Natural Apiary – Apiarist Beekeeping Suit - (All-in-One) - Fencing Veil - Total Protection for Professional and Beginner Beekeepers – X Small - White

I bought this suit to protect me while removing wasp nests. We have had several nests in our back yard over the past two summers, so after paying somebody $200 to remove a sizable, but easily-accessible nest, I thought it would make sense to purchase the equipment required to do the job myself. I'm glad that I did. I'm male, 5'9", and ~175lb. After deliberating over measurements for a while, I read a few reviews and finally purchased the suit in large, which seems to be a great fit for me. I finally bit the bullet when I noticed a steady stream of yellow jackets flying into a hole beneath a ground plant in my garden. I have two small boys who like to play outside, so ignoring the nest wasn't an option. I didn't hire the expert this time, so I'm not sure what this would have cost me, but I'm guessing it would have been a lot more than the hanging nest that he removed on his first visit. It would certainly have cost more that this suit and the matching Natural Apiary gloves. After donning the suit and gloves, I approached the plant with some shears to reduce the stems in order to enable me to clearly see the entrance to the nest. I'm very grateful that I was wearing my gear when I started hacking away because I was instantly swarmed by hundreds of angry occupants who correctly sensed me as a threat. That was scary, but I was comforted by the fact that the suit and gloves are very well made and resilient, and that there are no small holes that might allow access to angry flying insects (provided, of course, that the suit has been put on properly). When I retired from the scene, half a dozen wasps were desperately hangin onto each leg trying to get into my hiking boots, which again provided great protection in combination with this suit. I came back at night time, again with the suit to treat the nest with delta dust, which nicely took care of it. Job done safely at a fraction of the cost. Overall, this is a very well made, high-quality product and I would recommend it to anybody; certainly, I wouldn't suggest that anybody skimp on gear like this in circumstances like mine - it could literally cost you your life for the sake of a hundred bucks or so. From now on, I won't be concerned about the prospect of dealing with wasps because I have the right equipment for the job. I'm sure that I will need it again. I also appreciated the follow up from the company, who sent me an email containing some useful information about taking care of my equipment. Five stars overall, no question.

We're into our seventh year of backyard beekeeping. I've been using a Dickies cotton jumpsuit with round hat circular veil which has been fine... until the bees are in a particularly p*****off mood. Last week while working with a queen less hive, the girls were not having it and found their way into my veil (that's fun) and stung my face and neck six times. So yeah, it was time to up my beesuit game. Read lots of reviews and recommendations then decided the Natural Apiary Apiarist was a good fit for my use and budget. The biggest uncertainty was the sizing. Here's my stats: Weight: 181 lbs. Height: 6' Back Length (Collar to Crotch): 30-1/2" Chest: 38-1/2" Waist: 41" Inseam: 30-1/2" Arm Length: 34" The size calculator gave me an "uncertain" or XS, and I knew that was wrong because I usually wear a Large. Conventional wisdom seems to be to buy one size up from normal so I initially purchased an XL. That was definitely swimming on me so I exchanged it for a Large. That fits beautifully, loose enough to fit plenty of clothes underneath and yet still accommodate light clothes in hot weather. I hope my stats and fit will help other shoppers. No barbs at Natural Apiary - it's a hard job to size gear for so many different body shapes. The suit itself is brilliant! I love the construction and the integral fencing veil. It will definitely give me confidence working with upset bees. The velcro closures are well engineered and we didn't see any place for bees to enter. The veil material seems sturdy which is notable because so many other reviewers felt it was flimsy. Perhaps they upgraded the material. Lots of accessible pockets. The suit is definitely cooler than the Dickies all-cotton. The final test will be how sting resistant the polycotton is. I never had a sting through the heavy Dickies cotton suit. I went to visit the girls in it but they are in a happy mood. So I'll know more after the next inspection.

This is a well-constructed beekeeping suit that gets the job done. I did order a size up based on some previous reviews, but it seems they are not having the size problems anymore as the suit was the size listed on the company's size chart (included in the images for the listing). It had room to move around and bend over without issue. I like the elastic stirrup straps that keep the leg from riding up - a feature I haven't seen on other suits. I was specifically looking for a camouflage beekeeping suit (the camo for a roleplaying event), so it was nice to find one available (I didn't actually expect to find one when I started searching). We thought it amusing that there is a hook in one of the pockets, presumably for keys, but this could be useful if you have to carry keys for a shed or for transport. It will be useful at our roleplaying event. No stings were suffered in this suit (and we have some rather angry bees - the meaner they are, the better they produce, it seems). The suits we have had previously are all ventilated suits, which run anywhere from $145 - $260 (Natural Apiary has one called the Zephyros Protect). While this suit is not ventilated, we found it comfortable and functional. If you live in a mild or even cool climate, this is definitely the better value. If you live in a hot or humid climate, you may want to splurge for a ventilated suit. The included image is of my husband in his suit. He is 5' 9" and about 175lbs and is wearing the large. He could probably wear a medium according to the chart, but I wanted to be certain and ordered the size up. Now that we have it, I don't think that was necessary.

I origianally ordered an extra large and it didn't fit. I'm not sure if I actually got what I ordered but the return went very smooth and I re ordered the xxlarge and it fits exactly like a xx large should fit. a tad too big for me but that is not a problem. the suit is of excellent quality and durability. a very reasonable price. and this suit is locked down. no bees are getting in but I do suggest a baseball cap underneath to protect your head from a through sting. Very Happy

From a master exterminators point of view there suits and gloves are flawless i wouldn't bother using anyone else , i have recently wiped out a baldfaced hornet nest here in Canada, and did this at night, with no attacks, best way too do it, for someone bio-allergic, this gives peace of mind! thank you so much staff, and owners of Natural Apiary suits & Products God Bless!

I like my suit. I will use it around my hives.

Conforme et très bien fait mais j’ai dû le retourner vu que j’en ai pas pu l’utiliser comme prévu. Très très bonne qualité!

Can't say how well it works against stings, as I owned those little ba****ds (yellow jackets) before they knew what was up... But it did breathe well..