Does anyone wear wool camisoles in the summer?

[Tri Girl]

OK- so now that I've discovered the amazing benefits of wool, I wonder if wearing a wool camisole in the Grand Canyon this summer would help with
1) moisture wicking
2) the funk that will develop after a few days without a *real* washing (my body or my clothes)
3) cooling

I want to keep my clothing to a minimum. If wool will carry me through a few days of hiking, I'm all in. Do any of you wear wool in the summer to help with moisture wicking? Does it keep you cool? Any thoughts?

I love my synthetics for working out in the summer, but they do collect a funk after one wear. If I can get away with 2 shirts for 4 days in the canyon, I would like that a whole lot more than carrying 2 synthetics that will absorb the funk.
I do plan on wearing my arm coolers with a tank/camisole for sun protection.

[Veronica]

I haven't tried wool in the summer, but I have a wool tank that I've wearing a lot this winter when I work out. I'll usually do two or three rides on a wool jersey in the winter.

When are you going to the Grand canyon? We're going to be camping on the North Rim the week of Jun 13.

Veronica

[OakLeaf]

I can't speak to tops (yet - I have a cami ordered :rolleyes:), but I wear wool socks year round. Love 'em, and my feet never get too warm.

that's not really saying much though, since I'm the one whose toes are literally blue from December through March in northern climates...

[Tri Girl]

Veronica- we'll just miss you. We'll be there the week before. Drats! :mad:
Good to know about the wool tank in the gym. Does it get hot?

Oak- I'm cold ALL the time, so I can relate. Let me know how you like that cami.
I just had a friend who told me she wears wool socks year round. Says the temp regulating keeps the feet cool in summer and warm in winter. I don't understand it, but I'm willing to ignore all logic if it can do both. :p
Sheep have it all figured out!!

Thanks for the feedback! Looking forward to more.

ps: just picked up another super fine merino wool sweater at the thrift store for $1.50 and it's the thinnest, softest, sweater EVER. I love my thrifty finds!

[Veronica]

Awww.... bummer. You guys get out a week or so before us. I'm not done teaching until the 10th. That's good for you though to be there as early in June as you can.

The gym is actually a little cold, which is why I started wearing it. But it's bright pink and it amuses me to be wearing pink while I'm boxing or doing some other super hard thing that girlie girls would break a nail doing. :D

It will probably be one of the tops I bring on our camping/mountain biking trip though.

Veronica

[Tri Girl]

Good to know, V (about the tank). I think I might go ahead and try one.
We get out on the 24th- providing we don't have any more big snow/ice storms. :)
Will you be mtn biking? I really want to bring our mtn bikes, but don't know what to do with them while we are hiking. I've heard the mtn biking on the N. rim is AMAZING!!!

[KnottedYet]

I have 2 wool t-shirts which I wear in the summer. I find they are much cooler than my cotton t-shirts and don't smell putrid like my Cool-Max t-shirts. They wick great, though my pale lavender shirt turns quite dark in the sweaty spots. The spots go away as soon as they dry (which is fast).

Both are from Ibex, and about 5 years old. Still going strong!

[Tri Girl]

Thanks, Knotted! What brand did you get, if you don't mind me asking?

[rubywagon]

I found a Smartwool, lightweight, short sleeved t-shirt at an outlet store and I wore it a lot last summer. Probably more than I would like to admit. It was great in the heat IMO.

[KnottedYet]

Thanks, Knotted! What brand did you get, if you don't mind me asking?

Both are from Ibex.

The exact shirts aren't made anymore, but these are similar:
http://www.ibexwear.com/shop/product/1559/4411/womens-core-t?Outlet=1 for $39 right now
http://www.ibexwear.com/shop/product/1040/7732/womens-u-sixty-t?Outlet=1 for $45

[zoom-zoom]

I can't speak to tops (yet - I have a cami ordered :rolleyes:), but I wear wool socks year round. Love 'em, and my feet never get too warm.

that's not really saying much though, since I'm the one whose toes are literally blue from December through March in northern climates...

Ha, are we separated at birth?

I am an absolute Smartwool ho...I need to keep my eyes open for some merino wool tanks for warmer weather cycling.

[Cataboo]

I wear wool in the summer - tanks and t shirts. i prefer ibex, but have a fair amount of icebreaker and smartwool. smartwool gets random holes too easily and pisses me off, so I don't buy it anymore.

[Veronica]

Yep, we'll be mountain biking. :D


Veronica

[lph]

I wear wool tanks in summer for hiking. The non-smelly bit is good, but I do tend to itch when it gets hot and I start sweating, even though they're part silk. The wool T's I have are so close-cut and thin that they get smelly anyway, but sleeveless is good, as is rotating every other day. Tanks, not self ;)

[OakLeaf]

Also, one of my favorite tops to wear for yoga is my sleeveless Ibex Woolie. The studio is usually at 78°-80°F and the top is plenty comfortable.

As for smell... it's embarrassing to say how many days in a row I'll wear the same wool top. :rolleyes: I often notice food smells from whatever I happened to be cooking while wearing the top, before I notice body odor.

[NbyNW]

I have a wool icebreaker cami w/ built in shelf bra that I wear pretty much year-round. I can't remember if I was wearing it during our hottest days last year, during which I probably would not have been that active.

Probably my favorite time to wear it is at the doctors office -- if I have to roll up my sleeve/take off my shirt to get a shot, or have my BP checked, or to have my lungs listened to, I feel like I'm still wearing something.

I wore a black one of these for most of the week during a recent trip to the Dominican Republic, during which I was hauling around a backpack, hiking, climbing, and splashing around:

http://www.exofficio.com/product_details.aspx?item_cd=2241-0567&key=87db90ea-2e3c-4de5-a4f1-bed719ee3f2a

It worked pretty well as underwear that could pass as outerwear (I'm rather small), but it was also very comfortable for layering as well. I washed it once during the trip and it was dry by morning, even in that humid climate.

[Dianyla]

Yup, wool tanks, tees, and even longsleeved shirts. I don't like getting a lot of sun exposure so I'll often wear the ultra lightweight longsleeved base layers.

[mariposa]

I love the lightest-weight wool shirts, and prefer them for summer hiking now. Yes they smell better but they also regulate heat better, I think, than synthetics. The wool isn't clammy.

I love microweight wool tanks too, but with the heavy sun exposure at places like Grand Canyon, I'd go short-sleeve for sure. Otherwise your shoulders will be red as tomatoes.

My very favorite (after trying a few brands in the microweight) is the Icebreaker Tech T Lite (140 gram).

Smartwool microweight is fine too (way easier to find on sale) but it's true that it gets holes or rips in it. I think it's slightly thicker than the Icebreaker, too.

Patagonia Wool 2 is actually the nicest made of the three (and maybe the coolest/silkiest of the bunch). But I find the Patagonia shirts get smelly after only one wear. Even VERY smelly. This has confounded me; I think they're 100% merino? Maybe not.

You can wear a wool bra underneath, or, a sports bra that doesn't smell. Sometimes I even wear my non-sport tactel nylon bras on hiking trips, because they actually wick moisture really well and they DON'T smell!

[GLC1968]

I wear wool tanks all summer, too. I have two from icebreaker and two from Ibex. I also bought two sleeveless baselayers this year from smartwool that I'll probably wear come next summer, too.

My favorite is my black pointelle camisole from Ibex. It doesn't show sweat or farm dirt. :p

[Tri Girl]

Thanks, everyone!! You've sold me. Now I just have to decide which one to buy! :) Thank you for all your input.