I just received a Polartec Alpha Direct hoody from Vado UL and I couldn’t be more pleased with it. The order process is simple: you order and pay and then Bernie reaches out to you to discuss materials, sizing and details.
I previously went through two MacPac hoodies (one way too small the other a little too small) and a Senchi hoody (hard to order, long delivery time and a very athletic fit, too much for my pandemic schoolteacher level of fitness).
I choose Alpha Direct in a 90gsm weight. I told Bernie that I liked his dark grey color and invited him to add a splash of another color (maybe orange) if he felt like having fun with it. I measured my MacPac hoody and explained where I thought we should add and take away I also shared my enormous hat size (which made donning the Senchi almost impossible).
I saw this post on Instagram around a week later and guessed that it was my hoody. It was. A few days later the hoody arrived (13 days from the original order).
The fit is perfect. The colors are more muted in real life than on IG (the orange is not so hyper-saturated). Bernie finished the hem, wrists and neck hole with a soft, stretchy binding. I suspect this will increase the lifespan of the garment. It’s a nice touch. Overall weight of the piece is 5.4 ounces sized for my 43” chest (maybe somewhere between a L and XL).
You may notice that it looks like Vado will be trending away from custom sizing. My strong recommendation to anyone interested in a custom Alpha Direct piece is to reach out immediately to Bernie and grab one of these.
I think this is an interesting idea.
I also noticed this, a crewneck fleece with a matching balaclava, essentially a modular sweatshirt.
In the market for a fleece? Give Bernie a try. I suspect you will be quite happy.
