. Given that OL have been the guiding hand for plenty of guys into wackier denim (the taupe Third Cut was my gateway) I felt they deserved a couple nods on this list. These have a flared 70s cut, and a mock crease down the legs that actually reads kind of formal somehow. (FWIW, J.Crew’s excellent Wallace & Barnes range has a nice creased jean right now too.)
8/15Magliano
Pioggerella Jeans
When I asked menswear buyers which brands to look out for this fall, Magliano was one of them, because of unexpected flourishes like the kind you see here—a nice speckled print that looks almost like snowfall.
12/15Dries Van Noten
Straight-Leg Jeans
This pink and blue acid-washed piece is plenty trippy. And if there was ever a time to invest in some Dries, it would be the year the legendary Antwerp six designer bowed out.
