November 20th, 2009
Style on Trial: Sweat pants with heels
Jogging pants with heels: you like?
As we noted (with no small amount of concern, we might add) earlier this month, the December issue of UK Vogue informs us that sweat pants are THE trousers to be seen in this season, and that every well-dressed woman will be wearing them – not with sneakers, though: with heels.
The image above, from ASOS.com, is the first evidence we’ve found of this “trend” in action, but far be it for us to doubt what Vogue tells us, so we wanted to ask you: what do you think of this look? It’s lounge wear-meets-office-wear, casual-meets-dressy, comfort-meets-formal, er, jogging pants meets stilettos, but do these contradictions make you jump for joy and yell “At last! Now I get to wear my old sweatpants ALL THE TIME and call it ‘fashion’!” or do you just give a small shudder and say, “Only if you paid me, and it would depend how much?”
We know what WE think, but what do you think, ladies and gentlemen of the Fashion Police jury?
NEVER !
I wouldn’t be caught dead in such an outfit
No. First of all, not because it just looks odd, but because I wear my stilettos to two kinds of places: work, and out on the town. I certainly wouldn’t be allowed to wear sweatpants to work, so that’s out. And why in the world would I substitute sweats for a cute pair of skinny jeans or a dress when I’m going out dancing and drinking? It’s just silly to me. I love sweats but I love them when I’m at home, reading books and relaxing.
Also I meant to add- The whole outfit makes me giggle because it reminds me of the ‘walk of shame’ type of deal. You leave that cute guy’s house in the morning. All you’ve got to wear is your fancy stilettos from the bar the night before, and you’ve stolen the pair of his comfy sweatpants that you slept in, because it’s 9 AM and you’re not putting those darn tight skinny jeans on again, plus they smell like cigarettes and have a red wine stain on the thigh… Not that I’ve ever done that before or anything even like it. Really. Honestly.
I would wear that “Only if you paid me, and it would depend how much?”
but come to think about it,…,hmmm,
no, I would never…
I’ve always felt pretty strongly that sweatpants are never to be worn in public. Sweatpants are what you wear when you just don’t care enough to get dressed. I don’t care if you put on your most glamorous heels, you can not make lounge wear business causal.
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If I saw someone wearing this combination I’d think something horrible had happened to their proper outfit so they put on the exercise clothes they’d brought to the office with them. But wait, that doesn’t makes sense – surely they’d have the trainers with them too? Ah, I know: the horrible accident happened, leaving them trapped at their desk, while a helpful colleague nips out and buys the nearest cheap stretchy trousers (so there’s no concern about correct fit) to act as a temporary replacement. And this is the result. And anyone wearing the combination on purpose would soon stop because they’d get sick of being asked, “What happened to your skirt?”
If I saw someone wearing this combination I’d think something horrible had happened to their proper outfit so they put on the exercise clothes they’d brought to the office with them. But wait, that doesn’t makes sense – surely they’d have the trainers with them too? Ah, I know: the horrible accident happened, leaving them trapped at their desk, while a helpful colleague nips out and buys the nearest cheap stretchy trousers (so there’s no concern about correct fit) to act as a temporary replacement. And this is the result. And anyone wearing the combination on purpose would soon stop because they’d get sick of being asked, “What happened to your skirt?”
Arrggh?! No idea why that ended up as a double post – I only clicked on Submit once – promise…
Actually, it’s better than harem pants.
Horrible! I NEVER EVER wear sweat pants outside my house (except to take out the trash or something). This reminds me of that hideous trend of wearing cargo pants with heels only this is even worse.
This completely defeats the purpose of both sweatpants and heels. Sweatpants are for the times when you don’t care how you look and high heels are for the times you do care.
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Sometimes, I think fashion editors make these things up for a laugh, just to see how ridiculous they can actually make us look.
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This is just so funny. I can’t stop laughing.
When Chanel made her original LBD from jersey fabric people were shocked because it was a fabric for an undergarment and a sleepwear. I wonder if it looked somewhat like this for people in 20th.
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I don’t get it. It’s as if the comfiness (is that a word?) of the sweatpants will somehow cancel out the excruciating stiletto foot pain. This harkens back to the classic dilemma of the Ugg boots and miniskirt: does the fact that your feet are drowning in a pool of sweat make up for the frostbite on your knees?
what a terrible look
couldn’t they at least find the seatpants without the ankle elastication…not that that would convince me to rock sweatpants with heels but it would be marginally better
maybe she’s wearing those “looks like a pump feels like a sneaker” shoes from 15-20 years ago…hope i am not the only one that remembers those ads lol
I love it! It’s like the boyfriend-jeans-with-pumps look, only a little different. It’s contrast between casual and dressy. It’s really cool for street style, in my opinion!
This reminds me of something that makes me burn with shame every time I think of it.
A while back a so-called “friend” posted a photo of a group of friends from the ’80s on his Facebook page (I am quite old, you see). In the pic, I am wearing a man’s white shirt and jacket, rain boots, and pink pants.
The pic, being a scanned copy of a low res image, is not very clear, so I had to wrack my brain to figure out what on earth I was wearing on my lower extremities and why?
As near as I can figure, the pink pants were sweat pants (that shade of bright fuscia we really liked in 1984) and I put them and the rain boots on because we had stayed up that whole night and gone walking on the railroad tracks until dawn, when the pic was taken.
I probably started the evening in heels and a mini skirt (still sort of a ridiculous outfit with the man’s jacket and white shirt, but not as bad as with the sweat pants and rain boots)
But what haunts me is I don’t remember. Did I actually think that was a good outfit to wear? Then there’s the injustice of it all — why, of all the photos taken of me in the 80s, some of which might even have been rather cute, did this one surface on the Interwebs?
Oh, the humanity!
Anyway, this was just my long-winded way of saying I really hate the sweat-pants-and-stillettos look.
HATE IT.
I like the heels…
i don’t like this combo at all. bluh. I might wear it if you payed me an obscene amout of cash and if we were in a dark alley and no one saw me.. but i’m just crazy like that.
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absolutely awful.
this is actually a real thing… people do this… i just googled it because i’m looking at a girl right now at work wearing sweatpants and stilleto boots… with the sweatpants tucked into the tops of the boots… it’s hideous… it makes me want to hurl… and this is the second time she has worn it this week so i know it wasnt an accident… sad very very sad
This is yet another case of combining two elements that don’t work, and then saying it’s ‘edgy’ or ‘modern’ when really it’s just… bleugh.
I don’t think it’s okay to even wear sweatpants out of the house or workout space, fullstop. They’re for athletics or dancing or warming up or whatnot–or else pyjamas, or long underwear if you don’t have proper long underwear or you’re REALLY cold or both. UNDER your clothes, if you wear them out. Under them.
I know sweatshirts are okay for, you know, ‘omg it’s kinda chilly I should take a hoodie to put over my t-shirt and jeans’, but I’m sorry, Sweatpants. I’m sorry. You can’t have the same privileges as Sweatshirt.
No! God no!
As far as I’m concerned, sweatpants are for exercising. Nothing wrong with wearing them when you’re going for a run or on the way to the gym. But they are not flattering, they are not fancy, and they look like crapola with heels.
Yea, I kinda understand that sometimes you feel icky in the morning and jeans aren’t the most comfortable thing. But that it why God has given us leggings (worn with butt coverage, of course).
‘Jeans aren’t the most comfortable thing’
…What kind of jeans are YOU wearing? o_O My levis are the most comfortable pants I own, goodness….
I feel guilty walking my dog at 5am in my sweatpants. Forget wearing them elsewhere!
First it was sweatpants with Uggs. Now sweatpants with heels.
JUST LEAVE THE SWEATPANTS AT THE GYM. Or in your pyjama drawer.
Well, I’m the ‘lucky’ one with the privilege of working from home thanks to the guy that invented Internet!!!
So, I wear my sweetpants to walk my kids to school and I have absolutely no guilt about it because they are comfortable and life is too short to take fashion or anything too seriously. I can say so because I am 41 and I know more than anyone 20something. I also may wear sweetpants to go and visit my sister and I really wouldn’t mind going to the cinema in them. But never theater! Theater is another story…
I live in Athens (Greece) and I saw one or two wearing their sweetpants on high heels so I thought ‘Is this a trend?’ (I haven’t seen Vogue…)
What I’ll say is, that it’s not really what we would call ‘ugly’ or ‘scary’ BUT it’s what we would say that ‘doesn’t feel right’.
I mean, if you go for comfortness where do high heels fit in the picture?
And, yes, I’ll pass…
OMG I have been wearing sweat pants / joggin bottoms with heels for years! lol and YES now it finally in fashion!!! I knew one day I’d be a trend starter!!!
Oh, shoot me! You’ve got to be kidding! What idiot in the world would think that THIS looks nice?!
DISGUSTING…is all i can say!
EricB makes a good point. What would you prefer: The sweats or the genie’s pants? Sweat pants with heels could be okay if your… I don’t know. Going to a formal at the gym.
Love the look, I wear heels with sweat pants all of the time
I would rock this look.. I thought about it then I saw Ciara wearing it.. Its not about what others think its about personality & will to be different. I wouldnt say I would put those exact sweats with those particular shoes.. but Sweats and Pumps are actually kind of hawt.. Not everyone could pull it off though
I adore it. It’s more than two years that I spend my weekends and dress for my trips in sweat pants and high heel boots. I don’t know about Pumps, but I will try it.
If you want to pull this look off…there are a few things you’ll need to add…
1) Don’t forget the suntan nylons!
2) Put your hair in curlers, and cover it w/a rain bonnet, and…
3) Walk around with a cigarette dangling out of the edge of your mouth!
I’ve actually seen an old lady dressed like that before! Hilarious!
I vomited in my mouth a little when I saw that picture. I think I would require many millions of pounds to be seen like that in public, and even so would sneak a pair of back-up-trousers in my bag.