This is more a rant than the rest, and a bit removed from the dialogue of hiking, and hiking clothes for women. Yes I might love to start a clothing company of my own which would also have it’s personal “social mission” so to speak. Clothing companies goals are getting cash by concentrating on women. In the process the majority of clothes firms make the world worse for girls. It's as whether it is an agenda against ladies. In all probability most women’s kinds are designed and conceptualized by men from the drawing board to the final sewing collectively of the apparel merchandise. The few girls who are within the women’s clothing design trade apparently are doing little or nothing to instigate a pattern toward better clothing designs for women who need practicality, dignity and function in their clothes. And that is the place the dilemma is available in for plenty of women who don’t care about “Looking younger” or “Being girly.” Ladies who just need purposeful, comfortable clothes are actually underrepresented . Sure, lots of people would say “Not so. Since a lot of low-rise or pores and skin-tight denims, and cleavage-revealing shirts and crotch-size shorts, and tastelessly-short skirts are the sort of clothes that probably nearly all of ladies buy (judging by the prominence and availability of such clothes) , then it means these are the types that will continue to be manufactured and moreover these sorts of “feminine styles” will make their manner into all kinds of women’s clothes, even those which are supposed to be for function not vogue. ” So their women’s shirts are designed with “princess seams” and curve-enhancing stitches and so forth. It is not the only clothes firm that makes “active-women’s wear” that incorporates trend into perform. It brings us back to the place we began. As fairly a couple of ladies who posted here on “Hiking Lady” have stated, they resort to men’s clothing for better match, better comfort, higher freedom of movement and better sturdiness. I'd say that typically unisex sizing is the best solution to go together with some bra and legging sets features that would help accommodate people who might need a bit extra hip or belly (both men and women). The vast majority of women’s “active wear” simply don’t have it. ’s clothing. Men’s sizes are bigger even with regards to “small” sizes for men. I doubt this is unattainable. Basically, women can match into men’s clothing this manner. The scrubs had been offered by the power. I recently was working in a analysis facility and was required to put on scrubs. I informed her that relating to scrubs, a size small pant doesn't fit me and it is unusual because most small-measurement men’s pants fit me. The provision individual stated she thought a measurement small would match me. The supply individual stated that it's because ladies have hips and men don’t. I advised her that it appears that evidently quite a lot of small-sized males would discover it exhausting to slot in most small-sized scrubs too. What a lot of people seem to neglect is that some men do have fairly-distinguished hips and nearly all of men’s clothes are meant for males with perfectly straight hips. Actually when males get older, in their 40s they very often develop larger hips. Years ago, I recall a radio commercial for a particular kind of Levis denims which were meant for older males and it was stated that the features had more room in the hip and thigh. But men have a greater deal on the subject of clothes. Women’s clothes is always made to include fashion reasonably than operate. EMS and REI and Sierra Buying and selling Publish, and Moosejaw, and Cabela’s and Sportsman’s Guide, and numerous other such stores, or on-line stores have a few of the better varieties of clothes meant for hiking and other outside activities. Brands resembling Ex-Officio, Arctryx, The North Face, Sherpa, Marmot, Mammut, Mountain Hardwear, Columbia and various others. These brands tend to have the absolute best materials, and one of the best options. They have one of the best mixture of fabrics in order to be lightweight as doable for hot days and which might protect in cold days with out quite a lot of bulk. They are inclined to have SPF inbuilt to guard the wearer from the sun’s rays. I had to make use of a large measurement to have room for my shoulders and arms however then the a part of the jacket that was beneath the waist bellowed out and simply was uncomfortable to put on and just had a very awkward look to it. But, I have seen such absurdly-minimize jackets for girls by The North Face. It was “merely” meant to boost the feminine kind whereas being “useful” for out of doors activity, or that is what the designers had in mind and but I must marvel what they had been considering by making a jacket like this. It felt tight and limiting after i moved. I don’t know how it ever got manufactured and probably thousands had been made and it seemed to be a waste of time and supplies and it appeared as if the “quality control people” missed some main design flaws. I want I wrote down the fashion number so that perhaps I could discover a hyperlink to it within the internet and possibly you all can see for yourself. There are other women’s active put on that might not be as excessive but which still have enough lack of function so that the majority energetic women just cannot use them. The Gap and Old Navy are usually not particularly for lively put on but they have small line of such clothes. I feel that they're terrible in materials and design. The Gap, Old Navy, Modell’s, Goal, Okay-Mart and other such shops, primarily only have clothes made of cotton ( with a couple of exceptions). Modell’s is purported to be a “sports store” however it carries train clothing for ladies which is made by Nike, Addidas (and so forth) and though these are nicely-known brand names, I find that they really put a lot vogue into clothing on the expense of perform. They went out of enterprise years in the past however they also had clothes for ladies that I found to be impractically designed. In New York City where I dwell there's one REI and two EMSs and one not-as-nicely-identified store in lower Manhattan which sells all kinds of out of doors/camping/hiking gear and clothes. There used to be a store in NYC known as Herman’s and one other known as Robbin’s. Far from it. I've seen ladies in these shops talking to gross sales associates and saying that they've appeared in all places for extra sensible designs . There is an organization that a variety of you most likely have heard of referred to as “Title 9.” They strictly make women’s active wear. There are numerous Modell’s and one Sports Authority, and a few Old Navy’s and It would appear that there are lots of stores that might have one thing for every lady. Guess what? It doesn’t work. Nearly all of their kinds are meant to “enhance figures” and make the wearer “look feminine” whereas playing sports or engaging in rugged outdoor actions. Why do I at all times discover that the clothes that come the closest to being purposeful and rugged and practical are the ones which might be discontinued and changed by people who aren’t? Their women’s bathing fits are actually useless. They're meant for ladies who've good figures , even who're professional models and the bathing fits are sexist in my view. They may proceed a sure model for a number of seasons or they might replace the style and never revive it. Why should any bathing go well with be “hi-cut” or like a thong and the top be meant to reveal cleavage? Title 9 has had sure sorts of designs known as “Grab and Go” which means that the clothes are so practically designed which you could simply grab them, throw them on, and walk out the door to exercise or do anything else. Are you going to go swimming or browsing , or are you going to work in a “gentleman’s club” ? I want that it was as marketed to be. All through my life I've gone from retailer to retailer throughout sure times of the 12 months searching for the best rugged and purposeful clothes for winter or summer. It's at all times laborious to search out anything near what I need. It usually goes for sneakers and slippers and other footwear too. I often have to take no matter comes closest and that's normally within the men’s part. There are designs which I will go to my grave scratching my head over concerning why they were made the way in which they have been.. I as soon as discovered some comfy slip-ons made by Teva. But the absurd thing was that the soles have been designed with fairly-deep grooves that were very intently spaced and so they were all over the only real . Simply why aren’t sneakers and footwear made to be cleaned? They are the principle piece of clothes that shall be touching the bottom and going by way of all sorts of disgusting stuff. I've had a fantasy of designing shoes which can be meant to be cleaned and are simple to wash. I can’t for the life of me understand why such a design was made. To enable climbing on rocky or uneven surfaces, and but it doesn't work on any sort of foot put on like it works on a Jeep’s tires. I know that hiking boot soles are made like a Jeep’s tires are made. Why hasn’t any clothes manufacturer seen this? With footwear, small rocks and mud and leaves and branches (etc) get stuck in the grooves of hiking boot soles. With a Jeep’s wheels, the fixed and intense rolling of the tires signifies that a whole lot of the debris will likely be hurled off. No human can create that type of bodily pressure to continually force the mud and pebbles and debris to be hurled out of the shoe’s soles. The way that the grooves are designed it only makes the soles laborious to clean. It means that the grooves on the soles of hiking boots will probably be crammed up with debris and would not assist a lot in serving to the wearer to effectively climb; that is that if the grooves on the soles of hiking boots are actually meant to enable the wearer to climb. It appears to me that if the soles are manufactured from rubber there isn’t a necessity for such elaborately designed grooves that solely collect dirt. I ponder why there aren’t chemists and clothes technicians engaged on a better form of rubber that grips on all surfaces or grips better on rocky surfaces or wherever hiking shoes are used, and it would make it unnecessary to make grooves on the soles of sneakers. I've seen some unusual designs that don't contribute to function. It appears to me that grooves are just placed on the soles of shoes for fashion purposes. This goes for sneakers too. A whole lot of sneakers which can be good in design in different ways, have very impractically designed soles. So far as sweatpants , scrub pants , and different such kinds of pants, there are those which have “elastic waist” or “comfort waist” and there are those with drawstrings. In fact I am not an skilled in making footwear or shoe-soles and i might be fallacious , however I am sufficient of an expert in sporting shoes meant for active lifestyles and I think that a number of shoe manufacturers are specializing in the mistaken factor. I ponder why any pant is designed with a drawstring when an elastic waist would make it pointless . Now-a-days a majority of drawstring-waist are made in order that the drawstring is stitched into the back of the pants waist space. I hate anything with a drawstring waist. I feel it makes the drawstring much less efficient and it defeats the aim of the drawstring. Underwear: I've been in stores similar to Ok-Mart and Goal where there are a big number of women’s underwear. It is difficult to find the form of briefs that almost all of our grandmothers used to put on, not “hi-cuts,” not ” boy shorts,” not thongs. All are horrible for my part. I choose comfort, sturdiness and easy-care. All that doesn't converse for me. Anything that will get stuck you-know-the place is unacceptable. I've been within the underwear section of shops and other stores (I have to admit I by no means appeared in Victoria’s Secret but I don’t anticipate to search out anything practical there), and I have seen older girls looking for something that is age-acceptable and dignified and , again, sensible. There's little other than those hi-cuts. See one of many hyperlinks below for an article about the historical past of women’s underwear. Even “briefs” will not be modest enough. It seems it has at all times been about physically limiting girls. That’s the way in which I have a look at it. Also one of many hyperlinks below result in an article about how there will be a women’s like of clothes which can be inspired by “Barbie.” Isn’t this 2014? It signifies that the elastic is sewn into the “hem” of the legs and waist. The closest I have found to what I want is a sure Jockey model temporary “Elance.” It has “banded” legs and waist which is the higher type of design to get. Elastic that's merely sewn ONTO the waist and legs tends to be much less rugged and the stitching can come undone more easily . I have to order a dimension larger than I usually would so that the waist would not be too tight. One main flaw with “Elance” is that the waist is designed to be tight. And, I don’t understand the real purpose of “athletic bras” the way in which they're designed. I positive don’t care about “standing out.” ( I truly don’t in any case, and that i don’t care). Bras meant for energetic lifestyles should hold them in, nothing more. I have heard of bras meant to “lift and separate.” I have seen some female runners who seem like top heavy and nonetheless they're very fast however I wonder if they'll develop again issues later in life. I know that I might not be addressing the wants of ladies born with sure sizes, or who have special wants resembling after surgical procedure, however sport bras ought to be made to have sufficient comfy tension to forestall bouncing. There's a need for bras that do what some jock straps are speculated to do. I would like to design shirts and vests with tension constructed into the correct area that will make bras unnecessary. It would be wonderful for warmer weather and for simplicity, so that you don’t need to hassle with attaching a bra after which a shirt. Simply keep “them” from shifting. Just slip into your shirt (and different clothes ) and you'll exit to walk , jog or no matter. Why isn’t there such a thing? I feel I discussed in considered one of my previous posts that Coolibar had a fairly good pant for women called Sun Pant. I am certain loads of women would want such sorts of clothing. I then put in an elastic band to supply extra tension because the waist band can be a bit too massive otherwise, and the pant is virtually a dream. I did have to alter the waist myself by taking out the drawstring which involved cutting into the back of the waistband space for the reason that drawstring was sewn into that area. It is vitally sensible for a whole lot of actions. It's not so lengthy that the hem drags on the floor. It isn't for very highly regarded weather but that can rely by yourself means to tolerate hot weather. It is of a material mix that's not like cotton. All pants ought to have pockets, but typically the best way the pockets are designed make them ineffective anyway. I discover it's a very individual thing. This is how most hiking pants ought to be designed. It's a teensy bit too dense for extremely popular weather very very similar to the unique Coolibar Solar Pant. It is supposed for use with a belt however I find that I don’t want one to wear this pant. I found a pant on Cabela’s that is for males, but which suits properly and it is named “The utility Pant” (see one of many final two links under). It stretches a bit so it doesn't get tight if you bend or move. After all not everyone has the same figure as I achieve this others might need a different opinion. But generally this is an effective kind of pant . In the event you do like it it's best to write to the corporate and inform them to hold on these pants. One flaw with this pant is that the front pockets are designed so as the openings are slits virtually utterly parallel with the waist. I think they will discontinue it so you might want to give it a try. The fabric stretches so it is not as dangerous as if it have been with jeans with these sorts of pockets. It is an impractical design and i don’t know why clothing designers make pant pockets like this. With these kinds of pockets it's important to maneuver your fingers in a extra unnatural way and even raise the hem of your shirt to put your hands in your entrance pants pockets. It has to be for type, nothing else. Pockets needs to be a line down the thigh, or a diagonal line is sweet too. It is a good suggestion to have zippered pockets. Anyone who has ever gotten his/her open pocket caught on a door knob or the handlebar of a bike while passing by too close will know what I mean. But typically zippers could cause scrapes to the again of the hand when you set your fingers in. There is a must design zippers of non-scraping materials for this objective. There is also one other men’s pant from Columbia. I believe I mentioned them before (see certainly one of the 2 hyperlinks under). Why aren’t any clothes designers working on this? They are of an excellent materials for hot days, but for me, I discovered myself eradicating the belt and sewing an elastic band within the back of the waistband space so as to make the belt unnecessary. I trip a bike. I rarely use shorts even once i jog. But once more, I should settle for no matter comes near what I need. I got here throughout a working short called Brooks Sherpa IV. I have a tendency to only go to clothing shops to look at designs and materials . What I did like about it was the lightweight materials. I just questioned why common lengthy pants should not made from such a fabric. It would be excellent for a hiking pant meant for extremely popular weather. The material was very very similar to a really very lightweight softshell. There may be one from the North Face called The Prolix jacket. I love softshell clothing. It is vitally lightweight, not superb for cold weather by itself but you can put layering beneath it. It is versatile and suits excellently and permits freedom of movement. But softshells are made for winter, spring and fall, not summer season. Also , why aren’t there any actually actually virtually-designed vests? The Brook’s Sherpa IV would make an awesome summertime softshell. There must be a vest for traveling. I discover myself wishing for such a thing. It does not exist. Why not make certainly one of lightweight and stretchy materials? I know that I've said to a lot in this submit. I'll stop for now. I hope I did not bore anyone. I've a number of ideas for the better design of clothes and I will most likely put up once more with my concepts until I'm instructed to not. I may have been a bit political too.