eBay find: Hybrid Scandinavian sweater

As I've mentioned before I like Nordic sweaters. I also have an ongoing curiosity towards hybrid knit/woven garments. Here we have both:

I woven upper yoke area, extending down the tops of the sleeves. The collar and placket are included in this, something I appreciate. I tend to dislike buttons on knits as they seem to pull at the buttons if you utilize any of the benefits of the stretch. The woven collar might also stand up a bit better then a knit one would, better protecting the neck.

In theory this design would add some weatherproofing and durability to the tops parts of the garment, the only thing I find odd is that the armpits are barely included in the woven section, perhaps one of the places where knit is the most desirable:

eBay find: Wool pullover photograph

Continuing an infuriating trend of finding images of garments that just cannot be found anymore:

Images of pullover garments used by lumberjacks and sportsmen of yesteryear are not hard to come by, extant examples are. This appears to be a caped shirt-jacket with a very wide placket.

Red Cloud Collective waxed work pant

I keep an eye on the heritage market and came across these awhile ago:

Red Cloud Waxed Canvas Fitted Work Pants

While waxed pants are mostly for hipsters and old loggers, these pants have one feature I'd like to call out:

Using the double front as the material for a pocket is something I've considered in several different ways but these guys pulled it off nicely with more subtlety then I would have managed. Good use of materials and a nice, unique feature to separate them from the heritage saturation.

Tote handle adjustment

While my main focus is technical goods and apparel I do have a soft spot for heritage goods, including one of the cornerstones of the heritage world; the tote bag.
Most totes have a fixed strap length, and the user must choose between long handles (such as can be worn over the shoulder) or short handles (so you can carry it at your side without it dragging on the ground). There are a few examples of adjustable straps on tote bags, the best example that comes to my mind being the Duluth Pack Market Tote:

Four roller buckles is perhaps the most logical way to have adjustable leather handles but I wasn't sold on it. Unfortunately before I could think of a better system I happened across the Tanner Goods Everyday Tote:

 Note the elegant simplicity of the pocket layout, the nostalgia inducing leather diamond patches and a pretty decent strap-joiner at the top (I don't care for the zipper closure personally, but different strokes). But the real beauty is hidden inside those diamond patches:

Notice the press-studs holding the straps in place. The extra strap hides neatly inside the front pockets, and the diamond patch keeps the strap from working off the stud. Unfortunately this is not feature I can easily emulate since I a) am not that great with leather and b) can't find those stupid press studs anywhere. But regardless, this is now my favorite heritage handle adjustment system and is getting filed away in the mental library of tricks.

Best Made Co: The Wool Pullover

I couldn't say were I first heard of Best Made Co, but I've had a love/hate relationship with them for some time now. As with any similar company it is easy to dismiss them as a marketing-centric style-over-substance brand, but I have to begrudgingly admit they have put out a few killer products. Whether it is the hipster-filled photo-shoots, the repainting-affordable-axes-then-adding-a-huge-markup scheme, or simply my own suspicions of an "outdoorsy" company born and headquartered in America's largest city, I'll admit I watch them with a mix of interest and disdain. When they released their Wool Pullover though, I was willing to forgive quite a lot.

http://www.bestmadeco.com/collections/clothing/products/wool-pullover#product-tab

I'll preface this post by saying I've been a Swanndri fan for a number of years, and have gotten a lot of use out of their secondary-flagship product (is that a term? I don't know what ship follows flagship in the pecking order) the Swanndri Ranger bushshirt.

The magic of Swanndri is that they can almost universally overcome the wearers better judgment and earn huge esteem despite their obvious faults. Despite still loving my rangers I have become more honest with myself; the cuffs suck, the center front gusset is dumb, the fit is pretty poor, the zipper isn't the best and the weave is pretty loose. I have taken in the sides of two of my rangers (because my waist is actually smaller then my chest, despite what the swanni designers expect) and made one of them a short-sleeved garment and have found them much more useful for it, but with the lack of wind resistance they really are closer to a sweater then a shirt in their use.

So what does the BMC pullover offer? By all appearances a much tighter weave, smarter fit, large flap pockets, a button front, better cuffs, and overall a more refined appearance. 

Some of those are guesses, but I have not seen a Pendleton wool fabric that is looser then the swanndri ranger, and all of the photos suggest a heavier-then-shirtweight that very much appeals to me. Even just the rounded pockets and flaps speak of higher attention to detail then the relatively crude swanndri. The placket is deeper than the swanndri as well, extending to the bottom of the pockets for better venting and easier donning and doffing. I've no doubt that the designers were aware of the ranger when they made this but they have certainly improved on it. The other design they obviously were inspired by is the WWI wool Army shirt:

Pendleton and Woolrich both have examples of wool pull-over shirts in their histories, but often with only one pocket or a zipper opening.

The icing on the cake for me though is one feature I have never seen before:

An elbow reinforcement that is one piece with the sleeve placket. Someone was really thinking when they came up with that one (or had access to vintage garments I've never seen before). Echoing the army pullover but thankfully not being limited by it. 

My hesitation with elbow patches is that often they don't actually end up under the users elbow during use, but the photos imply that these in fact do:

What don't I like about this garment? well I'm not to keen on the cotton lining and I'd like to see a second button on the sleeve placket but those are hardly dealbreakers. The price is out of my range but hardly out of line with a small run american made wool garment.

I have found a heavy wool pull-over shirt to be a very versatile garment in my wardrobe, something akin to a heritage softshell jacket and the BMC pullover appears to be the best game in town currently.