The year was 2003 or so, and eBay was both new and confusing… but irresistible to me. I have no idea how I came across the dealer “Vintage Alpine,” but with the help of my 13-year-old, I happily sent off payment for two pairs of 1970s ski pants and some reindeer hide snow boots. Soon, a lumpy package arrived via USPS and smelled slightly of mothballs. We were living in Wisconsin at the time and those furry boots were worn daily. I still have them, and they are fantastic. The ski pants, not so much.
When I saw those bright orange and retro cartoon blue (I know you know the shade I mean… somewhere between turquoise and cobalt) pants, fitted and flared and stretchy in the lo-fi photo thumbnails on the listing, I imagined them not as ski wear, but as day wear. I could wear them to the grocery store on those freezing weekdays in suburban Madison. They could be my Midwestern uniform. Warm, stretchy, sporty, flattering. And while they were all of those things… after trying them on, I knew I looked more costume party or movie set than cool girl in the produce aisle. (It didn’t help that the previous owner had both a bigger bottom and a tinier waist than me.) I have taken them on a few ski trips since then, but from a functional perspective, they really don’t deliver like the newer, higher-tech models. So my experiment in style didn’t quite play out for my errands OR the slopes. And especially with vintage, it’s okay to make some mistakes. It happens. I would probably give myself a 50% batting average on actual translation from crazy idea to reality. My mind is on one thing, the mirror is another. But that era of ski style has never left my mind. Still totally groovy and aspirational.
So this is where I connect the dots from fantasy to the line of clothes we make and sell today. Our Lara Pant scratches this exact itch for me. The kind of not-really-a-ski-pant that I CAN actually wear to the grocery store and look how I imagined all those years ago in Wisconsin. Après-ski, all day. Or maybe it is avant-ski. Or even jamais-ski. I will explain.
A stretchy pair of pants has been mainstay in most women's wardrobes for decades now. I think in the early 2000s we called them “yoga pants,” but no longer do you necessarily look like you’re actually going to an exercise class. We have been selling our ponte Faye pants for years and years now and will continue to do so (although they have had a major moment over the past year from a popularity perspective) because they fill a need for so many. Viva la Lycra. It is sporty yet refined and basically a stepped-up version of a yoga pant. Nicer fabric, but same construction and idea. Cropped, flared, elastic waist that pulls right on. Faye is great.
But this new pant... well... it is different. Not necessarily better... but another animal entirely. You just might need it (I promise.) We named Lara after Julie Christie's character in Dr. Zhivago. Of course she doesn't ski in that movie, or wear anything remotely similar, but chic snow style comes to mind. OUR Lara is truly my dream of a ski pant that is also a day pant. Forgive me for getting a little technical but our head of Design spent a really long time getting this pant right, and she has explained it to me. Because it is a true sweater knit construction, it hugs you just as a hat might: all the way around. The waistband is great — like Faye, flat elastic that just pulls on, but encased in this luxe sweater knit — because you can really tuck things into it. It smooths you out across the front. It smooths you out across the back, too, so fair warning that if you have a flatter rump, this pant is not going to offer you anything in terms of enhancement. I say that with love as it is part of my own genetic predisposition. My mother wore some kind of plumping or padding getup under her jeans waaaay before the Kardashians were popular. But for most of the population, a smoothed-out backside is a gift. More differences from Faye: a raised center seam down each leg and a slightly (half inch) longer inseam that is ever so slightly less flared.. there's just more going on with Lara.
The material is Supima cotton (a best-of-the-best, long-staple variety of pima grown in America) and plaited with Lycra so that it hugs you in a way that's both comfortable and sexy. And it stays that way. You'll feel contained, but in an amazing way. If you love the way a firm pair of jeans holds you in (or the gentle hug of a pair of compression stockings,) you may love these. And they keep their shape thanks to the plaiting. You can curl up your legs in your chair or on a long airplane ride... bend down to grab a toddler... reach around your seat from behind the wheel of a road trip... squat down to pet a dog... attempt the splits... or any other high-stretch, real-life activities you can think of. Of course, you can do these things in blue jeans (maybe not the splits) but in the Laras it just looks more natural. You are comfortable, pulled together, and minimal-chic.
If ski slope doesn’t strike your imagination like mine... you can go for Audrey Hepburn or perhaps Lee Strasberg theatre student. And though I keep alluding to ski gear and a thick knit, this pant is really season less. We all wear-tested it over the summer and it gets hot here in Atlanta in July. Even when it's plaited with Lycra, cotton breathes. I say this as NOT a designer but the knit almost reminds me of the pique knit in a polo shirt. Thicker of course, but not out of place in Florida or Texas. I love the seams down the front that elongates your legs and keeps it looking intentionally “pressed” even as part of the beauty of a knit is that it does not need to be in the slightest bit “pressed”! This more structured knit look was what I was seeing in those original vintage ski pants. Refined AND athletic AND functional.
This was a very descriptive paragraph for such a simple pant, but as we know, the simplest things are often the hardest to master. The cookbook queen Ina Garten has built an empire on this fact and we are all happily in her court. I sort of feel like SHE would love this pant. It looks great with a crisp white shirt, something I know she loves. Maybe she could whip up some raclette in the Lara if she is Alpine-dreaming, too. These pants are truly the bomb. I hope you love them as much as I do.
