Filson Shirts

Same shirt, different weight of cloth. The standard Alaskan Guide is a midweight cotton that holds its shape and works as an outer layer in mild weather. The Lightweight version uses a thinner cloth in the same pattern, with the long tail and twin chest pockets unchanged, and suits warm days, indoor work, or wearing under a jacket where the midweight would be too bulky.

Not uniformly. The classic workwear patterns, such as the Vintage Flannel Work Shirt and the wool jac-shirts, are cut boxy and roomy in the American workwear tradition, with space for layers underneath. The Alaskan Guide and Feather Cloth sit closer to a standard fit. Check the size guide on each product page rather than assuming one size carries across the range.

A shirt cut and weighted to work as a light jacket. The Insulated Flannel Jac-Shirt has a quilted lining and a snap front; the CPO Wool Jac-Shirt uses dense wool with patch pockets. Both are worn over a shirt rather than instead of one, and they fill the gap between a heavy shirt and a proper coat.

The wool jac-shirts, by a clear margin. Dense wool traps more air than brushed cotton and keeps insulating when it gets damp, which counts for more in British weather than in a dry cold. Insulated flannel jac-shirts come next, then the Field and Vintage flannels, then the Alaskan Guide. Feather Cloth is the lightest and is not a cold-weather shirt.

Cold machine wash and hang to dry for the cotton shirts. Flannel and the Alaskan Guide soften with washing rather than losing their shape, provided the heat stays low. Wool jac-shirts should not go in the machine: sponge marks off and air them instead, and have them cleaned properly once a season if they need it. Skip fabric softener on flannel, which flattens the nap.