Recently, Fjällräven Canada took us on a tour in more ways than one. In the well-stocked Toronto Store, we toured Fjällräven’s new1974 Expedition Series. Then, after we were fortified with healthy snacks and pine-needle tea, food writer/nutritionist Deirdre Buryk took us on a walking tour/scavenger hunt through downtown, uncovering a slice of urban (and edible) nature most of us had never before noticed.
I love the 1970s so the 1974 Expedition Series is perfect for me. Many of the colours and styles echo and expand upon the original series, launched almost 50 years ago.
The original Expedition Down Jacket was conceived out of necessity. During a frigid winter expedition in northern Sweden in the early ’70s, Fjällräven’s founder, Åke Nordin, spent a miserably cold night in a snow pit. He promised himself that once the ordeal was over he’d develop a jacket to stop the cold. Thus the Expedition Down Jacket was born—made from two jackets sewn together to minimize heat loss.
The legendary endurance of the original Expedition Down Jackets proves that Fjällräven’s design philosophy works. The focus on functionality results in products with ageless quality and design. This benefits both the user and the environment. A report recently published by Mistra (The Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research) examined the relationship between a garment’s life cycle and its environmental impact.
The report found that by using a jacket twice as much as the average jacket (approx. 140 times x 2), its environmental impact can be reduced by 49 per cent. So it isn’t a surprise to hear that when Fjällräven’s designers developed the new 1974 Expedition Series, they were influenced by the functionality of the long-lasting, already proven original.
And new this season, the Expedition X-Lätt Jacket (available for women and men) brings even more versatility and functionality to the product family. It is padded with 60 g/sqm of synthetic insulation that keeps its warming properties even when damp. Made of 100% recycled polyamide fabric, the newest addition is also the lightest jacket in the 1974 Expedition Series.
I chose the hoodless Expedition Pack Down Jacket to demo because I was looking for a light down layer that could disappear into my pack. And this jacket stuffs into its own pocket in seconds. I’m always wearing sweaters with hoods and my shell has a hood so I was looking to cut down on hoods. The Pack Down Jacket (also available in a Hoodie version, below) serves as either a backup to carry with you or a secondary layer under a shell. It’s warm enough to wear on its own in winter, though not as warm as other (bulkier) offerings in the series.
For those who are active in a cold climate, there is no single apparel solution. Different pursuits require different jackets, different functions and different levels of insulation. What you need is a cold-weather system. Fjällräven’s 1974 Expedition Series provides warmth responsive to every condition you may encounter in nature. And that will inspire more people to not hide away but instead enjoy winter adventures … and never feel cold again.
