In fall 2020 we received, tested and reviewed two things from the American start-up Arms of Andes, which specializes in Alpaca wool outdoor clothing: The brand’s hiking socks (reviewed here), and the 110 V-neck t-shirt for women (reviewed here). While I was impressed by the fabric of the latter, the shoulder construction was too narrow…
In early fall we were contacted by the American startup company Arms of Andes, which specializes in making mid- and base layers in Alpaca wool. Alpaca wool is said to have similar and/or superior characteristics in comparison with Merino wool, so we were of course thrilled to receive some apparel for testing in exchange for…
Merino base layers are to prefer over synthetic ones for all but the hottest summer days. Unlike the itching wool sweaters you remember from your childhood, Merino wool is soft and not itchy at all because it is made of wool fibers from Merino sheep which are much thinner (<20 microns) and suppler than conventional…
In a time where the majority of the (outdoor) apparel industry produces their products in more or less questionable facilities in Asia, far away from the homely headquarters, it is refreshing with a family company like Lasting which is based in and manufactures its apparel in the Czech Republic, in Central Europe. We were therefore…
In the beginning of the year we were in touch with the French outdoor manufacturer CimAlp, which we have previously reviewed winter hiking apparel for. CimAlp was founded in 1964 by an avid mountaineer and the brand has ever since had a strong focus on creating functional high-quality apparel for all sorts of activities in…
Several outdoor brands specializing in Merino apparel offer more or less athletic bras in this soft and temperature-regulating material. However, as a new mom I wondered whether anyone made actual nursing bras in Merino wool and I started searching for products. My search resulted in me contacting the Swedish brand Boob Design which has the…
Several months ago, we got in touch with the Brooklyn-based company called BioLite. BioLite produces various accessories for backpacking, hiking and other outdoor activities. Their offer includes backpacking stoves, solar chargers, headlamps and more. They offered us a sample of their brand-new Headlamp 200 for testing in return for an unbiased review. As usually, I…
Last year in December, I received the Isobaa Merino wool insulated jacket for testing. I’m a big fan of Merino wool and my closet is filled with Merino base layers. However, this is my first Merino insulated jacket. Merino wool insulated jackets are a relatively new concept and not many brands have them in their…
Functional outdoor apparel is much less affected by passing fashion trends than casual wear. This in itself makes outdoor apparel much more sustainable, as such garments are often of a higher quality and thus both lasting and being used longer than ‘fast fashion’ items. There is, however, one area where the outdoor apparel industry has…
In this post in our mini-series on sustainability in the outdoor apparel industry we start to have a look at some of the brands which do better than others when it comes to sustainability. The problem with deciding which brands are the most sustainable lies both in scale and transparency. In terms of scale, it…
