Waterproof Jackets

Picture Organic Welcome Snow Jacket | Review

A freeride winter sports jacket that's an eco-friendly option for skiers and snowboarders

Why We Chose the Picture Organic Welcome Jacket: Protective, innovative, sustainable

Price: £367
Weight: 770g
More info: picture-organic-clothing.com

The Picture Organic Welcome Jacket takes a strong environment-first approach, with eco-engineering at the heart of the jacket, from the fabric to the waterproof membrane.

The latter deserves special mention. Dryplay is the brand’s own waterproof-breathable membrane, which when it was first created, was recognised as the first ever one to be 100% recyclable. When the jacket reaches the end of its life, both the liner and the face fabric can be recycled together.

“The fabric has a good amount of stretch, offering great freedom of movement”

The membrane is sandwiched in a robust 3-layer construction that also makes use of a partly-recycled polyester face fabric and a PFC-free durable water repellent (DWR) surface treatment. The fabric has a good amount of stretch, offering great freedom of movement.

There are fully taped seams and YKK waterproof zippers to keep moisture out, while a Pro Knit back panel insert combined with zipped underarm vents helps to regulate body temperature.

Snow-specific features include adjustable cuffs with integrated wrist gaiters, a snow skirt and an internal ‘interface’ that allows the jacket to attach to companion snow bibs by Picture. A roomy hood with two-way adjustment easily accommodates a helmet. You also get two zipped hand pockets, two zipped chest pockets and a zipped forearm pocket for a ski pass. There’s even a small soft fabric insert to wipe your goggles on (or your nose, if you want).

The outer face fabric is made up of partly recycled polyester. Photo: Chris Johnson

Wrist gaiters, a snow skirt and a fabric insert to wipe your goggles complete this snow-specific jacket. Photo: Chris Johnson

The hood is helmet compatible. Photo: Chris Johnson

As a brand, Picture is up-front about the challenges that outdoor clothing companies face when it comes to manufacturing high-quality gear in a more environmentally friendly way. They are absolutely committed to reducing reliance on fossil fuels – notably petroleum, which is the raw material for most synthetic fabrics. In fact, the sustainability section of Picture’s website gives a great overview of the various considerations, challenges and possible solutions that are out there. It’s well worth a read if you’re at all interested in green gear and would like to be better informed.

One of the best examples of their sustainability efforts is the new Picture Organic Harvest Jacket (samples weren’t available for us just yet unfortunately). This goes one step further than the Welcome jacket reviewed here, not just using recycled face fabrics but a fully recycled membrane as well. The raw material is castor oil – yes, the same stuff that Edwardian nannies used to spoon-feed their charges to ward off colds, diarrhoea and dysentery. Apparently, making clothes from castor seeds started in the 1950s, but slowly died out with the arrival of plastics. However, the techniques have now been revived in order to move away from petroleum-based synthetics, as part of an overall strategy to end dependency on fossil fuels. That membrane’s performance compares favourably to Gore-Tex, with lab figures of 20,000mm hydrostatic head (HH) and 20,000g/m2 moisture vapour transmission (MVT) rate.

“As a brand, Picture is up-front about the challenges that outdoor clothing companies face when it comes to manufacturing high-quality gear in a more environmentally friendly way”

Anyway, back to the Welcome Jacket. What we have here is a jacket that displays those eco values of the brand, that performs well, and that is packed to the brim with technical features. With even greener products to come, the picture’s looking a little greener and the future a little brighter, all of which gets a firm thumbs up from us.

Tester’s Verdict

Jordan Tiernan, OM Staff Writer

“Having lived in the French Alps for four years, I’m used to seeing the Picture brand around town. You don’t tend to see it too much in the UK outdoor community, so it’s great to see this sustainable gear making an impression on the UK market.

“Although they began designing many of their jackets and pants in garish colour ways, it’s cool to see that they’ve gone for a slightly more subtle colour for the sample we received.

“I’ve not yet been able to take this jacket out in a full-on winter blizzard just yet, but could almost certainly vouch for its all weather protection credentials having worn it through a day of pretty horrific autumnal downpours. It was the partially recycled face fabric that was doing the trick to ward off the worst the storm could throw at me. This feels durable, but has a slightly softer and stretchier feel to it compared to traditional waterproof fabrics, making the Welcome more comfortable to wear day-to-day.”