Step inside an outdoors shop and you might as well leave your fashion pretensions at the store door, because it’s hard to find stylish walking clothes.
Let’s be honest: too much of it is all technical fabrics, neon colours, unflattering shapes and things that make you look like a fisherman.
And it’s all so expensive. Spending £150 for something you don’t like but guess you need? Money well spent.
This particularly bothers us our walking clothes are not just walking clothes, but need to be worn all the time. On a travel trip we’re wearing it regardless of whether we’re walking down a street or up a mountain, in a tent or out to dinner. They need to work hard, in all weathers, doing all things. They’re washed on weird launderette washing cycles, stuffed in rucksacks, presented to the Vatican – for years probably.
And as time has gone on we’ve realised we don’t just place physical demands on our clothes, but eco ones too. We’d like our clothes to be made responsibly, out of sustainable materials. And we’d like to support independent brands as much as we can.
So we’ve found 5 travel clothing brands out of the ordinary that work beautifully for hiking and the outdoors, but don’t compromise on style.
5 stylish walking clothing brands
Twothirds
A sustainable clothing brand from Portugal, they’re a company that want to look after the big blue ‘two thirds’ of the planet by minimising waste in their clothing production.
To do this their gorgeous clothes are only made once you order them. That means that it takes a good few weeks for them to arrive – but that’s good! It’s eco, slow fashion at its best and they are worth the wait. They’re Nell’s favourite due to their textured fabrics and natural colours, but they do both men and women’s clothing, from coats to shorts.
ACAI Activewear
A womenswear brand, ACAI has the most stylish walking trousers we’ve come across. They come in a range of neutral shades, in skinny or slim fit, have options for petite, regular and tall, are water-resistant and FOR ONCE have useful and flattering pockets.
They’ve pretty much answered all those prayers we’ve ever uttered whilst bereft in an Ultimate Outdoor changing room.
(Trousers worn as part of a paid partnership with ACAI Activewear)
Finisterre
Another brand that’s British, Finisterre was firstly a surfing brand from Cornwall, but they work equally well for lots of outdoor activities.
Great for wearing in windy, rugged places like the Cornish coast, we particularly like their insulated jackets, and both of us have bought the Nebulas winter puffer in Manuka for Luke and Kingfisher for Nell.
Millican
Finally someone that creates beautiful rucksacks! Millican bags come in a range of sizes and colours (with gorgeous names like Tarn, Gorse or Moss) and have this gorgeous classic look. John Muir-esque vintage with all the modern technical capabilities.
They’ve passed our test: these bags can be worn down a high street AND on the trail.
And they’re from the UK as well, so *flies the flag*.
We have Smith the Rucksack in 15l and Fraser the Rucksack in 32l (which were gifted to us. In Slate).
Danner
Of all our wardrobe woes the trickiest is finding a good-looking walking boot. But now enter the Danner boot. Worn by Cheryl Strayed (AKA Reese Witherspoon) in the film Wild, they’re a US heritage boot perfect for moderate hiking (we recently hiked the 250km Cathar Way trail in them).
They’re also beautiful, and can be easily styled with leggings, shorts and jeans.
Find our full review of the Danner Light boot here (we were gifted these).
What do you think? Leave any other recommendations for cool/modern/stylish walking clothes in the comments
Hi Luke & Nell
Thank you for a very informative review of brands I had not heard of before. Thanks.
Geoff
So I’m sitting at home in the antipodes (South Island New Zealand) researching the Hebridean Way for my next wee jaunt up north and I find myself in your website. Reading through your gear reviews I’ve sidesteped into the Millican showroom and “Oh look!” : Dave the rucksack is at 1/2 price! Now you know I can’t resist a bargain especially with a little serendipity thrown in. Crikey, what might happen over at Danner boots?
Anyways that’s a beautiful thing you’ve got going there- the whole production. Very nice work.
I’m inspired to include Skye. Particularly being drawn to the ancient megaliths. Previously I’ve tramped about Southern Cornwall, wild camping amongst the old stones there and the ghosts of pirates past. And oh the dreams!
Have you/ are you doing the Hebridean Way or parts thereof?
Thankyou for your fine work.
Cheers, William.
Hi William, where are you on the South Island? We spent three months there back in 2015, and like every visitor fell for the place.
Glad to hear you like Millican and Danner. We have to resist ourselves from buying item after item when we visit the websites. But you say there’s a sale on, might not be able to stop ourselves this time…
Thanks very much for your message, glad we can offer a little help and inspiration along the way. Well if you enjoyed Cornwall, you will love Skye and surrounding isles. Truly ancient, especially if you make your way to Callanish, Lewis.
We have walked the trail from its southern trailhead over two islands only (Vatersay and Barra). We have visited all of the other islands and walked small sections of path randomly. We have plans to finish the trail this spring, so watch this space, we’ll be putting a few blog posts up about it.
As you’re thinking about the Hebridean Way, we would say from what we have sampled it’s a complete hidden gem of a trail that all walkers, hikers and strollers will enjoy. Highly recommend it.
Thanks again for your message,
Luke & Nell
Hi Luke, oh yes I know that one: so easy to click on items online and have them magically appear without any of that unsightly money-changing-hands business. And it being quality gear one simply has to get out and use it, right?
Oamaru is the wee town I live in. It’s on Highway 1 so if you went down the East coast from Christchurch to Dunedin you’d have passed through. Famous for Blue-eyed penguin colony and Victorian precinct. The world being such as it is we probably passed each other in the street or on the road.
Yes, every day I reflect on how lucky I am to live here. More spectacular walking and camping than one could cover In a lifetime. What were your highlights I wonder?
Having said that, I have the urge to go back, as it were, and visit the “old country”. Actually I’m a 6th generation colonist so it’s a walking the ancestral paths kinda thing. Cornish/Breton, Irish/Scottish. Sitting drawing Chûn Quoit, southern Cornwall, I could kid on that great uncle Bill to the 300th (?) was interred there and cast libations accordingly.
Looking forward to further posts,
William
Oh and thanks for the extra advice. Also heads up: Twothirds are having a sale, hehe. Alas no delivery out of EU. Plusses and minuses to every situation, huh?
Hi Nell & Luke – can I just ask – the parka that Nell’s wearing with the Sibu jumper – is that also Twothirds?
Best regards
Ryanne
Great1 I just like how you present the different kind of clothes . It is nice to see how comfy they are . That’s why many people now, especially women , like wearing an outfit that will help them blend with the crowd and run errands even after gym hours . It is important how you choose your gym suit in order to look more fabulous and comfortable .
Very, very true!