I have a collection of 40s and 50s sundresses and housedresses that are in various states of decline. They loudly shout "truck farmer" and "mint juleps." I usually wear those with ancient K. Swiss tennis sneakers or Wellies. In winter (time of woodcutting and general garden editing), I have overalls, which let me layer against the cold with a flowered union suit and my favorite sage green marled wool sweater. I gardened for a long time in these French suede garden clogs, but they make my feet hurt now. Now, it's usually Raichle hiking boots for winter.

A sleeveless pink t-shirt of my husband's with black and white saddleshoes marching across the front, very soft loose brown cut offs with lots of threads hanging, and green garden clogs. A faded pink visor from Breneke's Poipu Beach.

My makeup consists of dirt smeared sunscreen and Bag Balm.

Such a fashion plate.

Any clean t-shirt under a pair of blue and white striped overalls that are shorts and have many pockets. They are well broken in, like a pair of Levi's. Sweatpants/shirt or fleece in cooler weather. A pair of leather K-Swiss tennis shoes (for $24) that are hard working and have seen many miles in all sorts of weather. I tie my hair up on hot days.

Spaghetti strapped tank and cargo shorts with a bikini underneath every day! When I need a rest, I can go straight to the pool and take a dip. I'm a sun worshipper and don't really enjoy having a "farmers tan", so I save the sleeves for the cooler weather. I love my Rocky work boots for work, but when I get home I love to slip on my MuckBoot garden shoes. They are so comfortable.

Oversized long sleeved shirt (because of med.) and any long loose pants available. Very wide straw hat and shades when really sunny. Funny thing...it seems to be the neighborhood's gardner's UNIFORM at present. They sure followed my lead!! Good for something, huh?

I bought a bunch of mens business shirts at garage sales and use them for the garden. The cotton dries quickly when wet and the sleeves are long to protect me from the 'squitos.

Well, I enjoy a pair of loose shorts, and a tank top and of course my boots. Love the loose clothes....wayne

I prefer my very oversized lavender tee. It used to be purple, and has Whitney Farms' mascot (I call him the Big Tomato Guy) holding a, uh, big tomato. This shirt has many holes in it and enough stains to fill the Albert Hall, but it was a gift from a friend and I love it. I do wear other things with this shirt, but they vary from day to day and with the weather.

long-sleeved cotton tee & men's pajama pants with wash-under-the hose-Birkenstock plastic garden clogs

I can just see all of you out there gardening in your favorite "attire." This thread made me laugh...and I'm not awake yet, so that is a good thing!

I love to wear Nordstrom's black stretch pants (elastic waist) with stirrups and a long sleeved large blue men's shirt with the sleeves rolled up. (Sometimes I wear a white Land's End Turtle Neck underneath for warmth.) Muck Boots (Daily Home and Garden) always.

Now, when I'm feeling girly girly....I wear raspberry colored overalls (GARDEN GEAR) with a white stretch cotton top with 3/4 length sleeves. It has raspberry colored fruit and flowers down the sleeve (Liz Clayborn). 3/4 length sleeves accommodate the green-palmed GRIP gloves without getting my sleeves dirty.

Middle age must make you feel conventional...like copying the neighbors. I saw my neighbor a half mile away wearing a ladies straw hat with wide brim while riding her John Deere. So, I got a ladies straw hat with wide brim to wear while I ride my John Deere. My teenage son about died of embarrassment. My tip is...don't cut off the ties because you think they look hokey. If you don't tie your hat on during certain weather conditions, it will fly off into the horse manure, and you will not want to put it back on your head.

I like large loose fitting t-shirts and an old pair of jeans and a large brimmed straw hat. Thats if I make it a point to be a gardening time. However most of the time it is what I happen to be wearing, you know you can never walk by the flower bed see something that need attending to and say hey, hold on I have to go change...oh no I jump right in. My friends often see me with dirt on my shirt and knees of my pants. :)

Cheap bluejeans from Sears. They have an elastic waist, which is good, since I am built like a bowling ball, and I can bend over in them, without feeling like I am being cut in half. The knees and butt are so stained with grass and dirt, I can't wear them anywhere but out in the garden. I wear any old T-shirt--my DH designed several for his car rally club, and my favorite is a demon reaching over a mountain trying to catch a car speeding down the highway (for a rally called "Night on Bald Mountain"). Wearing that demon puts me in the mood to attack weeds and prune holly. My other favorite is an oversized pink T-shirt that has pin holes all through it and is ripped out under the arms. LOL--I must be white trash at heart!

Depends on the time of day: On weekends, I wear whatever t-shirt and shorts or jeans I can wipe my hands and nose on while gardening. Hair is always a mess, no makeup, and "yard shoes"--which are whatever sneakers are the oldest and too worn out to wear anywhere else. For colder weather, add a sweatshirt and/or washable coat. For morning gardening, bathrobe, jammies, slippers, coffee, and bed head. For after work garden inspecting, whatever I wore to work that day--so long as the wind doesn't blow it up in the air!

There is a hilarious thread about this from the Frugal Gardening forum. I'll put the link below, but in case it doesn't work to click on it, it's titled something along the lines of "what should a gardener wear and how can I look like that?"

Here is a link that might be useful: More Favorite Gardening Clothes

hot weather: old loose house dress with nothing underneath and shades; green garden clogs or old sandals.

cold weather: old jeans, fleece jumper and fleece jacket with many pockets. rubber boots with lambswool lining

For me,

In hot weather: T-shirt, shorts, sturdy lace-up shoes and a jeans fabric apron with big pockets.

In cold weather: long, loose pants (sometimes sweatpants), sweatshirt, down or fleece vest, sturdy shoes and the same apron.

loose cotton clothing (shorts & t-shirt)& BARE FEET.......
for some reason I take off whatever is on my feet before going into the garden...love the feel, and i can just hose off to clean up.

In all weather (even 90 degrees plus and 100 percent humidity) I wear long pants or jeans made of a tightly woven fabric, because most of my gardening is done sitting or lying on the ground. All those pants have elastic waists and lots and lots of stains. Bare legs and feet just won't work for me. Nothing is more annoying than little clods of dirt finding their way up into your underwear or down into your socks or shoes. I save my very oldest walking shoes for gardening, exclusively, so that it won't matter how much mud gets on them or how many holes are scraped into the leather by sitting on concrete sidewalks. But shoes are a necessity because you never know when you'll need to use a shovel, and down here we have something called sandspurs, agonizingly sharp little things that give no warning, attach themselves to your skin or clothing, and won't let go until you scream "uncle." Shirts can be sleeveless in the summer or sweatshirts in the winter. Loose oversized overalls are comfortable but are actually just a hassle because they make bathroom trips (always with muddy hands) a real pain. Pockets are very nice but I usually just carry around a basket full of the clippers and other things I know I'll always need. I never wear gloves because I like to feel the dirt and the plants. Being a nail-biter helps.

fabulous thread, had me laughing out loud. my weekend gardening outfit is biking shorts and a big t shirt, bare feet or sandals unless i know i will be using the shovel, then i get my dirtiest tennies. add a pair of gloves (usually matching) and a big glass of something to drink. weekdays i garden in whatever i wore to work and hope i dont ruin it. it takes too much of my time to go inside and change after work. i lose more shirts that way...

My gardening "uniform" consists of:
1. a white cotton (Men's, so it's big) v-neck undershirt, (which doubles as my apron,
AND hand towel...lol)
2. stretchy cotton knit shorts
3. homemade garden clogs(I took a pair of black rain boots that fit really well, and cut the tops off...)

La Croix, sweety dahling, La Croix!

From the bottom up:

Old pair oil tanned work oxfords
White cotton (whatever you call 'em) short socks
Flannel cotton shorts with pockets (almost worn out. can't find 'em anymore)
White or light grey tank-top
Deadheading scissors on cord around neck
No hat

I also always have pruners and a tool I use for discouraging wayward weeds.

Al

Boy, all depends where I plan on spending my time. In the pond, in the general yard/flower bed area or ... under the hedges...LOL... and it can range from full coveralls to... nothin' at all... Jim

This is a fun thread!

In cooler weather, I dress like a normal person: jeans, tennis shoes, or gardening clogs when it's muddy, some kind of shirt.

Now that it's getting warm (80s and 90s), I wear a bikini, with a sarong tied skirt-like around my waist, and a tank top. I also wear some kind of wide-brimmed hat. Sunscreen or suntan lotion, depending on how burned I'm getting. Oh, and flip-flops. I dress like I'm at the beach:) The bikini is comfortable and washes easily, and I can work on my tan! No gardener's tan for me:). The sarong covers me up when I need it, but allows air flow, and keep me cool. Flip-flops can just be hosed off when they get muddy. Luckily, I don't have any neighbors, so I can get away with this attire.

By the middle of summer, I may be gardening in the nude, just like Jungle Jim!LOL

Large, men's cotton or linen shirts from Goodwill ($2.70 ea), overalls (which are a pain when nature calls and can be hot), or loose fitting elastic waist pants. Sunscreen (when I remember), a baseball hat or a cooler one from Sunday Mornings but always have my hair tied back. Slip on rubber shoes.

I would love to go without gloves or shoes but I dig up just too many weird things (100 yr. old pottery & glass shards, rusty nails (which get promptly buried around the hydrangeas), bits of bones (hopefully not human), big old fat grubs (are placed on the birdfeeder), etc...

I go to the post office and market looking like PigPen because if I stop to get cleaned up then I'll just end up getting my "good" clothes and me dirty again!

btw, I have a friend that wears her long, sleeve shirts backwards, collar up to protect her neck from sun .

How I envy you all in your light loose clothing. I found this site while looking for coveralls to garden in (ticks have become vicious in this area, almost everyone has had lyme disease at least once). I have settled for inexpensive hazmat type coveralls, with elastic at the ankles wrists and neck. I am sure I look like a ghost at dusk flitting about the garden.

I usually wear dirt.

(^_^)

- always, always, always sunscreen...as much as I adore my plants, i won't sunburn for 'em! ;o)

- my wide brimmed Tula hat

- broken in denim carpenter's overalls with all these nifty pockets for seeds, tools and the occasional bug; under that, i'll usually layer comfy gym shorts so i can slip off the overalls and still be dressed

- an old, red three-quarter sleeve top

- gardening clogs when i can just putter about...steel shank work boots when i need to do some grunt work shovelin'

- and i'll never begin anything without my Foxgloves. they're my Holy Grail of gardening gloves!

Can't live without my Simple clogs. These things are eight years old and are perfect for the yard. Slip on and off..easy when I go in and out of the house.

Why does that movie, "Calendar Girls" come to mind? I think we're on to something here! "Garden Girls"

one of my DH's stolen denim shirts that I tore nicely on the side of a fence (oh that holey fray tear is soo cool looking), a pair of old denim jeans that the crotch is almost completely ripped through and has a hole on the butt....oh but wait...
and for the final piece my extra big and long old Russell Sage tshirt saying women do it better --on the backside....long enough to cover the holes in pants don't worry....
the denim shirt gets tied around my waist as soon as the day's chill wears off...which last month was sooner than this month's--what's up with that?!

And of course my old butt merrels as described in the shoe thread above...and on top of my head goes a lovely holey and crumpled looking straw hat that keeps the dreaded deer flies and horse flies off of my head! My DH says "going to town again?" whenever he sees me dressed ....smartie

Two years ago I bought huge hospital scrubs at a rummage sale. They have elastic waists and big, boxy tops the air can blow up under. However, the tops were way too long and I needed knee protection. So-o-o-o I cut the tops shorter and used the extra fabric to make roomy pockets on the knees of the pants. In these pockets I put volleyball knee pads I also got at garage sales. They wash up great and never need ironed. I have four sets and love them! Also wear a sun visor with a cotton handkerchief pinned onto the back strap. Keeps my neck from getting sunburned. Have a pair of those rubber clogs and love them! They are very dirty but don't come in the house so I don't mind.
TrowelGal

I'm with you Corny. Tank, shorts and BARE FEET. Love the dirt between the toes.

Most times, worn jeans and an almost thread bare black t-shirt that I won't throw away. Don't you just hate it when, you run out of mulch or need "just one more flat" ect. and have to clean up and change clothes to make a trip to the nursery or K-Mart,esp. a big garden center where there's lots of people? Sometimes I don't even bother.

Black stretchy stirrup pants (I have 3 pairs) with socks pulled over them (keeps the ticks out!) with a large cotton t-shirt and my old gardening sneakers. Tried to wear crop pants to garden a few weeks ago and I got bit by about 700 strawberry flies. My legs looked like they had the chicken pox.....never again!

I have a old dark purple tank top and a pair of men's jeans cutoff for shorts, flip flops, and my garden basket that has mini blind name tags, grease pencil, scissors, gloves, and a bottle of water. The basket is large enough to pick veggies and carry them to the house, carry plants out to the garden to be planted, trash, I use it for everything. Each evening you can hear me say "where's my basket" : ) which is usually on the front porch.

I love this thread!

Donna

In the mornings, it's my PJ's with a pair of gardening shoes (slightly chewed on by the dog and with the sides blown out). A very festive look!

always wear my visor and sunglasses.