Midnight Navy Blue Stancliffe Corduroy Trousers

Fort Belvedere has christened this model of trousers the Stancliffe, evocative of a stately English manor house secluded amongst verdant trees and rolling hills, redolent with a life of ease, sport, and gentlemanly pursuits.

Long about midnight, the world turns deep blue, but these trousers bring that wonderful shade into the daytime. Like navy, this midnight blue shade is extremely versatile in Classic Menswear and so these trousers can become for you the perfect staple piece around which to build countless outfits.  

Pair Midnight Blue Corduroys with Shoes & Socks

For a more sedate look, consider simple pairings that employ other shades of blue and neutral colors. This approach allows for incredible versatility but thanks to the rich hue of the trousers themselves, there is no risk of your look appearing boring.

Light blue and very blue provide perfect contrasting harmony, while navy or royal blue could be utilized for a more tone-on-tone effect that is distinguished and formal.

A similar understated effect but with more pop can also be achieved through blues paired with warm colors, like orange, red, or yellow.    

To emphasize the formality of these trousers, consider pairings that incorporate gray or black and white: they go a long way in imparting dignity to these trousers. You can also achieve a more dramatic look with the introduction of red through a more grounded color, such as navy or midnight blue. Conversely, purple socks can help bring out the indigo shades in the trousers.

Footwear Colors  

For footwear, contrast or complement will provide the greatest visual interest: unique texture, like suede, or unique detailing, like the open lacing system of a derby, will harmonize with the weave of the trousers.

Dark browns and black will help to emphasize a formal air, while medium browns can ascend or descend the Formality Scale. For times when a little boldness is in order, inject red with oxblood, maroon, or claret shoes. 

Boots + Corduroys = Winner!

Boots, especially boots with contrast elements like suede, are always an excellent companion to corduroy because of the intersection of transitional-weather seasonality and unexpected texture. These trousers will appear elegant with a wide range of boots, from any shade of brown to black, and even to more unusual shades like reds, grays, and even some blues.  

Summer Shoes + Corduroys = Faux Pas

In general, be wary of pairing corduroy with hot-weather footwear. As a rule of thumb, the fabric is simply too heavy for use with any style of shoe with which you might wear no-show socks.

For a casual look that remains elevated and elegant, let’s employ simple navy silk socks set off by a pair of brogue cognac slip-ons. A blue shirt completes the look.      

To achieve a more dramatic look, we can offset these dark blue trousers with a buff sport coat reminiscent of yellow, which we emphasize with yellow and navy socks worn with brown derbies. A blue paisley tie helps to connect all of the elements.  

A mottled-gray sport coat with football buttons is the perfect casual companion to these trousers, especially when paired with a blue and brown striped white shirt and blue tie with micropattern, topped off by an elegant pocket square. Two-tone socks in navy blue transition elegantly into mottled dark cognac and brown monk straps.   

In general, the weight of corduroy requires a certain balance between your upper and lower half which is easily accomplished by layering. The simple addition of a sport coat will go far in making an outfit with corduroy look exceptional: focus in particular on textured fabrics, such as tweed, that will contrast while harmonizing with the cords of the trousers. Be wary, however, of hot-weather textured fabrics like seersucker, which is too seasonally incongruous to wear with corduroy.

You can achieve a similar effect with knitwear, such as a tennis sweater in the warmer months or cardigan in the cooler: add a scarf during colder weather to ensure that your upper half is as insulated as your lower.