V Fashionstas- good stuff these days.

Caveat that my fashion sense veers between J Crew, Nike, Quiksilver, and Yankees gear so don’t expect to find me on a runway anytime soon. My latest jams:

Adidas Samba in limited colors
Yankees BP jerseys trending towards the Mattingly era
Outerknown stuff is a nice mash of J Crew and Patagonia. Good for work from home dudes whose business travel is to real estate sites
Just Ordered two Todd Snyder x Champion collab sweatshirts that will help fill the Ted Lasso cosplay niche.
Relwen is pricey but super nice
You probably need a denim shirt with snaps.
Roots of Fight and Imogene Willy T shirts are great
And of course the Sachs merino gray zip hoodie. I am wearing this thing out and need to see if they sell it in other colors sans logo.

As a retired guy,
We spend summers in Wyoming, so I wear work clothes most days. I wear Wrangler pro rodeo jeans with cowboy boots, Levi's with my Keen work boots, and Liberty bib overalls when I operate equipment. I have a small collection of pearl snap shirts and old T-shirts. I have several ballcaps and one straw cowboy hat.

I have a small duffel of cycling kits, including Zancanato, several RBICI kits, Ballers, Ellis, Mellow Johnny's items, and some random black bibs and jerseys.

For footwear, I have two pair of Justin Roper boots, two pair of sketcher slip ons, Keen work boots, Sidi Dominators (2 pair), and new Lamson customs to arrive in the next few days.

I'm afraid I'm not much of fashion icon, but this is rural Wyoming.

What used to be the Fashion forum is now the Reviews forum. I guess this thread should join its kind as a special OT intellectual subset.

I wear SWRVE pants, JCrew+Muji t-shirts, Darn Tough wool socks even in summer and boots - Scarpa, Blundstone and Hunter mostly. Patagonia jackets. Pretty much everything gets deer sh&t, mud, muddy deer sh&t, rust, sawdust, vegetable matter stains on it and smells like bug repellent + sunscreen + coffee.

I really like the new Blundstones that look even dorkier than the originals. Snugger heal and less pointed toe - sort of like moving from old SIDI to new Specialized. I still want a Chelsea work boot that trimmer and neater than a leather flipper but has a work boot sole.

Darn Tough socks are named truthfully. I have other wool socks that are functional but none of them have the fit and finish and durability of Darn Tough. I think e-Richie should get them to make his CX-team socks.

I can basically only wear the jackets from Patagonia anymore. All their other clothes are styled way too baggy. I guess that's a style now or everyone in the country is 30lbs overweight, even lefty environmental types with brunette girlfriends/wives and Waldorf-schooled above average children.

Scarpa's EU site has nearly twice the options of the US site. Hoping they'll make a Chelsea boot like I want some day.

I wear Hunter boots because they are waterproof and not made out of crap.

Rapha sweaters. You wouldn't think it, but their merino sweaters (seasonal stock) and their merino sweatshirts (in either regular or wind front with a nylon windbreaker layer on front) are 100% great. I live in them all winter.

SWRVE Durable Cotton (slim) trousers - raspberry proof, that's important.

Now that I am in my 50s, I dress (aka my uniform) like someone's step-father:

Brooks Brothers Dress (fall, winter) or Polo (spring, summer) shirt
Jeans or Chinos
Swiftwick polyester blend (with jeans/sneakers) Swiftwick Dress merino (no longer made - with chinos) socks
Running sneakers (with jeans)
Plain Toe Blucher shoes in brown pebble grain or snuff suede (with chinos)
If it goes below 50, I have 3 Barbour coats (with varying inner layers for warmth) to choose from
(I have 8 sweaters that my wife has made me purchase over the years because she thinks they look nice on me but I never wear them because I run too warm all the time)
Yankees or Syracuse cap in the sun because I am follicly challenged (and grown up hats look stupid on me)

If we are going out to a nice dinner, I might throw on a navy blazer (with the dress shirt, chinos, and PTBs)
If we are going to a wedding, funeral, bar/bat-mitzvah, or other similar occasion I will wear a navy suit, shirt, tie, and black dress shoes.

Good stuff folks. Keep it up.

Re Blundstones. My first pair were the colder weather ones and they lasted me nine years. Replaced with the original standard maybe six years ago and no issues. Tried a pair of their dress boots for work travel but they seemed really cheaply made so I sent them back. Clarks at a somewhat lower price point seem ok to be somewhat replaceable.

Re Swerve. I am looking for a good pair of non tan khakis in blue or olive. May need to research. If you have watched the Beastie Boys docu, Adam H’s outfit is basically my model.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robin3mj

Good stuff folks. Keep it up.

Re Blundstones. My first pair were the colder weather ones and they lasted me nine years. Replaced with the original standard maybe six years ago and no issues. Tried a pair of their dress boots for work travel but they seemed really cheaply made so I sent them back. Clarks at a somewhat lower price point seem ok to be somewhat replaceable.

Re Swerve. I am looking for a good pair of non tan khakis in blue or olive. May need to research. If you have watched the Beastie Boys docu, Adam H’s outfit is basically my model.

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I personally didn't like SWRVE's Transverse weight pants. That's their lightest fabric. For me (may differ for others) the fabric isn't really here nor there - not light enough for summer due to a fleecy texture of the interior surface and not dense enough for shoulder season or fall/early spring as the fabric has insufficient wind resistance. However the Durable Cotton models are great. As work pants, they are usable in summer, though really they are more of a 9 month out of the year pants and actually have some rain resistance as well. The dark gray Durable Cotton in slim-fit are nice looking enough to work as pants to wear out to dinner. And the slim-fit has nicely done trim tailoring. Unfortunately they are out of stock on the slim-fit Durable Cotton pants.

I lied about Patagonia. I prefer their Performance Twill Jeans over the SWRVE Transverse pants. Much better spring summer pants with a reasonably durable (for the weight) cotton twill material that has a little stretch. And these pants are made in Patagonia's slim fit - one of only a few left. Their Straight Fit Jeans are also made in slim fit, and they are fine but they are not jeans. They are actually closer in feel and fabric weight to SWRVE's grey wash cordura slim jeans (also not true jeans,) which I prefer simply because they are lighter colored and I can see ticks crawling up my pants leg. But both "jeans" are equally well made and durable.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by robin3mj

Good stuff folks. Keep it up.

Re Blundstones. My first pair were the colder weather ones and they lasted me nine years. Replaced with the original standard maybe six years ago and no issues. Tried a pair of their dress boots for work travel but they seemed really cheaply made so I sent them back. Clarks at a somewhat lower price point seem ok to be somewhat replaceable.

Re Swerve. I am looking for a good pair of non tan khakis in blue or olive. May need to research. If you have watched the Beastie Boys docu, Adam H’s outfit is basically my model.

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You have Ornot stuff, right? Anything to say about their Lightweight Mission Shorts? Rapha has discontinued their Radonnee shorts in favor of something called Technical Shorts (as far as I understand from sales help at least.) The Technical Shorts seem to flare at the end of the leg - not my favorite. So just looking at the Ornot LMS and wondering how they work.

Ornots are well made shorts. I have 2 pair for commuting. They offer good range of motion, the seat holds up well even to a Brooks Cambium, and the seams and zippers are all stout.

Note that they are notably shorter in the inseam than a standard baggy. My Voler all mountain shorts reach just behind my kneecap during the pedal stroke—I have a 34.5” inseam, 17ish inch femur—while my Ornots reach halfway down my thigh while I pedal. Not Jimmy Connors short, but Chloe Dygert short. I wear Pearl Izumi liner shorts instead of standard cycling shorts under them.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by j44ke

You have Ornot stuff, right? Anything to say about their Lightweight Mission Shorts? Rapha has discontinued their Radonnee shorts in favor of something called Technical Shorts (as far as I understand from sales help at least.) The Technical Shorts seem to flare at the end of the leg - not my favorite. So just looking at the Ornot LMS and wondering how they work.

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Love my Ornot vests and the merino winter cap with brim. I think I have non lightweight shirts and they’re pretty heavy. I’m really only wear them in spring and fall. Would definitely try the light ones next time I buy something. I have two pairs of Tracksmith unlined shorts with a snap and zip fly that are great over MTB liners in warmer weather. Not cheap at MSRP though and I don’t know how they’d hold up to rigorous day to day commuting. Before that I had a pair of thin J Crew athletic/tech shorts that fell apart within six months.

I just checked Chloe’s IG and I’m amending my review. My Ornots wear longer than her shorts. Half thigh.

A couple years ago I bought a pair of Swrve durable cotton trousers and loved them. When I went to buy more they were out of stock in my size and have been waiting for a restocking. This came today:


Dear Friends

We are writing with some big news.

We are in the process of closing swrve.

It will not be immediate, we have a fair amount of inventory for most items, but we will no longer be making new runs of our products, except for maybe a few small in-house runs.

We want to take this opportunity to thank you.

We started swrve with a single product, a pair of knickers intended for urban cycling that were designed and made in a tiny rented studio in downtown Los Angeles and sold via word-of-mouth through the local bike community. We grew into an innovative outdoor company with quite a few notable achievements and were always in awe whenever our work took us to a new destination on a faraway continent.

We couldn’t have done any of this without you. We love swrve and we’re incredibly grateful to our customers for having supported this venture for the last 20 years.

It afforded us a life focused on making thoughtful garments of the highest quality, in a way that made us proud of the work we did. We never really worried about making money, or explosive growth, or many of the considerations that a lot of companies with investors worry about, because we had no investors. In a real sense, you were our investors. With every purchase you made, you invested in our company; making the next runs possible, funding the next development we had in mind, and keeping us financially afloat.

We also want to acknowledge what an incredible group of people you all are. We are often astounded by you all. We’ve sent packages off to CERN, the Smithsonian, NASA, and other esteemed institutions of knowledge. Some of you are teachers, park rangers, artists, researchers, writers, chefs, bike collective members, conservationists, architects; in other words, people who are creative, thoughtful, and dedicated to making the world a better place. People who value nature and spending time in the great outdoors as much as we do. We have been in the absolute best company. Thank you.

We also want to acknowledge our employees without whom none of this would have been possible. We are eternally grateful to everyone who has come through our doors and worked to make our vision a reality. It’s an honor that will always have us filled with gratitude. Shoutout to Roxy who has been with us for 10 years and without whom this whole operation would collapse. And also special thank you to Erin, Melvin, Lesbia, Jose, Pancho, and Todd, who were with us at different stages of our growth, and whom we will always consider part of the swrve family.

We are aware what an incredible privilege it has been to build and grow swrve from the ground up, and we are awed that we were able to do it for so long. We are humbled. We are thankful.

Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts.

Matt + Muriel

So what is out there? The Swrves are perfect on and off the bike, durable, not super expensive .

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dstbl

A couple years ago I bought a pair of Swrve durable cotton trousers and loved them. When I went to buy more they were out of stock in my size and have been waiting for a restocking. This came today:
...

So what is out there? The Swrves are perfect on and off the bike, durable, not super expensive .

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I bought a supply of favorites and put them away. I wear their durable cotton pants nearly all the time. They are amazingly great work pants and function well in all temperatures. The rest of the time I wear their Cordura jeans - in gray so I can spot ticks (seriously) more easily - for a lot of the same reasons but also because they are better in summer temps when I am working outside and need leg protection (blackberries and raspberries.) Plus their jackets and coats are perfect outer layers.

Yeah, I don't know what will replace them. A lot of the pants out there by places like Ornot (Mission Pants) are not the same sort of durability or like Outlier (Strongdarts or Futureworks) are durable but not styled functionally like work pants need to be. SWRVE pants had a nice slim cut but tailored-in some added circumference to the thighs and gusseted the crotch, making them good looking, mobile and durable. The others all seem to be 2 out of 3. I used to wear things like Mountain Khakis, but SWRVE's materials were so much better than just cotton. I wrecked Kuhl pants which were supposed to be extra durable. And then SWRVE had very fair pricing on top of that.

I've got enough to last a while though. Meanwhile I'll keep looking.