Patagonia's Greener Power Stretch

Patagonia can justifiably claim to have pioneered environmental awareness in the outdoors clothing industry and the brand hasn't backed off one iota with new garments launching which are made from Polartec Power Stretch fleece produced from soft drinks bottles.


The new Velocity Zip Neck base layer for men and women is made using Polartec® Power Stretch® recycled fleece and is itself recyclable through Patagonia's Common Threads Recycling Program.

The fabric is a blend of 65% recycled polyester fleece and Spandex with a smooth face giving easy mobility under outer layers, but still offering enough insulation to work as a stand-alone layer. The four-way stretch allows a close, efficient fit as well.


Power Stretch is one of our favourite active cold weather fabrics. It offers just enough insulation to work well alone or with a shell layer in cool conditions, but not so much that it boils your beans as your revs rise. It also wicks well and is very breathable so it makes an effective extreme cold weather baselayer as well as a good alternative to a microfleece. In other words you can use it either as a close-fitting mid-layer or a heavvy duty baselayer.

The Velocity sounds well thought out, with a venting quarter zip neck, low-profile seams which are off-set at the shoulder to eliminate chafing and Y-Joint sleeves for mobility. The women's version also features thumb-loops to hold cuffs in place. Weights are 275 grammes for the men's version and 238 grammes for the women's, price is £70.

All that and recycled too. More information at www.polartec.com and www.patagonia.com.