The Royal Navy issues dark blue overalls to sailors for wearing when undertaking particularly dirty jobs. They are made from the same dark blue cloth that has been treated with chemicals to make it fire resistant and so has a distinctive shine to it when new. The overalls themselves are standard in design, with a front fastening from neck to crotch:

The overalls have a pair of breast pockets, each with a square cut flap secured with velcro:

A woven cotton name tape is sewn over the left breast. The ratings branch badge is sewn to the sleeve, here for the warfare/seaman branch:

The overalls have a pair of pockets on the thighs:

Velcro tabs are used to tighten the cuffs on the arms and legs:

A standard label is sewn into the back of the neck, with a loop to hang the overalls to dry with:

These overalls are virtually brand new and so still dark and a little shiny. Most examples are heavily used and have been washed so many time that they have faded by several shades and no longer have the shiny fire resistant coating left on them- they are after all working garments.
I remember these coming into service replacing the old style with the zip on the front, the elasticated waistband and epaulettes. Though the more modern version are a little more comfortable, I prefer the old style as I feel they looked a little smarter when in the public eye and the lack of velcro meant the rest of your laundry was safe. I still have my phase one issue pair from 15 years ago!
[…] went through a number of updates over the years. We have looked at one of the more recent patterns here, but today we are looking at a slightly earlier pattern of […]