Howies Gear

I love Howies, and what they stand for, but that brakeless tee is a little ugly. I have that sweat in plain grey, and I adore it. If they were as cheap as I got that one in the sale, then I'd have a bunch.

As it is I just get the odd thing from there as a present from the family or as a treat for myself. I bought a Long Way Home jacket last year - £200. It was bloody brilliant, though; kept me warm, dry and it wasn't sweaty. Then I took a tumble and ripped it to shreds. Even thinking about it now is p**sing me off...

i think nearly all of their t-shirt designs are naff to be honest. has anyone else noticed that it's actually impossible to cross your fingers like that?

Just saw this on the Howies blog, a brakeless Bob Jackson with flats. Brave lads over there at Howies...

http://brainfood.howies.co.uk/2008/11/brake-free/

I think its the combination of spikey DX pedals & sandals that deserves the mention.

I mangled my toe earlier this year in a sandal related accident. Mudguard rod tore the nail right off my big toe whilst also tearing up the flesh underneath.

Its still in a right state, with a new nail only just beginning to grow.

i think nearly all of their t-shirt designs are naff to be honest. has anyone else noticed that it's actually impossible to cross your fingers like that?

its a skill reserved for the fleshless.

i think nearly all of their t-shirt designs are naff to be honest. has anyone else noticed that it's actually impossible to cross your fingers like that?

Not until you pointed it out and you are quite right, it should be middle finger over index finger.

Hmmm... brakeless riding as a fashion statement. What a load of cock

I love Howies, and what they stand for, but that brakeless tee is a little ugly. I have that sweat in plain grey, and I adore it. If they were as cheap as I got that one in the sale, then I'd have a bunch.

As it is I just get the odd thing from there as a present from the family or as a treat for myself. I bought a Long Way Home jacket last year - £200. It was bloody brilliant, though; kept me warm, dry and it wasn't sweaty. Then I took a tumble and ripped it to shreds. Even thinking about it now is p**sing me off...

Gone down hill since the Timberland involvement.

i don't think that that's true at all to be honest. i think if there's a problem, it's because they are the same as they always were.

ok perhaps even more patronising and overpriced. and those catalogues, how they fuck me off now. i used to save them because they're nicely done but the are hardly 'green'.

all their clothes are the same anyway. stripey jumper? witty 'eco' t-shirt? check shirt?

Prices have gone up and the product quality isn't what it once was. IMO

i think nearly all of their t-shirt designs are naff to be honest. has anyone else noticed that it's actually impossible to cross your fingers like that?

Not with freak hands like mine it's not.

Prices have gone up and the product quality isn't what it once was. IMO

Since the Timberland input I feel that the Howies ethos is now a little patronizing.
Also the amount of advertising material, print, emails comes across as a bit pushy and desperate.
Early product quality especially the merino wool base layers were excellent , no longer.

Though it might just be envy, a good concept and execution as well as a lot of hard work has created a very successful company.
Progress ?

I preferred their older slogans (1998 - 2002), they were slightly less obvious.

Underachiever with 5 stars and Americas view of the world.

Yeah, loved my underacheiver t-shirt, although mine had no stars (5 empty holes).

Yeah, loved my underacheiver t-shirt, although mine had no stars (5 empty holes).

I failed to notice the holes, oh dear.
I am an underachiever.

Since the Timberland input I feel that the Howies ethos is now a little patronizing.
Also the amount of advertising material, print, emails comes across as a bit pushy and desperate.
Early product quality especially the merino wool base layers were excellent , no longer.

Though it might just be envy, a good concept and execution as well as a lot of hard work has created a very successful company.
Progress ?

at the time thought it took them a lots of time and money to keep the company running, even when sales is going strong, they've yet to actually earn proper profit from it, the timberland input from what I heard is simply a money injection allowing Howies to relaxed a little bits and able to keep the company running.

someone here know the people behind howies and have a better input on the whole story than me, I just type what I (vaguely) remember.

Fitting that they use a skeleton to represent the rider. Cocks.

http://www.howies.co.uk/ has 20% off everything until friday 1pm - everyone else is on sale so why not

it has been interesting reading all your comments bout howies, we always like to see how different people approach the brand and have opinions about us. we have never tried to be all things to all people but regarding the quality of our merino which was commented on by 'grow up' on post 22 we have to strongly disagree with the quality of the merino being no longer excellent. howies prides itself on the quality of this product, you can down load the pdf about how we make our merino here http://www.howies.co.uk/content.php?xSecId=101

please take time to download it as we made it specifically to cover comments like those made by 'grow up'. If 'grow up' has a merino that he wasn't happy with you'll see that he could have returned it to us and got his money back. here's a little tale about it.

we want you to have great products from us. here's an excerpt from the merino story. Ok, the question you’re itching to ask: is it comfy to wear? Oh yes. This is not your grandad’s thermal underwear. It’s like... You know your comfiest pair of socks, the ones that make you feel fantastic the minute you put them on? Well, it’s a bit like that. All over.
The superfine Merino fibres for our NBL base layers are just 18.8 microns in diameter, about five times finer than human hair. (A micron is one millionth of a metre. Or one thousandth of a millimetre. That’s teeny.) The finer a fabric, the more comfortable it is next to the skin. And our Merino is known as “the silk of wool”. It’s not been chemically treated, like some wool products. Just combed, washed, spun and dyed.

Our NBL Light styles have contoured seams which are all flat-locked to avoid bulky seams that rub and irritate. They have no side or shoulder seams. (We know people who wear them under a wetsuit while surfing.) In winter, it keeps you warm because making the fabric creates millions of tiny air spaces, the best insulation nature can provide.

Merino fibres are so fine they trap more air pockets and keep you warmer. When you start to warm up, the Merino helps you cool down by transferring heat and moisture away from the body. In fact, on a hot summer’s day, a light Merino is a lot more comfortable than a damp sweaty cotton t-shirt. Once you put it on, you won’t want to take it off. Then again, you don’t have too very often.

We gave John, one of our kayakers, a base layer to take to Brazil and he didn’t take it off for five months, except to shower. Maybe next time we’ll give him two. (They still let him on the plane home, mind you.)

Try one, and if you don’t like it, send it back and we’ll give you your money back. No quibble, Officer Dibble, as we say round these parts. We think you’ll love it. You may even want to marry it. Outside, frosty. Inside, toasty.

http://www.howies.co.uk/content.php?xSecId=101

Nice. Glad to see you take these things seriously.

all you need to know about howies merino is here.

http://www.howies.co.uk/content.php?xSecId=101

Nice. Glad to see you take these things seriously.

unlike that T-shirt design. it's crap.
fortunately you did some good ones (GBinc/Home-work/CorporateWanker/Brandwashed)

I love their merino wool stuff I have one of their tshirts on and a vets. hmmmmm nice and cosy.

There's a bit of a premium on them because of the sustainable/ethical/green angle, I know.

I like Howies a lot, but even with their ethical policies most of the clothes are still made in China. Traveling half way around the world on a diesel powered container ship isn't really that ethical.

looks like my comments were modded? is the forum now owned by timberland too?