Apiarist® by BJ Sherriff Original

01 · WHY IT IS KHAKI

A story with a reason behind it

Khaki is not a styling choice: it was developed for the beekeepers of New Zealand who pollinated kiwifruit at night, once they found that a white suit drew the bees in by its glow in the moonlight. From there it became the firm's best-selling colour.

It also has a plain everyday advantage: on khaki, propolis and honey marks do not shout the way they do on white. It is the only colour this model is made in.

02 · THE VEIL

ClearView™: folds back and comes right off

The hood carries a rigid arched frame that holds the mesh well clear of the face and leaves a very wide field of view, with no hoops or seams crossing it. The mesh is knitted nylon.

It folds back when not in use — to move between sites or talk to someone — and comes off completely for washing. That last part matters more than it sounds: the veil is the first part of a suit to go, and being able to wash it separately is what makes it last seasons.

The body is closed-weave 65/35 polycotton, not ventilated mesh. It is light and breathes well — those who wear it say so — but its ground is the classic all-season suit, not the three-layer ventilated one for the peak of August.

03 · THE SIZE

Here the chest governs, not the height

This is the brand with the strongest reputation for running large, and there is a concrete reason: Sherriff's chart starts from the wearer's actual chest and adds the ease itself. An S is cut for a chest of 86 to 92 cm, and the finished garment measures 124.5 cm round.

So the method is simple: measure your chest over whatever you will wear underneath and take the size that contains it, without deducting anything «because it runs large». The heights in the chart are a guide for breaking ties. The XXXL is made to measure, and the manufacturer's full chart — with inside leg, waist and back length — is attached to this listing.

Wash at 30 °C and dry in the air, no bleach and no tumble drying. The veil, always by hand.

04 · BEFORE YOU BUY

It is the kind of purchase that pays for itself over the years: