how to look good on a bike

Cycle ClothingFeaturedReviews

Fix up, look sharp: we ride out in tailored cycling jackets from MEAME

MEAME Featured
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For overly competitive types who feel the need to get everywhere fast (looking at you, Matt!) there’s value in reminding yourself that actually, cycling can just be a way to relax and get around; that not every journey needs to be a race. We spent some time over the bank holiday weekend sporting the beautiful MEAME Altair Biker Jacket and Alpha Reflective Tweed Blazer and enjoyed a gentler pace in the spring sunshine.

London-based premium cycling brand MEAME was founded by Central St Martin’s graduate Megan Aylott who has brought high-end fashion design to the world of commuter cycling apparel. Incorporating highly technical fabrics and clever design features to make the life of a bicycle commuter that little bit easier and a whole lot smarter, we believe the MEAME collection is far and away the most stylish urban cycling apparel on the market.

Victoria – MEAME Altair Biker Jacket

MEAME Altair Biker Jacket

I’ve been wearing the MEAME Altair Biker Jacket and I’m in love. I’ll run through the technical details shortly, but from a purely aesthetic perspective, it’s gorgeous. Now, as far as sizing goes, think European; it’s pretty small. I’m wearing size Large which is a size up from my usual, and there isn’t much room to squeeze in extra layers. But the cut is wonderful, and the Altair is pleasingly nipped in at the waist for a lovely feminine shape. Even allowing for my ‘freakishly long torso’ – the kind words tactfully spoken to me by a radiologist ten years ago – the jacket is plenty long enough in the body.

The MEAME Altair Biker Jacket is impeccably tailored from a breathable Italian stretch fabric which incorporates a waterproof membrane. It’s fully taped to ensure seams are watertight, and the zips are water repellent, too. MEAME takes the British climate seriously: the jacket also incorporates an extending rain guard with a reflective MEAME logo to keep your bum dry. It’s not all about being prepared for terrible weather, mind. The Altair Biker Jacket also features underarm zips which you can open for ventilation when the mercury rises (or when you’re late for work). Better still, the sleeves can be fully detached so that you can wear the jacket as a gilet (which looks amazing).

It features pleated shoulder panels for ease-of-movement on the bike and reversible detailing on the cuffs and breast pocket flap which are reflective for visibility at night.

MEAME Altair Biker Jacket
In warmer conditions, the sleeves can be detached and the garment worn as a gilet. You can see the reflective detailing with the camera flash on the lower pictures.

 

MEAME Altair Biker Jacket
(L-R) The jackets sleeves are detachable for warmer days; The breast pocket flap can be flipped over for reflective detailing; the jacket features an extending rain guard to keep your bum dry in wet weather; when not in use, the rain guard fastens inside neatly with magnets; and the construction features a mesh back panel for ventilation.

So: there you have it: an extremely chic jacket which looks great off the bike, and also features water resistance, breathability, versatility and reflectivity. Now, this isn’t a jacket for tough rides. This isn’t something to wear when you intend working up a sweat, or when the weather’s just ghastly. But if you cycle to a smart place of work where you’d look out of place in Endura, or if you want to be able to wear the same jacket you wore to cycle in for after work drinks in a chic bar, you’re covered. MEAME have nailed it with the Altair Biker Jacket.

 

Matt – MEAME Alpha Reflective Tweed Blazer

MEAME Altair Biker Jacket

I suppose my problem is that I’m no good at doing stuff just for fun. If it’s not competitive and backed up by gadgets and statistics that let me see who I’ve beaten, then it feels a bit pointless. So when it comes to cycling at a gentle pace in nice clothes, sans-Garmin, I find myself wondering what it’s all for. But then Victoria gives me a lecture about how life isn’t always a competition, about how sometimes, we just need to take time to appreciate our surroundings, and that she doesn’t want to meet our non-cycling friends at the pub in head-to-toe Lycra.

I take her point: even I can admit that the sight of a (not quite) middle aged man in tights at lunch is off putting.

If there’s a time and a place for elegant cycling apparel, a Surrey gastro pub is probably it.

MEAME sent me the Alpha Reflective Tweed Blazer to try. The menswear sizing seems pretty true: I’m wearing my usual size Medium and it’s spot on. In daylight, the fabric is subtle and classically British; ideal with dark denim for lunch with friends. But what impresses me is the way it glows in headlights when dark falls – the reflective fibres in the Herringbone weave are really effective. We were fortunate to be wearing the jackets in good weather, but the fabric also has a Teflon water repellent finish in case you’re caught in a shower (which, let’s face it, is always a possibility in the UK).

MEAME Altair Biker Jacket

I wasn’t too sure a jacket like this would be very wearable on a road bike – the tailoring looks more suited to a sit-up-and-beg style – but the pleated shoulder panels actually give a lot of flexibility. And the natural temperature regulation afforded by wool coupled with subtle under-arm ventilation eyelets means it’s comfortable to wear – though, as Victoria said, these are not jackets to wear on long, sweaty rides. I’m not going to wear this up Leith Hill; it’s for shorter or slower rides where you want to look sharp at your destination.

MEAME Altair Biker Jacket
We weren’t photographing the jackets in the dark, but you can see from the flash photo on the right how the reflective fibres stand out.
MEAME Altair Biker Jacket
Suede shoulder patches, naturally temperature-regulating wool and pleats at the shoulders for freedom of movement – just some of the features of the MEAME Alpha Reflective Tweed Blazer.

 

The jackets are available from Meame.co.uk. The Altair Biker Jacket the Alpha Reflective Tweed Blazer are both priced at £295.

Cycle ClothingWomen's Cycling

Urban cycle wear brand As Bold As launches debut women’s collection

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Regular readers will know that it’s not so long ago that I was a dedicated urban cyclist, riding the streets of London in whatever I wanted to wear that day. I may be something of a Lycra warrior these days – but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the need for clothing you can enjoy wearing both on and off the bike. Bib tights and cycling jerseys are fantastic when you’re riding but look less good behind a desk. And don’t even get me started on the trials of changing out of bibs and jersey in a very small toilet cubicle…

Urban cyclist to Road cyclist
Victoria the urban cyclist, and Victoria the Lycra warrior…

I’m increasingly tempted to look to a more hybrid style of cycle clothing that would cut down the amount of changing time and the amount of stuff I carry to work. I do rather miss the days of turning up to work on my bike in something I could wear all day, but that convenience needs to be balanced with the desire to be comfortable and safe in the saddle.

As Bold As

As Bold As makes contemporary cycling clothing to wear on the journey and at the destination. Founder Joyce Brereton has worked to incorporate the technical design elements of dedicated cycling wear with a dose of urban chic: waterproof, windproof, breathable fabrics with sealed seams and high-visibility detailing are combined with street styling to keep you looking the part when you’re not pedalling. 

I’m particularly taken with the As Bold As Drench Coat, pictured below. It’s been designed to keep you warm and dry on the bike, with a dropped back to keep your bum clean and underarm vents for breathability. It’s not so urban that you couldn’t wear it with bib tights and cleats; but it would look great off the bike with jeans and boots, too.

As Bold As Drench Coat

The first collection is female focussed, but plans are hatching to expand. We’re looking forward to seeing what else is in the pipeline for As Bold As. 

Launched in February, the range is available now through asboldas.com, VelovixenVelorution and Skulpt.

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