Vintage Patagonia Fleeces: Standing The Test of Time

Beginning as a small brand stemming from a passion for rock climbing, Patagonia has now established itself as a giant in the outdoor lifestyle marketplace. Expanding beyond the hardcore backpacking audience, Patagonia has evolved to become a widely sought after lifestyle brand.

A Brief History

Before Patagonia was known for high quality outdoor garments, it was a one-man operation producing climbing spikes (pitons) out of a garage.

In 1957 a 19 year-old rock climber, Yvon Chouinard began producing a better and reusable version of the spike and began selling them out of the back of his car to fellow rock climbers who were also frustrated with the quality of the products available on the market. Before long, this small operation blossomed into Chouinard Equipment, the largest North American provider of climbing equipment in the 1960s.

It wasn't until the early 70s that the Patagonia brand became a reality - but not intentionally. While on a climbing trip in Scotland, rugby shirts were the climbing garment of choice for Chouinard. He decided to begin importing and selling these rugby shirts alongside other climbing-suitable clothing items. These clothing items needed a name to distinguish itself from the equipment brand - thus Patagonia was born.

Through the years that Patagonia has been in business, it has pioneered many garment innovations that have become commonplace today. In 1980 they popularized the polypropylene base layer, changing the standard for cold weather garments. In 1985, Patagonia pledged to donate 1% of annual sales to environmental causes. This annual pledge contribution inspired many modern brands to donate similar proceeds. In 1996 Patagonia introduced organic cotton to their products after realizing the impact of traditional cotton farming environmentally

The Patagonia Fleece

When the Patagonia brand is mentioned, many think about the wildly popular fleeces that have been released over the years. Some early vintage models are highly coveted in the community and have sold for hundreds, if not thousands of dollars online. Here, we are going to go through the history of Patagonia's bread and butter - the fleece jacket.

Fleece Intentions

The Patagonia fleece came to mind when Chouinard had gripes with his favourite layering piece, the wool sweater. 

While warm, the wool held onto too much water and became too heavy and difficult to dry. This led Chouinard to discover a hydrophobic acrylic pile fabric that showed promise. This pile fabric laid the foundations for the Patagonia fleece jacket.

The Pile Jacket

The original Patagonia Pile Jacket was introduced in 1977 and transformed into a staple piece for the brand.Designed with fisherman clothing as the inspiration, this jacket was crafted with thick fleece insulation and high neck line intended for use in cold climates. The original Pile Jacket was basic but functional, consisting of a basic zipper front and no pockets.

Shortly after, Patagonia released it's second iteration of the Pile Jacket with a twist. The Reverse Pile Jacket was released with minor changes to the already loved design. Featuring a large Patagonia logo and fleece on the inside lining of the jacket, this model proved to be better suited for outdoor climates than its predecessor.

The Bunting Jacket

The Bunting jacket was introduced in 1980. While being similar in looks to the Reverse Pile Jacket, it was designed to be something different. This jacket was more windproof and weighed less compared to the Big logo, but compromising the temperature regulation. This jacket became more popular with a more 'lifestyle' outdoor consumer, rather than climbers who preferred the original pile jackets.

The Reverse Pile Cardigan

1982 saw the release of the Reverse pile cardigan - a combination of its two successors, the reverse pile jacket and the bunting jacket. This iteration included a chest pocket and adjustable Velcro wrist straps. This original reverse pile cardigan remains a highly sought after vintage Patagonia garment due to its colorway and rarity.

The Synchilla

In 1983, Patagonia desired to create a new kind of fleece which was lightweight, double sided, and would dry even faster than pile. This was the year that the Synchilla was born. The fleece was dubbed 'Synchilla' due to its texture similarities to chinchilla fur. The most impressive part of the new release was the fact that this fleece was completely pill-resistant. The Synchilla fleece was tested rigorously, being used by Patagonia's R&D team during a year-long stint of trips to South America, Wyoming, and Nepal.

The Snap-T Fleece

In 1985, Patagonia felt the need to create a garment that was not yet available on the market. They strived to product a product that was lighter than the Bunting Jacket and could be used as an inner, or outer layer. This spawned the release of the Quilted Polypropylene Jacket.

This jacket was impressive technically, but fell flat with Patagonia's customer base, sending them back to the drawing board. This products failure would prove necessary though, as the Snap-T Fleece may have not existed without it.

The Synchilla Snap-T Fleece

Running on the back of its previous failed model, the next Patagonia fleece couldn't be more different in popularity. The Synchilla Snap-T was released in 1985 and became a hit overnight and is one of Patagonia's most recognizable products to this day. Due to the varying levels of production of the Snap-T, certain models and colours are considered Vintage Patagonia grails and are highly sought after by collectors. Some patterns have seen sales of hundreds of dollars on online selling platforms such as eBay and Etsy.

Eight years after the original release of the Snap-T, Patagonia realized they weren't fully satisfied with that model's design. Patagonia strived for something bolder, brighter, and more colourful. This led to the brand deciding to print extravagant patterns onto the garment (as pictured above).

The Retro Pile Cardigan

Arguably one of the most iconic - and most imitated fleeces of all time, The Retro Pile Cardigan. This iteration of the Patagonia Fleece first released in 1988 in a Natural/French Red colorway. This was followed by a series of eye-catching colour models, resulting in this particular fleece gain a cult-like following. Additionally, the deep pile fleece and unmissable chest pocket proved the Retro Pile to be stylish and practical.

In 1992, Patagonia released a slightly adjusted version of the Retro Pile cardigan - simply dubbed the Pile Cardigan.This version was nearly identical to the Retro Pile, with the main difference being the removal of the iconic chest pocket. This version was released to a much wider audience with far increased production, allowing this version of the Pile Cardigan to grow rapidly in popularity due to accessibility.

The Reversible Glissade Pullover

The 1990s saw the beginning of the reversible revolution. While some saw it as a cheap gimmick, Patagonia was willing to give it their best shot. Thus spawned the Reversible Glissade Pullover jacket in 1991.

The Glissade Pullover sported a Synchilla fleece interior with a reversible ripstop windbreaker, increasing the overall warmth of the jacket. For the hardcore outdoor audience, this jacket variation allowed climbers to pack one garment instead of a jacket and fleece.

The Marsupial Jacket

The late 90s was when Patagonia realized the popularity of its products with people who weren't exactly outdoorsy people. It is likely that Patagonia's next fleece, the Marsupial, was designed with this market of consumers in mind. This jacket was essentially the same at the Snap-T fleece, but sporting a half zip to replace the snap buttons. 

This product launch was not as successful as the Snap-T, but still brought success to the brand.

The Retro-X

1999 saw the introduction of the iconic modern version of Patagonia's pile fleece, the Retro-. With the new millennium in mind, Patagonia redesigned the retro classic Pile Cardigan and combining it with details from the Retro Pile Cardigan such as the chest pocket. Along with the chest pocket addition, the Patagonia branding was also added to the chest pocket.

Before too long, this redesigned version became very popular with outdoor and lifestyle enthusiasts alike.

The Regulator Fleece

1999 also saw the release of the Regulator Fleece. While the brand was skewing to produce for a less 'outdoorsy' audience, Patagonia was still eager to prove that their only intentions were to make a top quality outdoor product. The Regulator was the most technically advanced fleece to date, being the same weight as previous Synchilla fleeces, while being warmer and more rugged.

The release was a hit and spawned a line of regulator products, including the R1, R2, and R3 models and several vests.

The Rhythm Hoodie

In 2003, Patagonia released the Rhythm Hoodie. Essentially a Pile Cardigan with a hood, the Rhythm hooded sported a longer pile, more durable elbows and hem. This line only was in production for about 7 years, until it was discontinued. Due to the limited supply, Rhythm hoodies are hard to find and held closely by collectors. The Rhythm hoodie today can be seen listed for hundreds, creeping into thousands of dollars on popular reselling sites.