Oxford Bags

[Marc Chevalier]

Hang on, Matt ... take another look at the 1936 Sears catalog page, above. See the two pairs of pants at the top right? Those pant bottoms look very wide, don't they? Well, looks can deceive: they're only 21 inches. The vintage Oxford bag that just sold on eBay has a leg bottom of nearly 24 inches. Now that is wide!

 

[Powerhouse]

The trousers offered for sale look most like these from the 36 sears cat.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

And that trouser (in the catalog) has only a 20-inch leg bottom.

 

[Powerhouse]

..it' also a type of illustration. Renderings are usually exagurated.

I would love to get a pair like the ones in the middle on top of the page, and only $1.69

YOWZA!

 

[Matt Deckard]

Okay, maybe wide for US bags

 

[Marc Chevalier]

It's also an illustration. Renderings are usually exaggerated.

Exactly. That's what I'm trying to convey to Matt: that leg bottoms of '30s trousers, even those of the more sporty "campus" styles, were NOT all that wide. They weren't Oxford bags by any means.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Now we're talking! Buster Keaton's pants definitely ARE Oxford bags. (And Keaton was playing a college boy in that film!)

 

[Powerhouse]

Okay, maybe wide for US bags

DID THEY SWITCH PANTS? just kidding.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Dear Santa,

Please bring Wild Root and me a pair of authentically-cut Oxford bags. We've been good all year. Really!

Yours truly,
Marc Chevalier

 

[Matt Deckard]

Just wanted to say... isn't it totally rad that we have a globally accessible place where we can talk about the details of baggy dress trousers?

 

[Marc Chevalier]

It's like a lunatic asylum in a fishbowl.

 

[BellyTank]

I think the pants are a nice vintage 'casual' style, especially casual in the light fabric. They do seem to be tapered quite a lot(or is that the pleat and crease effect)- if they were straight-legged, considering the size of the hip area, they would be very wide at the cuff.

I fancy a pair but I feel the style would be better filled out in a cloth with a bit more bulk and heft- make the most of the vintage cut. That and a flapped back pocket. But a pair in linen would be very smart with a white shirt.

I DO like them though.

B
T

 

[Powerhouse]

AND HOW!

 

[Marc Chevalier]

It's a funny thing: those very baggy gangsta jeans have the correct Oxford bag leg! (In other words, gangsta jeans and Dickies are the Oxford bags of today.)

 

[scotrace]

I'll bite

Bags or not, I'll give them a shot.* These will work with the Victoria Falls jacket I just ordered from my friend Mr. Peterman at considerable discount.
I'm thinking brown. Or natural, maybe? Advise?

Email sent.







* If they were baggy waggy pants, I think they might look silly on my frame.

 

[scotrace]

Just wanted to say... isn't it totally rad that we have a globally accessible place where we can talk about the details of baggy dress trousers?

Yes! It's the best thing ever.*









*Naked things excepted.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Yes! It's the best thing ever.*









*Naked things excepted.

lol :cheers1:

 

[BellyTank]

Depends which naked things yer tokkin aboot.

B
T

 

[Marc Chevalier]

:eusa_doh: You ruined it for me, BellyTank!

 

[BellyTank]

I'm a walking cold shower, me-

B
T