Yesterday’s urban male wore a slim-cut pair of pants, perhaps a button-down shirt with a narrow tie. He kept a clean shave, and generally looked tidy. His look was coined “metrosexual.”
Today, the metrosexual is a disappearing breed being quickly replaced by men more concerned with existing in the outdoors, or the pseudo-outdoors, than meticulous grooming habits.
He is bar-hopping, but he looks like he could fell a Norway Pine — it’s a fashion trend The New Yorker called “Rusticity.”
What Is a ‘Lumbersexual’
He looks like a man of the woods, but works at The Nerdery, programming for a healthy salary and benefits. His backpack carries a MacBook Air, but looks like it should carry a lumberjack’s axe.
He is the Lumbersexual.
Seen in New York, LA and everywhere in between, the Lumbersexual is bringing the outdoor industry’s clothing and accessories into the mainstream.
Whether the roots of the lumbersexual are a cultural shift toward environmentalism, rebellion against the grind of 9-5 office jobs, or simply recognition that outdoor gear is just more comfortable, functional and durable, the Lumbersexual is on the rise.
Let’s have a look at the spectrum of the Lumbersexual. On the beginner’s end of the spectrum, here’s Ryan Gosling dabbling in the Lumbersexual look while arriving on the set of a Hollywood film. Notice the Jansport Pleastanton, a leather lumberjack-style pack complete with laptop sleeve, and the RedWing 875 work boots.
