Decorating Matters Editor Neil Braidwood discovers that workwear is changing with the times.
Why do painters and decorators wear white? The tradition dates back to the 19th century when painters would make overalls from old sailcloths – but there are other practical reasons too. Some paint is white and the white overalls show less splatter. Cleanliness – by dressing in white you are showing that you are a neat worker. Often decorators used to dress in white to show that they were a member of a union – the colour set them apart from non-union decorators.
Whatever the reasons, painters’ whites are recognised around the world as the uniform of decorators. They are smart and give the appearance of professionalism.
In the early 20th century, many painters wore a collar and tie, white jacket and white trousers – often topped with a bowler hat! This tradition continued right up until the 1970s, when the bib and brace overall took over as being the preferred clothing for painters.
Things have moved on and although the bib and brace is still popular with some, many painters opt for the more modern white trousers with black trim, sometimes paired with a smart polo shirt embroidered with the name of the company.
This new style of trouser can be more comfortable than the dungaree style, especially as the straps can dig into the shoulders – depending on how much stuff you have stowed in the front pocket.
Many companies are experimenting with using new stretch fabrics and with so many women coming into the trade, female-specific clothing is popular too, with one company even offering maternity whites. Don’t forget the kilt – I recently met Craig Murphy (aka Murph the Kilted Painter), who wears a white utility kilt, normally when he goes to quote a job as the look makes him more memorable. When it comes to climbing ladders though…
I spoke to a three major manufacturers to see how they are changing the shape of workwear for the better.
Family business
“Axus Decor started life as a decorating shop in 1974,” Akshey Shah tells me. “My dad, his two brothers and their wives were involved and the business just grew. We were based in north-west London and built up a great reputation with the painting and decorating community there.
“I never saw myself working in the family business – I actually trained as an architect and worked in that field for around seven years. But it takes so long to see a building completed and I became a bit disillusioned. I began working in the business during lockdown, using my engineering/architectural skills to help develop new products, from brushes to paint kettles.
“Our new workwear brand, S-Tex, includes a women’s range. This is huge for us and was the result of months of research and development, including testing with real decorators across the country who could give us honest feedback. We had a starting point with the men’s range as we were already producing our popular pro painters’ trousers, so we knew the fit worked. With the female-specific clothing, we actually brought in a design consultant to help with the measurements. There seems to be a huge disparity between female sizes across major fashion brands. For example, you might be a size 10 in one brand but a 12 in another. So we had to get to grips with that and try to nail down the sizing correctly from the start.
“During the testing phases for S-Tex, initial comments were that our existing clothing range was too baggy, so we streamlined the taper on the legs a bit. Then they complained that they were too tight and they couldn’t climb up a ladder – but eventually we got there and our network of testing decorators is delighted with the range.
“The workwear tends to be made from polycotton as it is so hard-wearing, although the black trim (knee panels, etc) on the S-Tex range is made from woven polyester as this is very durable. We are exploring other materials such as cotton and even hemp, but the price needs to be right. We are conscious where we procure our materials from too, so we are sourcing material and manufacturing in India at the moment.
“Design is all down to me and I look at other clothing products out there to see how we could improve on those. I like to think we are giving a lot of bang for your buck with the new S-Tex range. For instance, there are kneepad pockets, a decent-sized smartphone pocket,
a reinforced scissor pocket – the list goes on.
“We are developing a new range we hope will be ready by the end of the year but, for now, we are super excited that the S-Tex range has been chosen by decorators’ merchants across the UK.
See axusdecor.com
Safety first
Don’t forget your feet though. One of the most important items of clothing you should be considering is decent footwear for the workplace. As a decorator, you will be inside, outside, climbing ladders and on scaffolding, so you need shoes that will function well under all those circumstances. In addition, your feet are at risk from dropping heavy items on them, so you need to think about something that is sturdy enough for protection but also comfortable enough to wear all day.
Totectors is a brand founded in 1944 and was the first patented steel toe-capped boot in the UK for the Army and the construction industry. Actually, the patent for steel toe caps was owned by an American called Arthur Williams and the story goes that this led founder George Denton to travel to the US to try to persuade Williams to let him have the patent. Williams wouldn’t give up the valuable asset, however, the pair embarked on a 48-hour poker game and the winner – Denton – came away with the patent.
Fast forward to 2010, when Netherlands-based International Brands Group bought the rights to the Totectors brand and began an overhaul of the range.
“Many tradesmen will remember the Totectors brand as a clunky, clown-shaped safety boot,” says Nicole Olivier, Global Marketing Manager for Totectors. “We set out to transform the brand, leaning towards a premium, cool lifestyle product. These shoes are aimed at the ‘New Tradie’ – the 18 to 35-year-olds working in the decorating sector.
“These guys have to wear a safety shoe for their work but we want to make Totectors an aspirational brand that our consumers will fall in love with and want to wear – even away from work.”
The company manufactures a decorator-specific certified S1PL safety shoe called the Denton white (see above), which features a lightweight aluminium toe cap housed in a cool trainer-style shoe that wouldn’t be out of place on the high street. In addition, the grippy sole is backed up by a composite anti-penetration plate, in case you accidentally step on a nail. Decorators are on their feet all day, so the microfibre upper is durable, breathable and the tongue is cushioned for extra comfort. So far, the Denton white only comes in a unisex shoe style, although there is a black version that comes in a mid boot.
Okay, so you have your footwear sorted, but your customer needs to know that you will respect their property, and this is where Totector’s Shoemates come in. This neoprene overshoe is designed to fit perfectly over the Denton collection, but will fit over any shoe comfortably. Most plastic overshoes provide zero grip and get torn easily, so adopting a reusable grippy overshoe is safer for you and better for the planet. Shoemates are washable and show your customer that you care about their floor coverings.
Totectors Denton shoes are available in sizes 6-12 and soon 3-12 at leading builders’ merchants and home improvement retailers across the UK. See more at totectors.co.uk
Covering all bases
Jordan Hamilton, Senior Product Manager at Rodo, has seen the decorating product line expand
since he joined the company nine years ago.
“We actually have different tiers within our decorating lines, however, our ProDec Advance range of workwear is one of the most popular for professional decorators. We adopted the European style of contrast trim trousers where we have a grey trim on the knees, etc. We are aware though that polycotton can be quite a rigid, unforgiving material, so we are experimenting with four-way stretch fabrics similar to those used in sportswear. The research and development for this actually came from a product we were producing for our Blackrock range, which is a more specialised PPE side of the business. We just thought we could probably create the same item in white for the decorators. Painters are always bending down and moving around, so this will allow flexibility within the garment.
“We also do a lot of ‘own label’ items for other companies – so decorating centres may come to us for larger orders and we can embroider those with their logo on the garment, if required.
“From a sustainability point of view, we have trialled eco-friendly hi-viz garments. These have swing tags declaring the traceability of the recycled polyester content and the CO2 emissions associated with the item. This is an ever-growing market for us and one we are mindful of when developing new ranges. We understand that sustainable products come with their own challenges and not everyone will buy sustainable products, so one of the quickest ways we can make a difference in terms of sustainability is with packaging, so we are looking at using paper or cardboard instead of plastic for that.
“Our polyurethane (PU) painters glove is extremely popular and you won’t be surprised to know that it’s white! We do these in sizes 7-11, taking into account that women have smaller hands. It’s a thin, knitted glove, dipped into the PU to create the protective barrier. These will stop any nasty solvents from getting on to the skin and protect when sanding, too.
“There’s a new generation of painters coming through now and we have to stay ahead of the curve in terms of what they are expecting to wear to work. ProDec Advance trousers are overtaking plain white bib and brace overalls for instance and we do produce trainer style safety shoes if decorators are required to go on site. These are ridiculously light and have a steel toe cap and protective midsole. These are in our Blackrock PPE range.”