Curious Creatures, home of bike gear for on the trail and off, is the brand of a bike-riding nature geek’s dreams. Founded and designed by Natasha Woodworth, Curious Creatures embraces the wacky to create a biophilic gear line that is fun, functional, and strangely endearing.
Woodworth hails most recently from Patagonia, where she designed hard-core mountain bike gear, but her past work includes more artsy aspects, such as costumes for Lady Gaga (what?!?!). It’s clear that she’s combining her athletic design experience with creative aspects and a sense of humor to create Curious Creatures. The little things give this brand its unique creative edge: “Hello, strange creature,” was the unexpected (but strangely confidence-boosting) message delivered to me on the drawstring of the Sun Dog Short I had the opportunity to try. Their colors are unexpected and bold, sure to draw attention as they flash through the trees. And on the topic of these shorts – and Woodworth’s stellar design background – they are truly comfortable for riding of all kinds. Any female biker or a simple Google search can tell you how nearly impossible it is to find gear that isn’t overly waistbanded, too skin-tight for off-the-trail comfort, too short for comfortable riding, or just plain boring. Curious Creatures has overcome all these challenges to create clothing that actually works.
The Sun Dog is entirely crafted of fabric with a comfortable stretch, including the ever-so-glorious waistband, which is flexible, button-free, and fully aware that you actually need to bend in order to ride a bike (and don’t want that act to reveal half of your behind). The zipper placement was a bit odd. I had to do some wrist-twisting contortionism to get my phone into the pocket, which is behind the vertical zipper, but the pockets do fall in just the right place so that peddling won’t cause their contents to thwap against the leg or shift uncomfortably. The fabric is smooth and has well-placed seams to avoid any chafing. The Sun Dog comes in a pant variety as well, which is tapered at the ankle with multiple width options because yeah, some riders have big calves, but we certainly don’t want our beautiful pants to be caught in the chain. It’s clear that the designers actually ride and have tested the products.
I’ve had the pleasure of wearing their Eatin’ Grin Art Tee, locally printed on silky-soft cotton in Bozeman, Montana with a design that speaks to all curious creatures and clearly declares, “I mountain bike, and it’s quite a lot of fun.” Eatin’ Grin is certainly cool and comfortable enough to have earned a prominent place in my rotation of short-sleeved shirts, but it works great for riding, too. I will say that the Faded Mustard color that I (perhaps unwisely) chose does not compliment most lighter skin tones, and does cause me to look slightly jaundiced but hey – the design is great, so what’s wrong with a little disease? Besides, there are other lovely color options, including an epic Blue Stone (with a stone wash, “because it looks sick” – too true).
Curious Creatures takes great pride in their fabrics, and for good reason. As mentioned before, I’m a bit of a nature geek/tree hugger kind of person, and it seems like the folks a CC might be, too. As part of a sustainability initiative, the company prioritizes the use of bluesign® certified fabrics. Founded in 2000 as a response to images of chemical waste, worker abuse, and a lack of informed consumption, bluesign® has created a system of sustainability parameters for proactive production. Their outlines for certification include water, chemical, and energy production; CO2 emissions; and worker health and safety. Factories receive spontaneous audits to ensure that they are following the regulations, though there has been some concern regarding the accountability of companies that do not obey the regulations. Still, as with most sustainability initiatives, something is better than nothing. For a full list of bluesign® certified brands, go to www.bluesignguide.com.
In addition to trying to use bluesign® certified products, Curious Creatures also vets their own factories to ensure that workers are well paid and safe and that the products are created at the highest quality and with the maximum amount of renewable energy possible. They also prioritize single-material fabric types over blends to increase recyclability. This means that when I try a jump and physics betray me once again as I go flying into the air while my bike remains grounded, then land with a clothes- and skin-ripping skid, any Curious Creatures clothes that I will be wearing won’t be destined for the landfill. The company provides the opportunity to send in torn and worn out clothes for recycling, repair, or repurposing, promising that your clothes don’t become waste.
Curious Creatures has released a diverse array of products for their first line, but if you find when browsing their website that there aren’t as many options generally as you may want, or perhaps not any that stick out to you (impossible), don’t give up. Increased color palette/branding consistency may come with time, and perhaps their logo will evolve to look less like – well, you can see it, can’t you? – but the comfort, quality, and energy of a successful brand is there. Curious Creatures is new to the market and still testing out the population, but with the popularity of their first line, it seems unlikely that the brand will do anything but grow. We’ll be keeping an inquisitive eye on them – you should, too.