There aren’t many holes left to fill in my gear drawer, but for the past year I’ve been in the lookout for looser bottoms to wear running, and also do some hiking/yoga/etc in. I’d like to not buy more tights if I can help it, but loose options are limited and have their own set of fit challenges...

Anyway, I tried on these Athleta pants and they are pretty much perfect — lightweight, high waist, no bulky drawstring, not too tight at calf or ankle, zip pockets that don’t bulge or grin. But I’m totally stuck on which color to add! They come in black and dark teal. I know from past experience that I get bored easily with solid black bottoms, especially in synthetic fabrics, but I also don’t feel very excited about jewel tones, which are annoyingly ubiquitous in women’s gear. If these pants came in olive or asphalt, or even navy, the choice would be easier.

Either the black or the dark teal would slot easily into my existing “gear palette” such as it is (photo #1 is outerwear, #2 is tops, and #3 is my other bottoms for comparison). Current gear shoes are all some mix of grey, black, and burgundy. At the end of the day, it won’t really matter what colour these pants are as long as they’re comfortable and do what I want them to do. But boy do I ever wish they came in olive!

So I’m curious what the collective wisdom is here. When it comes to gear, do you stick to basic, boring black because it’s always available and goes with everything? Do you wait for the perfect color to come along, or do you settle for colors that aren’t your favorite because other features matter more?