Wear out your chinos naturally - the ethics of artificially ageing your clothing.

My favourite chinos, an ancient pair of Gants, have nearly given up the ghost. I wore a hole through the seat a while ago and was able to patch it from the inside with an iron-on patch. As I was ironing them today, I noticed that a hole is appearing in the knee.

The first thought is to replace them, but I love them and it would be like giving away a favourite pet. Furthermore, many misguided people spend good money to buy brand new clothes with just this level of wear carefully built in (I've discussed such dishonest and objectionable distressing of clothes before, see Patina and Style). So, I'll continue to wear them with pride.

If you're desperate for worn chinos here is some advice from Ask Valet about ageing them artificially. Personally I'd rather wear out my trousers naturally than cheat by getting out the sandpaper.