ltm ltm×[sn] Merino Relaxed Action long T

Warmer than a T-shirt, thinner than fleece: the layer in between

The ltm×[sn] Merino Relaxed Action long T is a long sleeve from ltm and [sn]. ltm is the brand of Kotaro, a filmmaker who spends 85 days a year in the mountains. It starts from something he kept feeling about layering on a climb: a mid-weight fleece runs a little hot, and a T-shirt alone is cold.

Wear fleece while you are moving and you warm up fast; take it off and it fills the pack. And a fabric that performs well as an active layer can carry a sporty look that is hard to place in everyday clothes. So this long sleeve was built: not as thick as fleece, one layer warmer than a T-shirt. Kotaro calls that position a thin mid layer.

It uses the same 50% merino wool, 50% polyester fabric as the short sleeve ltm×[sn] Merino Relaxed Action T. So that it works both as a thin layer added over a base layer and as a long sleeve worn on its own, there is a reason behind the neck, the sleeve attachment, the body length and the stitching, not only the fabric.

From an experience on Mt. Utsugi to 50% merino, 50% polyester

100% merino wool regulates temperature and moisture well, and it is easy to use on day hikes in spring, autumn and winter. What caught Kotaro's attention, using it in the mountains again and again, was how it dried once wet.

On Mt. Utsugi, with a 100% wool piece as his active layer, he went to change out of the base layer he had slept in the next morning and found the previous day's sweat had not left the fabric. He put his arms into a cold garment. What is not a real problem on a day hike becomes hard to ignore on an overnight trip. Caught in rain, or sweating heavily inside a shell, a garment that will not dry works against your body heat.

So polyester was brought in at 50%, covering how quickly it dries once wet, while merino keeps its temperature and moisture regulation. It is a blend that faces the weakness he had felt in 100% wool. Not two materials split down the middle for its own sake: a 50:50 arrived at from nights spent in the mountains.

143g/m². The fabric weight chosen for a thin mid layer

The fabric weight is 143g/m². Slightly lighter than the 150g/m² typical of a wool base layer, it holds enough thickness to keep sheerness down while staying easy to layer as a thin extra. The polyester blend adds quick drying and durability, so the fabric can change its role with the season.

Compact spinning, to hold down the fuzz

The yarn uses compact spinning. Air gathers the fibres, and the twist wraps in the fuzz that would otherwise work its way out.

Wool and polyester blends can pill easily; holding the fuzz down at the yarn stage keeps that in check. Less fuzz on the surface also carries into the dyeing, where the dye takes evenly, and into the colour itself.

The merino measures 18.5 microns. The fine fibre keeps the prickle wool is known for down, and leaves a smooth feel against the skin.

The neck is wider because that is where heat is felt first

The neck opening is wider across than on the previous model. The reason: when your body warms up while moving, the neck is where heat is felt first. Room at the opening lets that heat leave through the chest.

It goes over the head easily even when sweat has the fabric stuck to you, and it is easy on and off when you change in a tent or a hut. With a fleece or shell over the top, the neck does not close in. The opening reaches about as far as showing a little collarbone, balanced against the roomy silhouette.

A Y-joint sleeve, so the hem does not follow your arms up

The sleeves are set with a Y-joint, sewn to the arm in a Y. The shoulder moves easily, and raising your arm high does not pull the body of the shirt with it, so the hem stays down.

Reaching up on rock, adjusting a shoulder strap, turning over inside a tent. If the hem lifts every time your arms go up, your waist and back are left bare. The Y-joint is there to take that small, repeated annoyance out.

The shoulder seam moved back, away from the pack harness

The seam that sits on top of the shoulder on an ordinary T-shirt has been moved toward the back. It keeps the seam from running under the shoulder harness while you carry a pack.

You will not notice it in a few minutes, but walk for hours under a pack and a small ridge or rub turns into a problem. The shoulder line itself was changed to take the seam out of where the harness lands.

Flat-seamer stitching where the seam meets skin

The stitching uses a flat seamer. The seam allowance does not stand up much, so what touches the skin stays flat. It is a technique also used in competitive swimwear and race apparel, and in a garment worn for hours at a time, it takes the seam itself out of the way.

A longer body that covers the waist, and a long hem rib

The body length takes its cue from 1950s vintage sweats. It is long enough to cover the waist, so bending over does not leave your waist or stomach out.

The hem rib is long as well. Drawing in the roomy body at the hem keeps the whole thing from reading as sloppy.

Sleeves with a little to spare, for movement and for the look

The sleeves have room, cut long enough that the fabric gathers at the wrist when you drop your arms. Rather than following the body closely, the silhouette keeps a little more volume than you need.

That room works on movement too. Raising an arm, putting a hand on rock, shouldering a pack: the sleeve does not pull, and when you sweat the fabric does not cling to your arm.

No thumbholes: the sleeve length covers the back of the hand instead

There are no thumbholes at the cuffs, and that was a choice. The reason was to keep a casual look, so that worn in town it does not read too strongly as mountain gear.

Instead the sleeve itself is cut long, so when it is cold you can draw your hand in and cover the back of it. Rather than adding a thumbhole, the sleeve length reaches your hands.

A small ltm × [sn] logo at the lower left

The logo sits small at the lower left. Not a large graphic making a statement, but a size that leaves the roomy silhouette and the colour of the fabric alone.

Colours that settle as you wear them

Yamabuki Gold and Pale Purple come through strong when new, and settle little by little as you wear and wash them.

Yamabuki Gold moves from vivid toward a calmer, yellowed cast, closer to the worn-in colour you find on an old T-shirt. Pale Purple shifts from a clear purple toward something deeper and quieter. There is the colour when new, and there is the colour after you have kept wearing it.

Soft Natural was chosen with its sheerness taken into account

Soft Natural is sheerer than the other colours. That was known at the sample stage, and it was chosen anyway. It is an undyed, natural shade, not as hard as pure white and brighter than beige.

Worn on its own, a crew neck dry layer underneath keeps the sheerness down. Worn as a thin mid layer over a T-shirt or a sleeveless, the piece underneath already handles it, and the colour showing at the neck becomes part of the layering.

One layer on its own, or one layer more

If you run warm, wear it alone while you move. If the air has an edge, layer it over a T-shirt or a sleeveless. Feel the chill at a rest stop and pull it out of the pack as one more layer. In deep winter it goes over a long sleeve base layer, with a fleece on top.

Rather than adding another thick insulating piece, you add one thin layer and tune to how you feel. That is what a thin mid layer is for. It keeps a look you can wear in the mountains or in town, while the drying he ran into on overnight trips, the rub of a pack, the hem riding up when you raise your arms, are each answered one at a time.

Size chart

Actual garments may differ slightly from the listed size.

Specifications