How to wear a Gilet

Oh I see he has bare legs. Trust you to notice ana You shocker!

Well, he certainly wasn't wearing the micropants!

www.swazi.co.nz/Online-Shop/Thermal-Base-Layer/ of course ana what were you thinking

Oh dear I've got about 8 gilets- all sorts. Or is a gilet only a padded garment? If so then I don't own one, but a lot of waistcoats. When I bought the first one I didn't know the English for this garment- only the German word. So it is fleece gilet and I have also knitted 3 for myself which I wear at home over long sleeved jumpers.
I bought one in the sales last Monday and this one has short sleeves. They are So....... cosy to wear and still all the rage in Germany where women seem to prefer a more tailored look- very few dresses are sold or even seen on TV. The latest gilets in Germany are made of fake rabbit fur but I don't intend buying one.

Yes...just what has he got on under that coat?

I am happy to have found my forest green Swazi gilet from NZ. Not only because it had a quirky route to my wardrobe (see 6th jan, above) as it is high quality windproof outdoor gear. I wore it today as there was a chilly wind. Happy that it zips up - it is one of those barometer garments - an extra inch on the hips and it no longer fits. I am wearing it now over a coloured long sleeved t shirt.
Can I commend this wonderful NZ firm to you. They keep on manufacturing in a deprived part of NZ where jobs are like gold dust. (Not outsourcing to third world). Despite a kick in the goolies when the NZ government gave a contract for army clothing elsewhere.
Ray Mears (saint Ray himself) can be seen modelling it on TV from time to time. Tough as old boots outerwear. i do not have shares.
There is a lovely photo on their website too:
www.swazi.co.nz

I did the OP. In the end I sent the gilet back, after trying it for a day or two!!!

However GS wears his over a short sleeved tee shirt and says it's fine.

I am another non-body warmer wearer because it is my arms that feel the cold long before my body does. However DH swears by his and almost lives in it during the winter. So much so that DGS refers to all bodywarmers as 'granpas'

I have several gilets and love them all! They are all hip-length, colour- coordinated to my wardrobe, tie a casual outfit together and hide a multitude of sins!!

I've got a nice white fake sheepskin one I bought on ebay. I wear it when the weather is getting a bit too cold to go out in just a jumper, but not so windy that I need sleeves (i.e. about 3 days in the autumn and another 3 in the spring) Looks nice though

We might need a G'net anthology soon. Nice work, merlot.

The sleeveless thingy (whatever you like to call it) seems to re-invent itself with each decade. In the seventies we wore those tiny waistcoats over cheesecloth shirts (as seen in RESTLESS), in the eighties it was the quilted husky which was definitely called a body warmer. The nineties had zip up rib knit things and in the noughties you could wear anything sleeveless so long as you didn't call it a body warmer.

Nice verse folks!
I have a rather fancy black gilet, with a fluffy edge. I was going to wear it over my LBD last night but DH persuaded me otherwise. So my bra straps were on show all evening. I was aiming for slightly quirky. This was achieved in any case as heel of very cheap but comfortable sandal fractured leading to a barefoot evening. Good job we were staying on premises and did not have to set off across carpark. And feet possible best feature now?
Still looking of the right occasion and clothes combination to get some wear out of this object.
I have another one - only it is lost. DS1 bought it in a shooting shop in NZ for a friend. Then discovered it was not a size 12 women's but a 12 year old child's. I could just zip up so I got it. But where is it now? I think I might wear it on a windy day to keep body warm while out walking. If I could find it...

Wonderful, Merlot!
What a lot of gifted poets we have on Gransnet!

Love it, gracesmum
You've got me at it now.

Before we had the gilet,
We didn’t care for trends,
We wore a body warmer
And so did all our friends.
When shooting in the country
Or riding out on hacks,
We’d wear a quilted ‘husky’
To warm our chilly backs.
Complete with Barbour jacket
And wellies, green, not black,
This garment had the kudos
That fleeces seemed to lack.
It beats a vest or waistcoat
And a bodice any day
But it’s just a sleeveless jacket
Whatever some may say.

NEVER feel guilty jeni, you work hard and deserve whatever you want to get!

I like to be warm all over my top half, so, when I saw a sale in Barcelona I went mad!
I've treated myself to a leather (rather than suede) sheepskin 3/4 coat with a hood and fur at the cuffs. It's very soft merino wool fur and so snugly.
It was 1/2 price in the sale, and should last me for years.
(But I still feel guilty at the price!)

When sitting watching telly
Or having a wee nap
I don't need to wear a gilet
With a dog upon my lap.
And when outside it's freezing
I have often heard it said
To keep yourself from sneezing
Throw another dog upon the bed!
So who needs central heating
which costs both pounds and pence
When all you need is the comfort
Of our faithful canine friends.
courtesy of Grace

Ana I must have lead a sheltered life - in all my years, have never seen such a garment!

grace poor Aunt Agnes!

yoga snoods are a good idea, not odd at all. I used to have one and never wore it - maybe I can dig it out!

glam agree on the neckline!

Another odd item of clothing that I like is my snood, it slips on over my head before I put my coat on and it keeps my neck nice and cosy when I'm out with the dog

If you were wearing it under a jacket you wold have to be careful to remember not to take the jacket off like my spinster Aunt Agnes did in a Princes Street tearoom about 60 years ago - She was wearing a blouse effect "dicky front" tied round the back with tapes under what was called a costume in those days, forgot she was not wearing a full blouse and took the jacket off to the amusement consternation of the Edinburgh ladies around her!!

This is the sort of thing I meant!

polo neck insert

Ana now you mention it I'm sitting here laughing at the thought of a man wearing one of those sleeveless polo neck jumpers.

As for the other thingie, I have one of those in purple. I know the name for it but it refuses to come out of my memory.

Riverwalk I would imagine it would good underneath a close fitting suit jacket,it would also hide a mulitude of sins around the neckline.

Oh, Ana I'm laughing so much!

I was going to add a when I sent the link knowing that you'd be amused that you'd misunderstood me, but I didn't as was a bit worried in case it was what your hubby wore, and that you'd be offended at my grin

BTW, I still can't figure out his garment - is it a balaclava-type thing?