Hot to Cold and Cold to Hot

As Australians we love the long haul, which invariably means getting on a plane in one climate and off in another.This makes transits to and from the airport  a consideration. Then add in the fact that aircrafts set their cabin temperatures to a cool 20 degrees and cabin air is dry. The lack  of humidity often results in passengers feeling cold.

After a lot of research into what travellers wear and what makes them feel comfortable, are practical and light and adjust to your body temperature in transit, we have invested heavily in a range of silk and cashmere fine yarns which we knit into great basics for inflight wear.

The luxurious natural properties of silk and cashmere mean that they give your skin something back. Cool and dry when you need and have the ability to adjust to your body temperature and give you warmth when you need. Merino wool has the same effect and we recommend this for pants.

Another consideration is looking the part. It’s true to say that everyone has an image of a sleek model looking frequent flyer, with limited luggage who looks like he or she can go straight from the airport to a bar in New York without changing. Oh to be that person.

Overwhelming the feedback we get is, travel light. If you can carry-on, if not, don’t burden yourselves with multiple bags and 20 + kgs of luggage. The more luggage, the more decisions that have to be made. My motto is, when on holidays, I want to enjoy the moment and not stress about which of the 5 options I will end up choosing to wear for dinner.

Taking all of this into consideration, our top picks for travel wear when you are going from 10 degrees to 30 plus or visa versa are;

1. Start with your shoes - Paul Green and Superga has a great range of lightweight trainers which you can add socks to or not. Airports involve walking, in and around and you need to be comfortable.



2. Pants, make sure they're dark in colour and soft and breathe. We especially make our slouchy zip merino pants in Christchurch of fine merino wool which breathes with your skin and adjusts to your body temperature. In July I left Mongolia in 40 degrees and arrived in Sydney after x 3 internal flights and an overnight international. I was concerned the slouchy zip pants would be too hot for a summer transit. They were perfect and by the time I got to the overnight flight, it was cold and I needed the warmth. Two weeks, later I flew in silk pants and was cold all night long. My top pick is the merino slouchy zip. I love the zipper pocket to safely zip up your boarding pass and passport.



3. Tops, our 55% silk  and 45% cashmere  yarn tops are your travellers wardrobe favourites.
Most popular are our long sleeve T’s, followed by our singlets. This yarn is the perfect trans-seasonal weight for flying and AC environments.


4. Then it's a wrap. Choose from our supersoft scarves, travel wraps, transit wraps and Jet Set scarves.



These 3 pieces are equally as popular. If you are spending more time in a hot country, my option would be the supersoft, as it size at 2.2 metres x 1m means you can use it as a cover all and then pack it down into a small glasses case. As light as they are, they are very warm and can easily be wrapped around your neck up to 4 times if you are wearing a jacket 
The travel wraps are useful as a plane blanket. They fold nicely and can be carried in a day pack. They are popular with people who cruise and want all day and night comfort in conditions that may change. At 2.2 m long by 85 cm wide they are a great size.
The transit wraps are mid size, 180 cm x 65 cm. A great unisex option and are as popular with men as they are with women.
Our Jet Set scarves are pure cashmere and come with 10 cm tassels. They are the same size as the transit wraps, plus the addition of the tassels.

5. Soft jacket. The silk and cashmere pilar wrap cardi is our number one bestseller. In French navy, or black, we make and sell out and then remake all year round. Again, it will have your looking like the business traveller.

Another classic is the LA Hoodie. A year-round essential to start and end the day in on your travels. With side panels, it sits and stays, has two pockets for keys, and other essentials, a hood and a sturdy zip front. Perfect for trans-seasonal travel.

 



6. Baggage advice. I use a Samonsite cabin baggage roll on which weighs in a 2 kgs. For a handbag, I only use small  Hedgren lightweight hand bag, which has lots of pockets. If I’m flying business, I have a large linen tote with a trusty leather strap that can fit my handbag inside and a travel wrap.