Whether you’ve spent a day hiking or have just set up your tent, it’s always a great feeling to shed your daytime clothes and put on something cozy for hanging around camp. Who cares whether you’re glamping, car camping, or doing something more adventurous? When you sit down and take a big breath in the great outdoors, we’re really all the same, no matter how we camp.
When the weather isn’t blistering hot, one of my favorite campground outfits include the Patagonia P-6 Label Uprisal Sweatpants.
The 100-percent recycled polyester/cotton (55 percent postconsumer recycled polyester and 45 percent recycled cotton) sweatpants are made with 26 plastic bottles and 0.8 pounds of cotton scrap material gathered from factory floors. Compared to conventional cotton sweatpants, these materials use 95 percent less water and produce 53 percent less C02.
The sweatpants are also Fair Trade Certified sewn. What does that mean? Through its partnership with Fair Trade USA, Patagonia pays a premium for every item that carries the Fair Trade Certified sewn label. That extra money goes directly to the workers at the factory, and they decide how to spend it. Workers—not factory owners—have chosen to use the premiums to fund community projects (like healthcare programs or a child-care center), to purchase products they could not otherwise afford (like a stove or laptop computer), or to take a cash bonus. The program also promotes worker health and safety as well as social and environmental compliance.
Simply pull on the sweatpants and adjust the drawstring for a personalized fit. The elastic waistband and cuffs hold in warmth, and the side-entry front pockets are big enough for you to keep your phone, keys, or gloves. The brushed interior still feels soft after a few washes.
The women’s P-6 Label Uprisal Sweatpants come in gravel heather, new navy, and rosehip, and list for $69 on the Patagonia site. The men’s version lists for the same amount and comes in gravel heather, basalt brown, and black.