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Flannel is dead. Long live flannel.
Too soon? Well, maybe, but there’s no denying that the Portland look is no longer just beards and Pendleton. Some trends weren’t built to last (goodbye pandemic sweatpants and post-pandemic clowncore) while others are old friends seemingly here to stay (Realtree camo is the new black.)
Pacific Northwest style has long been defined by a Western-tinged sense of timelessness: sturdy Wrangler denims, fleece-lined L.L. Bean barn coats, vintage cowboy boots and Blundstones. In a world of ultrafast trend cycles and declining quality whatever the price tag, this classic look has evolved into an individualist mentality that permeates Portland fashion. Think: high-quality and ethically sourced materials, sustainable labor practices, and natural fibers.
The result is a fashion landscape that is at once eclectic and unified. Vintage and secondhand clothing may still reign supreme for many looking to stand out against the February gray, but a new crop of local designers are redefining what it means to dress in the Rose City. They come from a long tradition of indie designers sewing to the hum of their own machines, as highlighted in the archive project Portland Fashion in the 2000s. With a new sustainable fashion concentration launching at Portland State University this year, Portland fashion has never looked so promising.
The four designers included here are distinct—from Polartec hoodies to quilted babydoll dresses to organic hemp trousers—but they share a slow-fashion ethos. The upshot of independently owned and largely handmade garments is a steeper price tag, but unlike that Temu crop top that’s full of microplastics and made in a Bangladeshi sweatshop, a locally made jacket will last you for years to come.
1. Gnuhr
Founded: 2024
For fans of: gorpcore, the Margiela x North Face collab, the feeling of soft moss on a cold dewy morning
Gnuhr is what Jonah Weiner, the prince of “unbeatable recon” behind cult men’s fashion Substack newsletter Blackbird Spyplane, would describe as “blessed gorp.” Drawing from the misty waterfalls of the Hoh Rain Forest and the igneous crags of Mount St. Helens, Gnuhr’s garments are ultralightweight and functional. Founder Nur Abbas cut his teeth designing at Nike, Yeezy and Louis Vuitton, and his high-fashion bona fides show. Abbas brings a sharp eye for textures like slightly shaggy base layers ($109) to marbled waterproof skirts ($99), all in gorgeous colorways from gray-purple to brat green. Gnuhr’s garments encapsulate that distinctly Portland attitude in which connection to nature is just part of the texture of everyday life.
2. Daag
Founded: 2018
For fans of: 1940s French workwear, 1990s baseball caps, apple picking, dogs (obviously)
Have we reached peak waxed chore coat yet? The design, favored by arborists and Soho House lurkers alike, was ascendant in the past five years, in part due to a renewed interest in the durable construction of pre-1950s sportswear. Daag, founded by artist and photographer James Folgarelli Fink, puts a modern spin on the classic chore coat ($250), with linen trousers to match ($200). With twisted yarn denim and wide wale corduroy, Folgarelli Fink creates sumptuous sets entirely by hand, often from deadstock fabrics. Colorblocking, pinstripes, and contrast stitching make everyday garments like a baggy trouser ($225) or a rugby sweater an outfit’s focal point.
3. Ersa Fibers
Founded: 2021
For fans of: vintage quilts, arts and crafts night, Alessandro Michele’s tenure as creative director of Gucci
In the last two decades of his life, Henri Matisse put down the paintbrush and picked up a pair of scissors, delving into an exploration of exuberant contrasting paper cutouts. This playful vibrancy can be found everywhere these days, including in the patchwork garments created by Jennifer Neil for Ersa Fibers (now co-owned with Chris Bly). What began as bedding and fabric art in 2021 has branched out into more than a dozen handmade textiles for crop tops, midi skirts, babydoll dresses, and sweatshirts. The fit is boxy and designed to suit all body types from a black and white starburst blouse ($135) to a knee-length prairie dress spattered with summer fruit ($215). Neil’s outlook is feminine but comfy, equal parts date-night dress-up and collaging on the floor as a kid. When she’s not designing, Neil has collected a social media following for her sewing how-tos and styling videos.
4. Graziano and Gutirrez
Founded: 2018
For fans of: dinner at República, Chimayo blankets
Perhaps the best known of Portland’s newest class of designers, Alejandro Gutiérrez and Samuel Graziano, with their Mexican workwear-inspired designs, have been featured in GQ, Highsnobiety and the Financial Times. Releasing small-batch capsules and custom-to-order pieces, Gutiérrez patterns, sews and labels everything from textiles family weavers in Oaxaca. They offer double-knee carpenter work pants in dark indigos and duck canvas ($350), but it’s the naturally dyed workshirts in terracotta, forest green, and maizal stripes that steal the show ($280–$500). The style is a nod to the enduring legacy of Oregon’s vaqueros and Black cowboys.
