When Fall rolls around, we are all so excited to whip out our denim jeans, boots, and cardigan. This go-to look can garner hundreds of likes on Instagram, and you will usually always be complimented on how cute your outfit is.

Then January rolls around, the cheer of the holiday season is over, but the cold of Winter still remains. Now, that jeans and boots outfit is getting a little old. Spring feels like it is a lifetime away, and you are getting tired of washing your same pair of jeans.

Does this sound familiar? I hope so because this is the phenomenon I have gone through every year since I moved away from Southern California where it is always 75 degrees and sunny. Because I always struggle to figure out how to switch up my wardrobe, this post is a roundup of all of my favorite styles of pants to wear that are not denim jeans.

sash-tie pants

I loved the “trash bag” pants style where the pants had ruffle detailing around the waist with a tie around the waist to mimic the look of a trash bag. This style is a different take on that style; take out the ruffle detailing and keep the tied waist.

The fantastic part about the pants I’m wearing (aside from this gorgeous olive green color) is the material. This material is made of polyester and spandex, but the soft comfortable feeling is commonly called “jersey”. You’ll frequently see the words jersey top or jersey pants being used to describe this super soft material.

I highly encourage everyone to take a look at these dressier pants from a new lens, and not from the view that they are only meant for a 9 to 5 job in a corporate office building. Although I styled it here with a blazer-like cardigan, it is super easy to dress these down with a cute top. They work perfectly for a night out, date night, or even just brunch!

If you like this tied waist style, then I also encourage you to take a look at the “trash bag” pants style as well!

non-sweatpants joggers

When I hear the word joggers, I think about sweatpants. Then I saw these amazing pair of joggers in two beautiful colors, and I completely reevaluated my thinking.

What I love about these joggers is that they have that perfect look for when you want to dress up but don’t want to put in that much effort to wear tight, constricting pants. My pair is slightly more tight-fitting compared to what I would like if I wanted to be more comfortable, but this sizing allows me to dress it up and wear them to work. Replace the sweater with a cute peplum top and some heels, and you’re golden for a day in the office!

I deliberately styled these with these combat-inspired booties to show how amazing they look together because of the cinched ankles on these joggers. The cinched ankles also is perfect for us petite girls who are not 5’7″ and can wear any pair of jeans and look like a model.

leggings

I wanted to talk about leggings for a quick moment here. We always look at leggings as another type of yoga pants; they’re comfortable but also not dressy at all. This is one of my favorite outfits that I have put together, and it all rests heavily on these pair of leggings.

Leggings don’t have to be black, and they don’t always have to be worn with uggs and a sweater. If chosen right, they can look supremely dressy! I like to pair leggings with over the knee boots to dress them up because the focus shifts from the leggings towards your boots, and it doesn’t become very apparent that you’re wearing leggings at all!

cargo pants

I left the best for last. It may have been the sorority girl in me, but I have always thought of cargo pants as ugly or unflattering. There was something about them that formed an image in my mind that I wouldn’t be caught dead in them.

These pants completely changed my mind about cargo pants, and now, I’m obsessed. There are so many other styles that I am in love with, and I’m just itching to run out and buy them all.

Cargo pants can be worn, in my opinion, should always be worn with a more form fitting top. I have found that I love wearing high-waisted cargo pants (although I haven’t ever seen a low-rise cargo pants on the market) with a crop top. I also love the idea of wearing them with heels, although I opted for boots here to dress them down a bit. A sleek pair of black heels can elevate this look, and swap out this long sleeve top for a dressier top and you have yourself a perfect evening look.

I find cargo pants to be super flattering and super comfortable because they’re meant to be worn oversized. I can live in these pair of pants; the material is so light that it feels as though I’m wearing nothing. If there is one thing I recommend the most in this entire post, it will be cargo pants.

All in all, I hope you guys found some inspiration for styles and outfits to try out as we patiently wait for Spring and the onslaught of dresses, shorts, and sleeveless tops. I personally find it so important to switch up my look once in a while, so I hope you got as much inspiration as I did pairing these outfits for you!