Morvelo Rue women's jersey

The Rue jersey is part of Morvelo's 2014 season jersey collection for women. Each year, Morvelo come out with a range of new designs and an updated jersey design. 2014's offering is pretty impressive; there are 10 versions of the jersey in all, ranging from subtle black to pink and bold prints, with several giving more than a passing nod to retro and vintage style jerseys. There are matching bib shorts for most designs too. If the Rue's quirky geometric designs and autumnal palette don't do it for you, there are plenty of others to choose from, each with distinctive detailing and style.

Morvelo have chosen a technical but comfortable mid-weight fabric which wicks really well. The fabric is reasonably soft and silky, and I found it comfortable on the skin even when damp. The back panel is a more open weave, allowing even better ventilation where it's needed most.

The panelled construction allows for a very good fit, especially on the bike. All the jerseys are available in XS to XL, and are pretty true to normal clothes size. As a 12, I opted for a Medium which was perfect. The slightly dropped hem is cut to a fairly generous length and is held in place with a section of silicone gripper. The rest of the non-elasticated hem sits nicely around the hips.

On the back, the standard three-pocket design is supplemented with a generous valuables compartment, accessed by a hidden zip on the right hand pocket. The pockets are deep, double stitched, and feature a reinforced elastic hem which has kept all manner of bottles, jackets and snacks secure. There's a strip of reflective fabric sewn under the middle pocket; barely visible in daylight, but ideally placed for car headlights. It's really worth noting this sort of attention to detail from Morvelo: a heat sealed print on the back of the neck replaces a scratchy label, the almost imperceptible black-on-black print of the playing card suit emblems on the inner collar elastic piping. These details show thought to a design which is both practical, beautiful, and high quality.

I only have one small niggle with the lazer cut Printed Gripper Elastic (PGE) sleeves. I'm a big fan of PGE for its ability comfortably hold clothing in place with light and even compression. I don't think the this works quite so well in this jersey design or cut though. It's been excellent for holding armwarmers in place, but the jersey arms are quite loosely cut, even on my reasonably chunky bicepts. This meant slight rubbing or catching of the PGE could become noticeable if I built up a sheen of sweat. It's a small gripe, and probably more due to my sensitive skin than anything else.

In use, the jersey really has been excellent. It has outperformed many jerseys in my wardrobe, coping admirably in tandem with arm warmers or a baselayer on cool mornings, before keeping me comfortable on high intensity evening commutes in temperatures in the mid 20s. It's not felt too racy for slower paced jaunts either.

Producing 10 versions of the same jersey as a sole offering to female road riders implies that Morvelo have an incredibly firm faith in every level of the design, and rightly so.

Verdict

Very good fit and thoughtful features add up to an excellent jersey suitable for across-the-board use