WoolWeenies Club

[Cataboo]

Wow, thanks for the tips Catriona. I bought the jacket in medium so I do have room for layers, up to a point that is. No problem to get 4 merino layers including two shaks. I was tempted buy that stp jacket, but thought the hooded shak would be more versatile. My hooded shak arrives today, and I hope that I LOVE it. So, I think I am OK on top.....

Your advice on the alpstar pant is intriguing. The reviews I read said this would work not just for skiing but for walking around in a cold place (i.e. not look like 'ski pants'). If that's correct that is just the ticket, since the only wool pants I own are dress pants, and I need something for just walking around in switzerland in wintertime, and if I could also ski in them that's a bonus.

You could ski in the alp star pants - what they don't have is kickpatches - the thick part that's usually on the inside of your ski pants that prevents them from getting torn up by sharp ski edges. So if you fall a lot or have a tendancy to tear up that part of your pants while skiing, I wouldn't wear them. However, they're going to be not as loose at the bottom as ski pants so they're not going to come all the way down over your boot, so they won't be as likely to get caught as longer ski pants.

I'll have to check tonight what size alpstars I have - I know I've got the ibex backcountry pants in a medium, and they're great. They do have kickpatches, they are windproof.

The alpstars are windproof as well, I'm not sure as much as the backcountry. They do look fairly casual. I know my alpstars are kinda huge because I got them them for cheap on ebay and for that price I didn't really care how well they fit. I'll check their sizing and mine tonight and PM you.

For skiing, it really depends on how much you fall. If you don't fall much, it doesn't matter that both of the pants aren't going to be fully waterproof - they will shed moisture and resist getting wet.

The thing that's extremely nice about the icebreaker raven & allstar is that the weave/fabric is so tight that they are windproof. I can use them as an outer layer on a windy day. That also makes them extremely warm. I love the hooded shak, but it's not as windproof as they are.