I Tested Every Variation of the Aritzia Effortless Pants
A simple, structured trouser
These basic pleated trousers have a smooth finish, prominent pleats, and a slight stretch. Like all of the Effortless Pants we tested, they run long.
The most versatile of the bunch, the Effortless Pant (Re)ssential looks like what you would see if you closed your eyes and pictured a pair of trousers.
The (Re)ssential fabric looks and feels smooth, with an absence of any real texture, which makes it easy to pair with patterned shirts and jackets. The medium-weight fabric is thick enough to look sturdy and professional but not so rigid that it feels stiff. “They’re more cloth-y than polyester-y,” said deputy editorial director Maxine Builder, who’s owned a pair since 2023 and since bought two more.
Like all of the Effortless Pants, they have reverse knife pleats on the front (folds facing outward rather than inward), which makes the pants look sophisticated and adds comfort by preventing the fabric from pulling tightly when sitting.
This fabric is more wrinkle-resistant than others that Aritzia offers, but it still looks best after a quick steam or cool iron. (Re)ssential fabric falls right between lightweight and heavyweight, making the pants adaptable to different seasons, though they may still be a tad heavy for peak summer heat.
Their biggest hiccup is a flaw in the design of the Effortless Pants as a whole — they’re way too long for most people. For example, one tester, Z Abdullahi (who is 5-foot-5 and should wear a regular length, per the size chart), had to temporarily hem them with safety pins in order to wear them out of the house (but more on that later).
A polished wool-blend twill pant
The twill-weave pant has knife pleats that look sophisticated and polished, with a nice drape. They’re thin but structured.
The (Re)fined fabric was my personal favorite. The fabric feels soft but not smooth or silky, and it’s not itchy either. It’s thin enough that it drapes well, yet it’s still warm enough for fall due to the 22% wool in the fabric. It looks refined, as the name implies, and gives a more elevated look than some of the other fabrics, like Crepette and CruiseLinen (especially in the heather charcoal color). Compared with the (Re)ssential fabric, which is smooth, (Re)fine has a more prominent texture you can see and feel.
This fabric has a twill weave, which gives the pants a point of visual interest that some of the other fabrics lack. This weave style also “adds durability and a sense of chic,” said Preeti Arya, an associate professor at Fashion Institute of Technology, in an interview.
Something to note: While these pants have some wool in them, they didn’t keep me warm on windy days when temperatures dropped below 55 °F, as they are quite thin, but I could shimmy a pair of tights underneath and be just fine for a chilly winter commute.
A supersoft linen-blend trouser
These breezy linen-blend trousers look more professional and less wrinkly than traditional linen pants, though they still require steaming to look perfectly crisp.
The Effortless Pant in CruiseLinen is “soft without being slouchy,” according to writer Sarah Gannett. While they didn’t get too rumpled coming out of the dryer, they still required some steaming to look nice and crisp, editorial assistant Claire Fitzpatrick said. They’re casual and relaxed, but the knife pleats add a sense of sophistication not always seen with traditional linen drawstring pants.
The CruiseLinen fabric is lightweight, soft, naturally textured, and perfect for summer. It’s a blend of linen and Tencel Lyocell, a semisynthetic fabric made from chemically treated wood pulp that adds softness and a nice fluid drape. They feel very soft but still have the slight organic-feeling grit that linen offers. If you want the classic linen look, go for natural ecru, a rich, creamy off-white color.
A flowy, wrinkle-resistant pant (with some caveats)
The Crepette pants are lightweight, comfortable, and versatile, though quite expensive for what they are. They look best in dark colors and classic white.
Crepette is the hero fabric of the Effortless Pant collection, with the biggest variety of colors and fit options. It’s also one of the most talked-about online in TikTok videos and Reddit threads. But it divided our panel — some loved it, others hated it. Aritzia says the “one-of-a-kind Japanese crepe fabric,” is beloved for its “subtle texture, breezy drape and the fact that it basically never wrinkles.” These are all of the reasons that the panelists who loved it, loved it.
The Crepette pants were great for hot days, and the wrinkle resistance was impressive for such a thin fabric. “They looked great straight out the wash and did not need ironing or steaming to smooth out any wrinkles,” Claire said.
To be fair, many crepe pants have a flimsy handfeel, and flowiness is part of the appeal for some. But if you have a known preference for 100% cotton or linen fabrics for summer, you probably won’t love the feel of these. Some testers found the thin fabric looked and felt very cheap, which is problematic given the price tag. Sarah said the pants had a “dull finish,” and I agree, though in testing I found that the classic black and white shades, as well as darker colors, like chocolate brown, looked more textured than wrinkly, thus looking more expensive than light and colorful hues.
If you want to try them, our advice would be to go with the neutral colors, and though they are decently wrinkle-resistant, you should still give them a quick steam or cool iron before you put them on.
