Outerknown has been on my radar for a while due to their front and center sustainability mission, but their style is quite casual and they use mainly cotton, so I didn’t see anything that caught my eye right away.
In my search for a new sweatshirt, I was looking for a hemp-cotton blend, and in the process of purchasing and returning a few others, I found the Sur Sweatshirt.
For me, this is the ultimate sweatshirt for around the house.
Material
This sweatshirt is a French terry 55% hemp, 45% organic cotton blend.
The fabric has a substantial feel/weight to it from the hemp content, while still feeling soft — just what I was looking for from this fabric blend in a sweatshirt. It’s a hard feel to describe if you haven’t handled heavier hemp blend fabrics.
The hemp also imparts a great texture to the fabric. Combined with the washed color, this fabric is strictly casual for me.
Fit & Style
The cut here is quite unique for a casual sweatshirt. The body is cut on the slim side while still keeping plenty of length in the body and arms. Something different from the usual boxy casual sweatshirt cut. It looks a little more put together while still remaining extremely comfortable.
The neck here is quite open, and when combined with the causal fabric and longer arms, this makes it wear quite casual. I wouldn’t have a problem wearing it out to the store, but I probably wouldn’t take it much further than that.
Performance
The high hemp content in this blend serves a few purposes — weight (which I already covered), breathability, and durability.
Since hemp fibers are more absorptive, they do a great job removing moisture from your skin. They also make a more airy weave, therefor making a more breathable fabric. This makes for a sweatshirt that is comfortable in more temperatures than with traditional pure cotton French terry.
We will see how it plays out over time, but the durability of hemp and its tendency to just keep getting softer over time also could change the game here for the better. While cotton does also get softer with wear, it breaks down more quickly than hemp.
Overall
Overall, I really like the Sur Sweatshirt from Outerknown. I look forward to putting it on after work and love the weight, texture, and breathability of the fabric.
At $69, I think you get a great value, especially if it proves to benefit from the long term durability of hemp.
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