We don’t talk much about shorts here. That’s not to say we don’t like ‘em, but when there are countless big jackets to talk about, more subtle, simple garments like shorts can easily fall by the wayside.
To reset the balance a little – and give you a bit of help finding some decent summer leg-wear – here’s a quick run-down of some shorts we rate…
The And Wander Nylon Climbing Shorts
At the top, here’s some dead fancy shorts from Japan’s And Wander. These beige beauties are true masterpieces of maximalist design, and have pretty much everything you could ever need in a pair of shorts.
We’re not going to bother listing every single cunning detail here, but these might just be the only shorts we’ve seen with reflective stitching. Ideal for midnight marauders.
Patagonia have been making these Baggies Shorts for a good while yet (we’re not sure on exact dates, but it’s been a decent stint), and they’re still the prime option for anyone who needs a pair of shorts that they can swim in (or a pair of swimming shorts that they can knock about in).
The Boardies Tanchozuru Shorts
As their names suggests, Boardies make board-shorts. These ones are particularly good, as not only are they made from recycled polyester, but they’re covered with pictures of the majestic red-crowned crane.
We’ve been fans of the red-crowned crane for years now (way before they became popular), so we’re pretty pleased that we can now wear our favourite beaky-bugger whilst we’re bombing off the diving board.
The Patagonia Lightweight All-Wear Hemp Volley Shorts
You know when you used to listen to the radio and the same band would be in the Top 40 twice in the same week? Well, this is the Oi Polloi equivalent. Patagonia make loads of decent shorts, so it’s not much of a surprise they’ve squeezed more than one pair onto this here list.
These ones are sort of like the sensible older brother of the Baggies Shorts. They’ve still got that stripped-back Patagonia style, but thanks to that hemp/cotton fabric, they’re a bit more substantial for everyday exploits.
And finally, we’ve got the curiously-titled Local Shorts from Battenwear. Local shorts, for local people? Nah, these are a long way from Royston Vasey.
The perfect shade of lobster red, combined with lightweight poplin fabric, endowed with nifty pocket configuration and served up with one of the finest logos known to mankind… if you’re driving to the beach in a 1983 Jeep Wrangler, these are the shorts for the job.
Still looking for some shorts, here’s loads more…