Breton Style Sailors Shirts

Close to the beret in origin and rapidly adopted by a similar group of followers is the Breton style striped sailors shirt; a classic that originated in France and even went on to become the regulatory uniform of French sailors (the 27th of March 1858 Act). The thought behind the stripes was that it would be easier to locate sailors that went overboard. Originally the shirt counted 21 stripes, one for each of Napoleon's victories.

Like the beret, the Breton striped sailors shirt has a lot of history to tell, enough to justify another blog: I Sea Stripes. 

And, since a number of The Beret Project readers commented on or asked for these striped shirts, they are available through the South Pacific Berets site!