What do you wear when you work outside? (summertime)

More parsnip rashes happened the other day! Voting again for long clothes.

Parsnips are wonderful…but sometimes a little painful…

My default has always been as little as possible in hot weather, but then again I tan easily.  So shorts and sandals and that's it, often barefoot in areas of the yard I trust to be free of things likely to puncture. One commune I lived at actually experimented with nudism for a summer, which was enjoyable (after my butt caught up with the rest of me for tan!), but I found that I missed my tools that I wear on my belt, like a knife or a leatherman or clippers...so it didn't last.   Multiple women in my life would go with taking cheap or free T shirts and cutting them into tank tops and halter tops...

I am going to be the slight heterodox here.  Assuming that we are talking about summer, I probably need long pants and a shirt.  The climate in my region gives us hot summers (90+degrees high).  But by far the worst is the stifling humidity.  It’s really awful and while I love the region I live in, I love it in spite of summer temperatures.  To boot, the nights don’t cool off much and summer is the least wind we get all year.  

You get the picture.

My favorite pants (long, slightly baggy) are a sort of nylon canvas that has a texture like cotton, but doesn’t absorb any water like cotton and stays dry all day which means I stay comfortable.  It’s a very thin but surprisingly sturdy, rugged fabric.  I have not babied it in the slightest and it’s still perfectly good.  No holes or tears.  It won’t stain. I use them all the time for the last 15? 20? Years and they have been great.

To be clear, they don’t at all feel “plasticy.”  They feel like a cotton canvas.  The surface must be brushed.  And whatever sweat I emit just goes through and I feel as cool as I can given the humidity.

I also wear a t-shirt, but those being made of cotton are the parts that get hot, damp and uncomfortable.  Occasionally I have found a shirt that is somewhat like the pants, but they are not as durable so they don’t get worn as often.

Another, even more technical point:  I live in tick territory.  We have all nasties, including the lone star tick.  And since I have tall grass and tress, ticks are going to find me.

My tick-abatement approach has been to wear a pair of compression shorts under the pants.  These do have most of the downsides associated with nylon-spandex, but they stop tick migration.  If a tick starts down by my leg and crawls up, it hits the cuff and they just stop,  And if one starts up and travels down, they stop at the waistband.
That might be too much for some, but a defense against ticks works for me.

This system works for me.  If helps you, great!  If it the worst thing in the world for you, that’s fine too.


Eric

I used to get plenty of sun in the garden but at 64 years, I notice that everything tan is wrinkling way faster than the hidden white bits. Here in North Carolina, mosquitos are a nuisance also. I like a loose long sleeved shirt, preferably cotton or linen. I just removed the buttons from a stained, fraying shirt today, 1/2 of one sleeve missing, the other not far behind. It's now in the compost. I guess I could have scavenged a bit for quilt squares? Nope. Too far gone.

I can't abide jeans in the summer, but recently found that scrubs are perfect for garden work as they are lightweight and abundant at the thrift store, plus they have pockets for gathering eggs, carrying pruners, etc. Wide brimmed hat and sunscreen for middle of the day sprints outdoors. Otherwise, I work first thing in the morning and late afternoon. I have worn a work skirt in the past. Very comfy, but it doesn't protect against the mosquitos.

Scrubs sound like a great idea.  I have never worn them but my wife does all the time and she loves it.



Eric

I thrift scrubs when I travel and I agree entirely. They wear hard, wash easily, and are everywhere. If I'm washing the dog or working in the garden, chances are I'm wearing a scrub shirt.

Certain brands have more pockets and are worth looking for if you thrift seriously-- there is a brand called Ohmm scrubs that is AMAZING, the shirts have at least 6 pockets, half zip. (To give you an idea, I have one of these shirts I keep specifically for when I travel internationally, because I can carry all my important stuff on my person in those pockets.) And they wear like iron, I beat the heck out of these things and they still look great.

I cover up everything, and agree it's cooler than uncovered when directly in the sun. The experience is mixed when in the shade, depending on humidity and material of cover. Some fabrics are cooling and/or temperature regulating. Merino wool is surprisingly comfortable in the heat and sun, as is mulberry silk satin with air vents.

On my feet I either wear minimal shoes or functional cowboy boots (not the dress ones that have pointy toes, these are work boots with wide square toes), depending on if I'm going to be in areas there might be cactus spines on the ground, or dry tumbleweeds, other dry spiky things, and all.

On my legs I wear denim. I love the tan denim, but it's usually too heavy duty for me to actually work in (especially in summer), so I tend to just wear blue jeans. Lately I've been wearing stretch denim jeans a couple sizes larger than I am so they fit without stretching when I'm standing. The stretch is nice when squatting and lunging, etc. while working. My legs hurt in the sun without being covered--the sun is so strong. I'm so much more comfortable when in long pants if I'm going to be actually in the sun. My husband doesn't have the skin issues I have and often wears shorts and goes without a shirt, but he always has more issues with the heat than me too. I think that's part of the reason why.

I prefer natural fibers, however after the 20th skin cancer spot cut out of me (18 on my face) I decided to be more open to other possibilities for my upper body. My skin, especially my face, is super sensitive to anything on it (allergies, rosacea, etc), so sunscreens just aren't an option (and I've tried them all). Also it's sensitive to physical irritation so sunglasses, hat bands, sun gaitors all have turned out to be a problem (all of those 20 spots were places where something had rubbed on my skin fairly regularly). I was enjoying merino wool for some things for a while, but that became too rough for my skin if worn daily.

So when it comes to sun exposure I've found over time that I need to use those UPF 50+ fabrics (usually polyester mostly) that have physical sun blocking properties (not treatments to them, so doesn't come off on me or wash out). The bonus of those is they are also often actually quite temperature regulating, so I am quite cool in them. It was 124 degrees Fahrenheit yesterday and I was totally covered up and fine.

Since I can't wear hats so much anymore (general irritation + extra from the newest Mohs surgical scar running from between my eyebrows up to my hairline), I have hoodies that have brims instead. I often wear a cotton tank top under the hoodie. The hoodies have long sleeves with thumbholes so that they stay down over my hands. They're great for when I'll be bending over a lot and/or in the wind for cover. They zip up to over my nose, just under my eyes, which is great except my nose was not happy with the zipper there... so I found some full face masks made of mulberry silk satin for my face and zip to my chin.

In the past I tried hats with things hanging over my face from the brims with the idea that I'd be able to breathe better, but it didn't really pan out that way and I couldn't see when I looked down because it would hang in my line of sight unless I held it back which is not practical. I also tried a face shield thing that is 50+ UPF, but it ended up making a greenhouse effect and got too hot, even though it sat away from my face I couldn't breathe so well in it, and it was so heavy that the headband it was mounted on would have to squeeze my head too much for comfort.

This mask is great. It has soft adjustable ear loops like the masks people wear to avoid airborne things, but it's different than that. It covers my entire face with the exception of just my eyes and the bridge of my nose between my eyes. It has a vent at the nose area which only opens when I breathe harder so my skin stays covered and I breathe freely. It's double thickness so that when I sweat on the inner layer the outer layer stays dry, which helps maintain the UPF tightly woven silk naturally has when dry. It's soft and flexible, fits loosely so it's not an issue. Then I wear UV glasses over the mask that are wide enough at the bridge of my nose to cover that too. The mask allows me to wear sunglasses without all the skin issues because my face has been great with the silk and the plastic of the glasses frame never touches my skin.

I have thick soft leather gloves to wear as needed depending on the task at hand. I put the gloves right over the sleeves with my thumbs still through the thumbholes and it keeps the sleeves down as I reach and do things.

So, yeah, not exactly trendy ... but it may be starting a trend. I've gotten a lot of compliments on it with people asking where they can get the hoodies in particular when I'm in town. The one I wear to town is a little more stylish than the one I wear for outdoor work. Both are UPF 50+, loose, and temperature regulating. I just have to unzip while taking off the hood, pull the mask and sunglasses off, and I'm good for being indoors. I have the glasses on strings that are attached to my hoodie instead of just around my neck. That serves 2 purposes: keeps my neck free, and counterbalances the brim on the hoodie which would pull the front up otherwise. So the only thing I need to stash when I go indoors is the mask, which is quite simple to do. It's funny because I'm taking off my mask when I go inside and putting it on when I go outside, where people wearing masks for airborne things are putting their masks on as they go inside--opposite!

I ordered a legionnaire's type of hat (has a brim and loose cloth to cover sides and back of head.. but this isn't like a baseball cap brim, it's wider and flat-ish) a few sizes too large for me so that I could try wear it over my silk mask, maybe that will be another option too. Whatever the case, I cover everything now.