Bleu de Travail

Bleu de Travail translates as ‘working blues’ and is a catch all for the indigo-dyed cotton workwear popularised by French factory workers from the late 1800s. Bleu de Travail stands for jackets, shirts, or trousers, but when we talk about the Bleu de Travail today, it’s usually just the jacket. Simple, distinctive and hard-wearing; denim’s/jeans’ ancestor. 

The distinctive colour of the bleu de travail was not only an affordable dye, but also acted as a signifier to differentiate French workers from their foremen or managers, who wore typically black or white.

Bleu de Travail has become very fashionable over the last 10 years; hip NYC and London fashion stores charging up to $200.00 for a jacket. 

South Pacific Berets stocks these jackets at a much more reasonable price and our Réal Aiglons are made by one of France’s oldest manufacturers, Le Laboureur (“The Ploughman”) from the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne. Heavy weight (700grams) cotton; 3 outside and one inside pocket (all large enough to fit a well sized beret).

Presently only in size 5 (L/XL), soon to be extended with a full range of sizes.