Zip-Up Hoodies – A Guide

Short answer: A hoodie with a zip is the most flexible sweat top in a wardrobe. You can zip it open and closed according to the temperature and use it as a light jacket over a T-shirt. In bamboo sweat fabric it is also soft inside and breathable enough for a heated room.

The zip gives three steps

An ordinary hoodie is either on or off. A zip gives fully closed, half open and fully off, which is three temperatures instead of two. On a day with a cold morning and a warm afternoon, that is the difference that decides comfort.

As a light jacket

A zipped hoodie can be worn as an outer layer over a T-shirt at ten to fifteen degrees, where a real jacket would be too much. It takes less room in a bag and can come along when the weather is uncertain. See bamboo hoodies for men.

Under a jacket

The hood gathers at the neck under an outer layer, and that is the one drawback of the style. If the hoodie is mainly meant as a middle layer under a coat, a sweatshirt without a hood is better. As an outer layer, the hood is exactly what makes it useful.

The zip has to last

A cheap plastic zip breaks at a tooth, and then the whole top is unusable, because the zip cannot be replaced at home. Look for metal or a sturdy plastic zip with a flat pull, and open and close it ten times in the shop.

The neck when it is closed

Always try the top with the zip fully closed. If the edge is hard or too high, it rubs against the neck, and then it never gets zipped all the way. A soft edge with a small guard at the top is what makes the zip actually get used.

Pockets that work

Most zipped hoodies have two front pockets rather than one large kangaroo pocket. That is more practical, because a kangaroo pocket cannot be used when the top is unzipped. In return two pockets add slightly more bulk over the hip.

For the women's range

On the women's side the cut is shorter in the body and narrower across the shoulders. See bamboo hoodies for women and choose a model that ends at the hip if the top is to be worn over a dress or high waisted trousers.

As part of a set

A zipped hoodie can be part of a set with matching trousers. See bamboo tracksuit sets for men, where the two pieces come from the same batch and therefore have exactly the same colour from the start and after many washes.

Washing and the zip

Always close the zip before washing, otherwise the teeth knock against the drum and the rest of the laundry. Wash at 30 degrees without fabric softener and turn the top inside out. Hang it to dry with the zip closed, so the front does not pull crooked. See also the bamboo hoodie and bamboo loungewear.