Are your warm clothes actually making you cold?

There’s all sorts of reasons we wear clothes. To not be naked. To look good. To be comfortable. To stay warm. And they’re all good reasons. But here’s the thing: Not all clothes are equally good at all those things. Some clothes are more modest than others. Some look better or are more comfortable than others. And some help keep you warm better than others.

There’s a lot of hyperbole out there too, with all sorts of fancy claims and technical words being thrown around, so we’re here to debunk a few myths and give you the lowdown on staying warm when it’s cold.

What were your clothes created to do?

Different fabrics have different performance qualities. Plain and simple. Some fabrics will keep you warm in certain conditions, but kill you in others. Most cotton, for example, is perfectly fine in regular, mild conditions, but when it’s wet and the temperature drops, it’s not going to keep you warm, it’s going to make you colder. A lot colder. Same with ‘leggings’. Some are designed to provide compression. Some to simply look good with fancy designs. Most aren’t actually designed to keep you warm. You might think having a layer of anything on your legs will keep you warm, but the truth is, many of those leggings not only won’t necessarily keep you warm, depending on what they’re made of, they may even make you colder because of how they perform in cold conditions. Because compression isn’t warmth. Fancy patterns aren’t warmth. Our MicroMerino® fabrics are warmth. Natural, breathable, soft, comfortable, warmth.

Our new revolutionary Merino-Compression Leggings combine all the benefits you expect from our high-performance merino fabrics, with the high performance of compression garments. Now you don’t have to choose between the breathability, thermo-regulation, moisture wicking, warmth and the odour resistant qualities of Merino or the fit, feel and performance of a compression garment - you can have both.

CHECK OUT OUR THERMAL LEGGINGS HERE.

It’s not about how quick it dries.

Sometimes how your clothes feel, and perform, when they’re wet is more important than how quick they dry. Especially if you’re in conditions where you might be wet on and off during the day, (or night), or for extended periods of time. Our exclusive MicroMerino® fabrics are not only super effective at wicking moisture away from your skin, they can absorb up to 40% of their weight in moisture before they feel ‘wet’. That keeps you feeling warm and comfortable when most other fabrics will have been making you feel cold and wet for hours from the first drop of sweat or rain.

CHOOSE THE LAYER THAT'S RIGHT FOR YOU HERE. 

SHOP OUR MEN'S AND WOMEN'S LAYERS HERE 

How much temperature control do you have?

There’s plenty of amazing coats and jackets out there. Heck, we’ll admit, we even have some ourselves. Big, fluffy, puffy, warm jackets that keep you nice and warm. Until you get too warm and have to take it off. Then what? Then you lose a lot of warmth in one hit. Maybe even all your warmth. That’s not temperature control, that’s just an on and off switch with nothing in between. Dangerous. When you layer with our naturally temperature regulating MicroMerino® fabrics, you get to adjust the level of warm, one ‘notch' at a time. A single, breathable layer will serve you across a wider range of temperatures, and by using multiple,lightweight layers, you’ll not only avoid the bulk that comes with one, single, thicker layer, you’ll also have a lot more control over just how much warmth you want at any given time. And because the combination of layers creates extra ‘micro layers’ of insulation between the fabrics, you can generate a lot more warmth without the bulk. And without sweating up a stinky storm in some sort of synthetic. And if you do need to cool down, you don’t need to lose all your warmth in one hit. It’s a much smarter, and warmer way to stay warm.

CHOOSE YOUR VERSATILE THERMAL LAYER HERE. 

HEAD OVER TO THE SHOP FOR OUR WHOLE COLLECTION

It doesn’t freeze. And neither will you.

Going somewhere really cold? The last thing you want is for your clothes to freeze. Our MicroMerino® fabrics never will. If they get wet and the temperature drops, the natural properties of the premium Australian wool we use will stop it freezing. We like to think it’s because of the beautiful Australian sunshine knitted into the fabric, but the real answer is a little more scientific than that. The bottom line is, it won’t freeze, and neither will you.

OUR ALTITUDE RANGE IS BUILT FOR ALPINE ADVENTURES. 

Is their Merino the same as our Merino?

In a word: no. In a few: sort of, but still no. All Merino is blessed with the natural properties it comes with. However, it’s worth remembering Merino fabrics are only as good as how they’re made. Imagine you start off with the same ingredients as a Master Chef and you both set about making the same meal. Chances are, your meals are going to turn out a bit different, right? Same with Merino layers. The Michell family who run ioMerinohave been working with wool for almost 150 years. What they don’t know about wool isn’t worth knowing. So we use their ‘recipe’ to turn only the most premium Australian Merino wool into fabrics made to their exact specifications. We don’t just buy whatever Merino fabrics happen to be going around, we make our own. We know what goes into it, so we know what you’ll get out of it: the best experience possible. We’re all for equality here at ioMerino, but the truth is, when it comes to Merino, not all Merino fabrics are created equal.

WE'VE GOT THE RIGHT LAYER TO KEEP YOU COMFORTABLE FOR LONGER.

CHECK OUT OUR LIGHTWEIGHT MERINO LAYERS