L.L. Bean Dark Khaki vs. Sepia, now with Taupe!

[winstonwolf359]

I thought I'd post a couple pics to compare the dark khaki and sepia dress chinos from L.L. Bean. I originally bought the sepia pair and loved them so much I decided I needed more, and I figured I might as well try out a color that a lot of people ask about as a potential Indygear "close enough."

Dark khaki, with a Cabela's safari shirt:



Sepia, with the Old Navy shirt:



In my opinion the khaki pair are still too light for Indy purposes, but if you feel like dying them a little darker they are certainly a great pair of pants and are easily available.

[Ragingblues]

I agree with you about the sepia vs. the dark kahki. I have a pair of those in sepia as well, but I opted to give it a couple of Rit Pearl Grey Dye baths, and it really made them feel more "Raider's" to me. Still, they are a god color to start with, and seem to look really good with your jacket.

Not only do you have an alternate color pair of the LL Bean pants to wear with, say.... anything else you may own But, like you said, you can get creative with dyeing them if you get the itch too.

Thanks for the comparison, as it really helps!

Ken

[winstonwolf359]

Ever since buying that first pair of sepia pants I've become obsessed with L.L. Bean's stuff. Regardless of the Indy connection, these are just great, comfortable pants, and the other non-Indy stuff I've bought recently have already become some of my new favorite clothes.

I couldn't remember seeing anyone post the difference between these two colors with the rest of the gear before, but it's one of the kinds of questions that comes up SO often since I think L.L. Bean is pretty much THE first choice for close enough pants, but it's tough trying to go by what the tiny color samples show you..

I agree the sepia still needs a little gray dye, and I'll probably go that route eventually myself. I wonder what a little brown would do to the khaki pair?

[indianatone]

I wonder what a little brown would do to the khaki pair?

It would turn them Sepia. ;D

I agree with you both completely on the quality of those pants. LL Bean really makes a great pair of pants. I still think the Oak Creek's are #1 for best close enoughs, but there's nothing denying that LL Bean means what they say about their pants. They back them 100% and those things are pure quality. Comfortable for any close enough wear. (Sort of how the Old Navy shirt works.) Great choices on both colors, Winstonwolf. I still have two pairs of Sepia in my closet.

[Ragingblues]

Winstonwolf,

I didn't mean to imply that your pair needed some grey added to them. I just chose to do so myself. It took out some of the copper/red tones, and softened the look of them too.

But, that's just because I can't usually just leave something alone! Your's look great with your gear, and I wouldn't want to be the fella that tried to sway you over to the Pearl Grey side...

Ken

[winstonwolf359]

:lol

No need to worry about being a bad influence, I always look at the sepia pair and think they need the brown toned down a bit if I wanted more of a Raiders look.

I may, I may not...I'm probably less inclined to do it now that sepia is gone for now.

[pitfallharry]

I like both of the colors actually.....although if I had to choose between the two I'd buy the "Sepia" color first. I think the brown color really looks good.

So I'm hearing this right that the "Sepia" color is no longer available?

[winstonwolf359]

Yeah, Bean clearanced it out. In it's place you can now get the dress chinos in FOUR shades of khaki... Maybe they'll bring back taupe this fall?

[pitfallharry]

I hope. I'm having trouble finding more pants close to my Oak Creek Saddle Tan ones.

[winstonwolf359]

I'll try to get some pics of me wearing the new pants soon, but here are all four of the LL Bean dress chinos I have, to compare colors and styles.

Left to right: Dark Khaki cotton dress chinos, Taupe wool twill chinos, Sepia cotton dress chinos, and Taupe wool year-round chinos.

With flash:



Without flash:



The newest pair I've bought is the year-round wool pair on the far right. I think the color is perfect for the Raiders pants, and they're really comfortable. They're probably a little too dressy and lightweight for true "adventure" pants, but they look the part and they're actually a lot cooler than the cotton ones right now. If you're looking for a quick "off-the-rack" close enough these are the closest pants LL Bean currently offers.

The other taupe wool pair are a bit heavier material and have a nice twill texture but are flat front, so they're a little more inaccurate in that regards.

Even though it doesn't show this way in pics both pair of taupe wool pants look the exact same color in person, the pair on the right seem to photograph a little lighter because the fabric is a lot smoother than the twill pair. Though it does seem that at LL Bean taupe IS taupe.

Hope this is of some interest!

[indianatone]

So that's where you disappeared to. Out collecting pants, huh?

Yes, this is helpful! It's reassuring to know that Taupe is consistent with LL Bean in terms of color.
I was going to say the taupe pants toward the center seem to be pretty good for Indy pants shade, but if both pairs are the same in person, that's even better.

[winstonwolf359]

It's a tough job, but at least my quest will result in a closet full of clothes!

Here's another pic of just the two taupe pairs. This is about as accurate, color-wise as I can get with a camera. The twill pair is slightly more brown, the year-round slightly more gray. Since the twill has more texture it seems to "read" a little darker, but close up they seem to be virtually the same color.

The twill pair is on the right, year-round on the left.

[indianatone]

They both look really good! The twill does stand out darker in the pics and looks to be a more Indy accurate color. Those other taupe, however, look very similar to what the Oak Creek "Saddle" look like in person and in pictures. (The Oak Creek's were the find of the century!)
No shortage of Indy clothes for daily wear for you.

[Ragingblues]

Great work with the pants comparison! You are rapidly turning into the Indy close-enough pants guru!

I agree that the twill pair seems to have more Indy character, in the photos anyway. How much were those, if I may be so bold?

Nice job.... I always like these sorts of comparisons.

Ken

[winstonwolf359]

Well, I have ulterior motives (or at least an excuse) to have so many pairs of pants. Since I wear khaki pants at work every day anything I buy for Indy pants I can wear all of the time, so this shopping does double duty. Now I have a whole new work wardrobe AND a couple things I can pull together into an Indy outfit.

I think I've jumped into the LL Bean stuff so fully just because everything I've bought from there is so well made and comfortable, and they ship super fast.

I happened to find the twill pair on clearance a few weeks back, so those were only $30. I got those mostly to see if I could stand wearing wool pants (I hate wool) before I ever decided on buying a closer replica like the Wested or Magnoli pants.

The year-round pair caught my eye because they had the right color, were pleated, and were wool, so I figured "why not." Those were $60.

At this point I think I've tapped out LL Bean for all of their close enough clothing, so my next pair of pants will probably come from Magnoli. After seeing how nice a custom-made leather jacket from Wested can be, I figure a custom-made pair of pants should be next.

[jweaver]

Very nice pics!