Living in Canada, it can get, really, really cold. Not only do I live in a cold climate, but I also run cold. When I heard of Uniqlo Heattech® I was singing hallelujahs in my head.
Uniqlo Heattech® promises you would be able to wear Heattech without having to layer with bulky items and stay consistently warm. From their website:
HEATTECH is an innovative new material that UNIQLO developed jointly with global textile maker Toray. To achieve the ultimate in warmth and comfort, we created more than 10,000 prototypes. HEATTECH cannot be made with ordinary equipment. The fabric is made on dedicated production lines. HEATTECH generates and retains warmth, fights bacteria to prevent odours, prevents static electricity and is extremely comfortable. An embodiment of Japanese technology, HEATTECH was born from cutting-edge fibre technologies, where Japan leads the world. Since hitting the market in 2003, every year HEATTECH has evolved through improvements that incorporate customer feedback.
So off I went and I bought a couple of fitted pants/leggings, and below are my thoughts on them.
Pros
Comfort: Uniqlo is known to make clothes functional, practical and most importantly comfortable. They prioritize form and function, which has made it one of my favourite brands quickly. Their Heattech line stays true to this. I love how easy it is to put it on and doesn’t feel restricting at all.
Warmth: The pants were warmer than my regular pants. But I couldn’t go out just with these pants, I still felt the cold but not to the degree of coldness I usually felt. I would need the Heattech underwear to supplement.
Price: The price was reasonable and affordable! I always find Uniqlo to be reasonably priced and you can always wait for the sales to grab a pair! Which I will do when it comes up.
Cons
Maintenance: My only complaint is the pants get quite messy easily, especially when compared to my other pants. Constantly I had people tell me there was something on my butt. While theirs were much cleaner, despite sitting in nearly identical seating. Also, I find the grime got easier on it and the fibres kind of come off a bit.
With that being said, it is great for an office environment, where I’m not in a dirty place. I run cold so the Heattech pants are great for this specific situation/environment.
Overall thoughts:
I enjoy trying new technology in clothing. I think we need more research in this area, so bravo to Uniqlo in pushing the boundaries. Heattech is just one example and is a good product in a niche need. There is a tradeoff, but I think the benefit of being warmer outweighs heavily the need to be clean. I would recommend the line and I look forward to future iterations.
Let me know your thoughts on the product!
You can see their collection (for women) here: https://www.uniqlo.com/us/en/women/heattech-collection
- Elle. (2018, January 05). An Ode to Uniqlo Heat Tech Products. Retrieved from https://www.elle.com/fashion/g14760375/best-winter-leggings/
- Uniqlo. (n.d.). Heat Tech. Retrieved from http://www.uniqlo.com/lab/heattech/us/
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