My clothing quandary as a woman in the field

Being a woman in the field, I have struggled with finding clothing that is not brightly colored or pastel. There is nothing wrong with these colors, but if I want to add such colors to my field-clothes repertoire, then it should be on my own terms – not because of my limited choice at a retail store.

My first field experience was working in the Peruvian rainforest observing a clay lick that was used by parrots, macaws, and mammals. We were asked to wear neutral colored clothing so as to not distract the birds or bring attention to ourselves. As I was preparing for my trip, I went to an outdoor store in search for quick-dry, cool, SPF, long sleeve shirts to protect me from the harsh equatorial sun and the pestering insects that define the rainforest. What I found were purple, yellow, pink, orange, and aquamarine shirts. It was ridiculous. Where were the dark blues, the dark greens, and maroons that I wanted? I did my best with what was before me and gathered the gray and green pants I found and paired them with the “not-as-bright” purple and khaki shirts. Over the years, black has become my best friend.

Madre de Dios River

I’m sure we’ve all experienced this dilemma. I’ve never been one for ‘Bam! In your face, “girlie” colored clothing,” and I’ve become quite frustrated with the lack of options for women. We should not have men and women color options when we go outside. Men are not the only ones who need dark clothing and heck, perhaps, women are not the only ones who need bright colored clothing!

Over the years, my field wardrobe has shifted and changed depending on where I’ve been and what clothes were required. I’ve learned to add my own splash of excitement, color, and ME to an overall neutral color palette of khakis, greys, and greens:

Finding a colorful pair of woolen socks that hide underneath my khaki cargo pants.
Wearing a fun-colored cowl or beanie that I proudly knitted myself.
Hiding a bright colored tank top underneath layers of jackets and raincoats.

We need others to see that it’s not our clothing that gets us outside, but an encouraging and open community. That it is less about “feeling like a woman” or “feeling attractive” and more about feeling like yourself.

This is a story by Lauren Lescure (@Scure167), published on February 13, 2018, on the blog 'Field Secrets' (available here) and has been republished here with permission.