I'm not sure if this post is valid on the wardrobe section? Is the wardrobe section just for tailoring discussion? Anyway, if anyone could help with this I would be very grateful.
I bought a waxed cotton barbour model beaufort before Xmas last year as a casual jacket to wear over jeans and a casual shirt and jumper. I walked around all day last weekend in it and by the end of the day my shoulders and neck were aching as I found it so heavy. I checked the weight online, the regularly cloth they use is described as 6oz cotton, but I think that's the weight without the wax which must add a multiple of this in terms of weight to the jacket.
Has anyone had a similar experience? As the wax starts to disintegrate and disappear does the jacket become lighter and more wearable? Otherwise I may end up selling it on Ebay as it's not comfortable to wear for longer that a couple of hours.
The wax takes a long time to wear out, indeed you're supposed to re-wax it at regular intervals to keep the water proof qualities intact. I can't see the wax adding much weight, but it does add an oily smell.
I use my Barbour in the same way as those things you wear on your waist to give you a 6 pack (as advertised in lads' mags etc). After a week of wearing my Barbour I can now rip phone books in half and kick sand in people's faces. It's well worth all the pain.
I hate it when I'm wearing decent clothes and some bastard in a Barbour jacket sits next to me on the train. Dirty horrible things, there's no need for them these days in this age of gore tex, it's not even as if they are stylish.
Remember when they were the sloane style that everyone waxed onto, around 1987/88, if my memory serves me?
Everyone walking around in that green version. Then several years later, there was still a couple of tights wads, walking around with the same Barbours on, but all dry and crinckly in places.
I have a short black one, not typical of the house style, I wear in for those April showers and that's it.
I only wear mine when working in the garden or chucking a ball around with the kids. I don't care if it gets dirty and it's thornproof. I wouldn't wear it to work or over a suit or anything like that, I'm not an Italian.