It was the adoption of workwear by American youth that provided the foundation for Carhartt Streetwear and it’s easy to forget that the market for Carhartt in the States is still predominantly rural. The second garment in this series illustrates this point perfectly.

Originally Carhartt brown, this blanket-lined Chore coat was customized by its owner who applied a hand painted camouflage finish in green and chestnut brown.

Like the bib overalls featured before, this jacket is also from the 1970’s though it was produced by the American Carhartt not the Canadian licensee. The circular marks on the breast pocket were made by patches that were unfortunately removed before we acquired the garment.

The buttons feature the ‘running C’ branding which was used from the late 1960’s to mid 1980’s. (you’ll note it bears more than a passing resemblance to the current logo of a European jean brand).

The corduroy collar and multicoloured blanket lining are well worn and the camouflage pattern has been applied with a decent level of expertise. The Carhartt brown canvas (also known as duck) that forms the outer was milled in an American plant and the jacket was also fabricated in the States.

With the rise of labels like Post Overalls and EG producing fashion workwear it’s easy to forget that Carhartt is one of a number of legitimate workwear companies that still manufacture product in America though they now also have plants outside the States.

Though most canvas duck is a one to one weave this jacket has been reinforced with two warp threads to every weft which gives the fabric a characteristic stiff, heavy feel.

The bib-overalls featured in the pictures were manufactured by the Canadian license holder that produced and distributed Carhartt in Canada in the 1970's. You can tell that they were produced by the Canadian licensee by the train carriage used in the logo and the font differences.

One piece bib overalls emerged as a garment at some stage between 1891 and 1916 and are still a key piece of blue collar workwear.

In keeping with the American parent companies rather idiosyncratic approach to detailing there are some wonderful features on these overalls.

All of the buttons and brace adjusters are branded and, for no other reason other than aesthetics, one of the buttons on the waist band is inlaid with red paint.

The outside leg seam is, unusually for Carhartt product, double instead of triple stitched and the overalls have been extensively repaired and altered which adds to their charm.

The waistband and chest opening is lined with indigo dyed cotton sheeting which has faded under wear to a rich violet colour, this sheeting was added to tidy up the open seams and reduce the risk of chaffing. The two donut buttons on the fly are branded Carhartt’s.

Without the original tag it’s almost impossible to put an accurate date on these but they were manufactured at some stage in the 1970’s.