I have worn these EVERY DAY AND NIGHT for the past 6 months WITHOUT CLEANING THEM.
Yep, that means I had to get down to my underpants to take this pic for you guys. 😘
I washed the shirt for the first time yesterday, on delicate. It didn't even need cleaning, it just tightened up the collar again.
How is this possible? Wouldn't it be impossibly stinky and uncomfortable after all that time?
Well, if it were cotton, or polyester, then yes it would be...
But this is made from 100% MERINO WOOL, which means it's
-Anti-microbial (bacteria cannot live on it)
-Moisture wicking (keeps me dry and non-sweaty)
-Odor-resistant (doesn't stink, because anti-microbial)
-Temperature regulating and breathable (keeps me warm even if it's damp)
I had no idea about this before @cahlen made his videos on it (linked below). But since adopting it, I'll never go back. I used to wash my cotton T-shirts in the shower with me in the morning. After a day of wearing them they'd be gross again and would need to be washed again.
With merino wool, I just wear the same thing every day (and night) and it always feels as clean as the day I first got it.
They also improve my sleep quality by a great deal.
Last night I tried sleeping WITHOUT my merino wool for the first time since I got it. In no time at all my sleeping bag turned into a humid sweatpocket. I woke up in the middle of the night all wet and wanting a shower. And oh god, the smell of a sweaty sleeping bag, which then has to air out :(
Never again. The moisture wicking abilities of merino wool give me good warm dry sleeps, so I wake up feeling ready to go, not gross.
This all started for me 6 months ago in September when I saw some videos by @cahlen about his survival clothing setup
https://cahlen.org/survival-clothing-system/
https://peakd.com/hive-114105/@cahlen/ujwzyshs
If you don't know who @cahlen is, you should definitely check him out. He's basically a genius who has decided to live outside and do mostly everything himself, while using things like Hive to make videos. Dude doesn't even have a bank account, but he doesn't let that slow him down. Do yourself a favor and check him out: https://peakd.com/@cahlen
Some things he mentioned that helped me get a good affordable set:
Get the thickest merino wool you can.
They come in many different weights, ranging from ultralight to heavyweight. Because merino wool can be sort of expensive you will want it to last as long as possible. So to prevent wear & tear, getting the thickest one is a good idea. Merino wool is weighed in GSM (grams per square meter) and the heavy stuff is usually around 400gsm (that is what mine is and I believe cahlen's is also)
Shop around for quality/price. When I was first looking, most of the 400gsm shirts were around 200CAD, but eventually I found one for only 112 CAD that was still good quality.
Some manufacturers will come with warranty, so if you get a rip within a designated period of time after purchase they'll replace it. I'm happy to report that there are no tears or rips after 6 months on continuous use though, it's been on lots of outdoors trips and I even exercise with it on.
Basically I'm just making this post because I believe Merino wool will improve your life dramatically, like it did mine. I wish I'd found out about it sooner, so I'm yelling it's glory from the rooftops.