Manual labor looks good. These new releases from Filson, Patagonia, and more are what’s trending in outdoor lifestyle.
Chopping wood, building a house, and fixing a car are examples of good ol’ fashioned hard work. The twist of a wrench and hammer of a nail are inherently satisfying.
Clothing for work, not office work, has been in the limelight for the past few years. Big and small brands released “workwear” collections, and it’s even appeared on high-fashion runways.
Workwear is a specific niche, but it’s versatile. The picks below are new and capable. You can dirty them up without worrying about tears and look good in the field.
We’re not making any claims that this clothing performs better than other offerings. And frankly, the price point on a lot of workwear today is downright ludicrous. If you’re after function-first apparel, check out Carhartt Dungarees or gear from Dickies.
5 Durable Outdoor Workwear Releases
Filson C.C.F. Quilted Utility Jacket
C.C. Filson has made high-quality clothing in the U.S. for over 100 years. The heritage brand released the C.C.F Workwear collection with durability and functionality at top of mind.
The pieces are intended for heavy use. But knowing Filson, there’s also a bit of style thrown in — like this Quilted Utility Jacket. Badass!
Roamers Brand Welches Jacket
A new sustainable apparel brand with an outdoorsy bent, Roamers released a workwear collection for fall 2018. The brand tested the clothing with Made Lumber Supply Co., a company that makes custom furniture out of giant slabs of wood.
We like the Welches Jacket, a soft, durable canvas shirt jacket with reinforced double-needle stitching on high-wear zones.
Dovetail Workwear Givens Workshirt
Dovetail Workwear launched in 2018 as an exclusively women’s workwear brand. It released a durable and stylish line of clothing, including pants, shirts, and overalls.
Carhartt WIP Men’s and Women’s Fall Catalogs
Carhartt WIP was established in the ’90s for folks that cared about Carhartt’s brand origins and valued refined design and quality. The fall catalog continues that tradition, with a plethora of releases. The items riff on the brand’s core colors, like this brown American Script Sweatshirt and blaze-orange Nimbus Pullover.
Patagonia Steel Forge Denim Jacket and Pants
Core outdoor brand Patagonia made a splash last year when it released its line of workwear. The collection included durable items made with hemp and intended for hard manual labor.
We’ve tried a few of the pieces, and the stuff stands up to serious abuse. And some of the items, like these pants, maintain durability without the typical boxy look of work clothes.
Recently, Patagonia added the Steel Forge Denim Jacket and Pants to its collection. These pieces infuse stronger-than-steel Dyneema for extra durability and use organic cotton.
