This is the post I wrote about clothing choices for barn wear, for the Ontario Barn Preservation newsletter, March 2023.

Thinking About… Spring Barn Fashion

One thing you may not spend time really thinking about… barn fashion. But, here we are, approaching another Spring and you might need to consider fashion, or at least function.

First, you might avoid open toed shoes. No matter how cute they look before you walk around in the barn. Gardeners say “keep your knees dirty” but I’d change that to, “keep your toes clean, and not itchy”.

Do you wear that typical sort of lumber jacket look? How about that Buffalo check, the red and black plaid often used for rustic fashion? Denim is also a traditional must have, whether its jackets or jeans, or something else. One of my favourite fashion finds is a denim backpack. It goes anywhere, including the washing machine.

Then there are t-shirts. How many free t-shirts have you collected? Attending events is a good way to get more t-shirts. But, I find they don’t hand them out as often as before. Also, I’m not always keen to be a walking billboard for various products and causes. I still find sources for cheap t-shirts, plain shirts. Of course, a t-shirt never really dies, they make great rags. Really, if you took time to make a list there must be a hundred uses for an old t-shirt. Socks too.

You might think the topic of barn fashion is kind of silly, but almost everyone has a favourite old jacket, or jeans, or something they wear working around outside. It’s been weathered, time tested, patched, mended, washed more than a few times. What’s yours?

Barn Clothes: Life on The “fashion Don’t” List