Get comfortable with it: Pajama pants are for everywhere
Summary
Sleepwear has become a fixture at schools and even at work; ‘The only place that I personally wouldn’t wear them is an important first-impression business meeting.’Matilda Djerf, a Swedish influencer with 3 million followers on Instagram, is known for her polished, feminine style and perfectly bouncy blonde blowout. Her expansive closet, packed with oversized suits, trench coats and dresses has inspired a legion of fans known as “Matilda minions."
However, Djerf is just as likely to go to work or meet a friend in a pair of simple drawstring pants. She recently posted an Instagram story of herself getting ready to walk her dog, Ru, wearing a set of burgundy pajamas with pink piping, styled with a trench coat and light pink scarf.
“PJs all day," she captioned one of the photos, “even on my walks with Ru."
Pajama pants are no longer an easy way to see who’s given up.
They have busted out of the bedroom and become fixtures at schools, fashion shows and even at work. “The only place that I personally wouldn’t wear them is an important first-impression business meeting," said Rose Colcord, who started her clothing brand Cou Cou Intimates in 2021 with the intention of bridging the intimates category with ready-to-wear.
When Cou Cou debuted its $118 pointelle pants last November, most sizes sold out during the 48 hours of early access the brand gives to its subscribers. “The pant has quickly become the hero product of the last year for us," she said.
Celebrities including Sarah Jessica Parker, Elizabeth Olsen and model Kaia Geber have all worn flowy, drawstring pants to daytime meetings or on errands in recent months. Linen pajama pants were a staple of back-to-school hauls on TikTok—where the hashtag #pajamas has seen a 13.6% increase between last summer and this summer. Schools are adding them to their dress codes. Styles from Coach and Tory Burch made it onto the runway at New York Fashion Week.
Schools surrender
The trend can be a trigger for older generations who already think young people dress too casually.
Anna Zap, a radio host in Milford, Conn., remembers pulling into her daughter’s high school for the first time and being taken aback by how many students were wearing pajama pants. “Like, is today pajama day? And then the following day, I [realized], nope, that’s just what they wear here now. I was kind of horrified. To me, it just seems so lazy."
A Reel she made about her daughter wanting to wear them to school too inspired over 3,000 comments, including one from Rosie O’Donnell who said: “Pick ur battles."
“This is one of my battles," said Zap.
For high-schoolers, the lower-priced, “one size fits most" label Brandy Melville is the brand of choice. Phoebe Chaytor, a high-schooler and influencer in Vancouver, originally noticed the trend on Pinterest. She now has a handful of pairs from Brandy Melville. “They’re very aesthetic. It’s not like you’re walking out in some kind of plaid Christmas PJs."
Chaytor’s school doesn’t have a dress code, but some districts are officially allowing pajama pants at school. This year, a committee that oversees dress codes for Whitfield County schools in Georgia voted in favor of adding pajama pants to the dress code after many teachers said students were already wearing them to school.
“There are other things administrators need to be focused on, than if a kid has on pajama pants compared to leggings," said Chris Parker, a member of the committee.
Parker said that he hasn’t received any calls or other feedback from parents or teachers. “To be honest, I heard more a few years ago when the length of shorts went from the top of the knee to a three quarter [thigh length]," he said.
“A number of our students, especially high school kids, want to sleep as late as possible," he added. “So it’s easier to just have on pajama pants and a T-shirt and come to school."
‘They literally go with everything’
Luxury pajamas have been around for decades. Brands like Carine Gilson and Olivia von Halle sell high-end nightgowns, PJ sets and robes that can cost thousands of dollars. Designers like Prada have sent pairs down the runway as recently as 2022.
But the pandemic blurred the lines between work and home life, leading people to prioritize comfort over style. Fashion brands capitalized, pushing out sleepwear designed to be worn as everyday clothing. Labels like Sleeper and Hill House Home offer pajamas designed to be worn outside the home. Djerf, the Swedish influencer, now sells tencel and organic cotton pairs that customers like to style with button-downs and kitten heels.
Luciana Leyva, a student and influencer, first saw the trend on Instagram over the summer and adopted it immediately. She has two pairs of Brandy Melville striped linen pants, and a pair from Princess Polly. “They literally go with everything," she said. “Today, I wore them to school with a black long sleeve and Birkenstock clogs. A bunch of people were like, ‘Oh my gosh, I love your pants.’"
The look has intergenerational appeal. Jenni Lee, the founder and creative director of sock and loungewear label Comme Si, launched cotton boxer shorts during the pandemic, which sold out within the first week. In October 2021, she added boxer pants to her offerings, which she said she designed for herself.
“If I step out to pick my son up from daycare or grab a coffee, I don’t want to change into outside clothes," she said.
The influencer Paige Lorenze, whose brand Dairy Boy offers sleep pants, said that 100% cotton pajama pants are the easiest to wear as regular pants because they have more structure. She sees a link between the resurgence of American brands like J.Crew and Abercrombie and a wave of more casual dressing.
Lorenze says she doesn’t expect the trend to stop just because temperatures are starting to drop. “There’s something nice about an Ugg with them, and a big cozy sweater," she said. “It’s very fall vibes."
