While the Farmerrain brand is relatively new, they certain have made an impression within the rainwear community with an almost endless stream of different types of rainwear, made with different types of materials, in different colors, and promoted with lots of high-quality videos and photographs posted for free. Where most other brands hire a photographer for a handful of pictures to publish in their digital catalog before calling it a day, this brand has been bringing us tons of absolute stunning pictures showcasing their products in the best light. It was only a matter of time before I would order something from them; even if it only was to support what they are bringing to the community. Following a review of the set I bought from them recently: the sailor jacket, waist pants, and a sou’wester. All in the color True Blue, made from their biovinyl.
Material
The main reason for ordering this specific set from Farmerrain was the way the True Blue color spoke to me in their promotional pictures. For some reason this specific color really caught my eye and I knew I had to experience it in reality. Luckily the pictures and videos didn’t lie; from the moment I unpacked the package of raingear that had arrived I knew this suit would get a lot of wearing time. Below the total set on the passenger seat on a good day.
The material this set is made from is a bio-attributed vinly which is completely ftalat free. To me that sounds like a lot of marketing and it apparently means it has a relatively low environmental impact. With a material weight of 470 grams per square meter it fits in perfectly with the heavier materials of brands like Guy Cotten, Helly Hansen and others, but the flexibility of this PVC makes it much easier to wear. Especially the waist pants are extremely comfortable and the combination of the cut and the material make you easily forget you are wearing them.
Compared to other brands of workwear the lining of the biovinyl is very soft and pleasant to the skin. The fact that workwear is normally worn over a regular outfit means the lining is not really a selling point for other brands, but when you wear it as a regular rainsuit you will definitely notice the difference. Especially in the summer with short-sleeved shirts and in shorts.
What definitely stands out most of this set is the color. The deep blue, with its magical shine, has a drawback as well though. When it gets dirty, and in my case it will get dirty, the dried up splashes of mud are very noticeable on the dark blue. It happened to me a couple of times already that I noticed the splashes on mostly the inside leg area just above my boots and really told myself I had to rinse it off before next time. Pictured below the state of the waist pants after a normal walk on semi-dry grounds.
Quality
It is always hard to judge quality, especially of some heavy-duty raingear that will most likely last me at least a decade. The construction of both the waist pants and jacket is very good; all welts are high-frequency welded and the gear is absolutely waterproof. That speaks for itself. The sou’wester must have been the hardest part to construct, as it requires rounded welds where a welding machine only makes straight welds. They solved this with several shorter welds, something you will only notice on closer inspection and does not negatively impact comfort or waterproofness.
Design
The greatest selling point of this Farmerrain set, besides the eye-catching shiny deep blue material, is some of the design choices in my opinion. While you might have come across similar features in gear from other brands as well, this is the only brand that seems to combine everything in one product. I will walk through some points per item, from top to bottom, as not to forget any of the little details that make this gear really stand out.
Sou’wester rain hat
This is my second sou’wester that I purchased and the first one I actually use. The Guy Cotten sou’wester in yellow was in size L too small for me, so I opted for the XL size of Farmerrain. And the fit and feel is absolutely perfect, even though the hat is a bit large for me. This sou’wester has a relatively large rim, especially compared to the Guy Cotten one, which gives perfect protection all around. With the hat being a bit too large it will sit low on my face, but the rim is easy to fold keeping all rain out of my face without hindering my field of view.
At the back and on the sides there is an extra piece of material that keeps the rain out of your neck and away from the sides with a drawstring attached just outside of it. When you pull the string down to avoid the hat blowing off in the wind, this flap sits nicely against my ears making sure I stay dry under there. I’ve seen even larger flaps covering the sides and back on sou’westers, but in my opinion this one works perfectly already.
The only thing to watch out for when wearing a sou’wester is the hood from your jacket, as the rain collected by the hat will dispose of the water at the back meaning your hood might be collecting it all if you are not careful having it covered under the rim.
Sailor jacket
The sailor jacket has several design features worth mentioning. First of all the attached hood has a visor attached to the front to keep rain from reaching your face. While this would not work as well as a sou’wester, it is clearly superior to any of the hoods I’ve used on my other gear where the manufacturer seems to have said that my face is fair game for the elements.
At the bottom of the jacket there are draw strings attached on either side. This small, but handy, feature gives you the opportunity to tighten the jacket at the bottom creating a more sporty or active look. I love this feature especially because it contrasts this jacket with my Guy Cotten X-Trapper jacket so much. Below a picture of the draw strings with their easily adjustable lock.
The only problem with these draw strings is the fact that the jacket has buttons instead of a zip at the front resulting in some space opening up between the two bottom buttons when you move around or sit down. Below a picture as illustration where you see a small opening appear at the bottom of the jacket. In general the buttons give enough protection though, with barely any risk of rain entering the coat this way. The choice of buttons might be motivated by a problem I experienced with the Guy Cotten X-trapper jacket where a heavy-duty zipper distorts the front of the outfit too much when sitting down.
Waist pants
And finally there are the waist pants which are getting all my love. The most noticeable design feature is so simple that I cannot wrap my head around the fact that other brands don’t copy this right away. The pants are a few centimeters higher than my Guy Cotten Pouldo trousers making them so much more comfortable to wear. Where the Pouldo trousers sit on the widest point of my hips, the Farmerrain pants go just past that point. The difference is small, one or two centimeters, but where the Pouldo pants have a tendency to slip down during activities these pants stay perfectly where they should be. Maybe this is mostly an advantage for women, as we have a different build around the hips, although I can imagine this would wear more comfortable for men as well. Below a picture of the Farmerrain waist pants perfectly lined up at the crotch with my Pouldo trousers of the same size. The fit is even so much better that I have put on my Farmerrain pants several times already when it was just muddy instead of only when it rains, as it wears as a real confidence booster.
The closing of these pants is great as well. Where other brands just have a simple elastic band, the Farmerrain waist pants have an elastic band combined with draw strings and a button closing. The draw strings can be used to adjust the pants to your perfect personal fit, and due to the buttons you can still take the pants on and off without needing to adjust the strings. Again, a comfortable fit at the top of the pants are just a great confidence booster making it extra pleasant to put them on.
And finally there is the bottom of the pants that are much longer than any of the other brands of pants I have. In the picture below you can see the difference in length compared to the Guy Cotten pouldo trousers in yellow of the same size. One of the most often complaints I hear about rain pants is about the length. Taller people purchase larger sizes, but for some reason most brands just increase the circumference of the waist only with larger sizes. As a Dutch the length of the pants is quite important, not just because we tend to be taller than average, but also because we ride bicycles. When the paddle of your bike comes up you bend you knee which will leave your socks exposed to the rain when you wear some regular rainwear. Personally I have not many issues with this as I tend to wear a pair of rainboots under my gear, but I am fighting here for all my countrymen and the taller than average rainwear enthusiasts around the globe!
One other design detail that cannot be forgotten is the stealthy way of displaying the brand on the rainwear. Where before Farmerrain used to print their brand name in white on their gear, which is quite contrasting with most colors of gear, they have now switched to just imprinting the outline of their brand name. Even on the sou’wester it barely shows and will certainly not distract from the rainwear itself.
Sizing
Not only is every body different, everyone also has their own taste of how tight they want their rainwear to feel. In comparison with other brands I would say that the fit of this rainwear is a bit tighter. Where most brands purposefully made their workwear extra roomy, so it can be worn over normal working clothes, the Farmerrain gear is more towards the fashion fit where you should not automatically order a size down anymore. Especially regarding the waist pants you can more easily err on the small side due to the previously mentioned length of the trousers.
Price and availability
The only place Farmerrain gear is available is through the Farmerrain website. Based in Sweden they offer international shipping and for everybody living in the Euro-zone the process will be very easy without any interference from customs. The majority of items being offered are readily stocked in many sizes, and in case something is out of stock it can be backordered.
My sailor jacket was just over 80 euros which is quite a reasonable price and in line with the prices other brands charge for similar items. The waist pants were 46 euro which is an absolute steal for the enjoyment they are bringing me. The sou’wester is the only item which feels a bit expensive but I couldn’t resist completing the outfit. And in my view the costs are worth the extra enjoyment the hat brings, as it is such a great feeling to wear one in torrential rain.
Overall
As is probably clear by now, I am completely in love with this set from Farmerrain. The material is absolutely mesmerizing, the small design details are impressive, and wearing this gear is such a great feeling. I normally feel pretty great in rainwear already, but with this set I feel extra sporty and adventurous due to the great fit and looks.
An additional advantage of this set is how well it combines with some of my other gear. The deep blue shine matches well with both the orange from 66N as well as the Guy Cotten Cap Coz material. If I am not completely suited up in my Farmerrain gear, I can easily take just the pants or jacket and combine it with some of my other rainwear.
Finally it also just makes me happy to support their great efforts with building up a new rainwear brand with so many interesting items like rain jeans, long raincoats, sailing suits, and other items many other brands don’t produce (anymore). And on a regular basis new clips and pictures come out on the Farmerrain social media accounts which are always a pleasure to see. The only downside is that I now really want to try out more of their gear, like maybe something in their biovinyl red or yellow.