Bee suit maker, BEESUITWEAR · United States
Alex makes beekeeping suits for a living and writes the guides on this site. Based in the United States, and writing for beekeepers here and in the UK, Canada and Australia. The advice comes from the workshop rather than from a catalogue: which seams give way first, why a jacket hem rides up when you lean over a hive, what a standoff gap actually does to a sting, and which of the things buyers worry about turn out not to matter. BEESUITWEAR makes suits, jackets, veils and gloves in eight colourways, including children's sizes and made-to-measure, and ships to beekeepers across the United States, the UK, Canada and Australia.
A plus size bee suit has to give room at the chest, belly, seat and thighs without legs that drag and cuffs that gape. Here is how to measure, what to check, and when made-to-measure is the better answer.
A bee suit that is too small pulls tight when you bend and drags the veil onto your face. One that is too big snags, drags and gapes at the cuffs. Here are the signs of each, and the fix.
Between two bee suit sizes, take the larger one. A slightly big suit still protects you; a slightly small one pulls tight where stings get through. Here is how to handle the awkward cases.
A bee suit should fit loose but not baggy: room to touch your toes and kneel, veil clear of your face, sleeves inside your gloves, legs over your boots. Here is what right looks like, area by area.
Measure over the clothes you wear to the hive, with a soft tape and a helper. Here are the nine measurements we cut suits to, the mistakes that make a suit tight, and what to do with the numbers.
A round veil holds the mesh further from your face and gives a clearer all-round view. A square veil folds flat and packs anywhere. Here is how to choose, and how to wear either one so bees stay out.
Nitrile gives you feel and washability. Leather gives you a hide a stinger cannot get through. Most experienced keepers own both and choose by the job.
A beekeeping coverall is a bee suit in one-piece form. A disposable coverall is a dust barrier with no veil. Removals are the worst possible place to confuse the two.
Goatskin is leather. What you are really choosing between is goatskin and the thicker cowhide beside it — and for hive work the deciding factor is dexterity, not thickness.
The middle layer of a three-layer suit is not padding. It is a spring that holds the outer mesh out of sting range, and it is also the part that quietly wears out.
A fencing veil turns with your head. A round veil stays where it is while your head turns inside it. That one difference decides vision, heat and where each design lets you down.
Polycotton resists tearing and dries fast. Pure cotton breathes better and will not melt near a smoker. One difference decides most of these purchases, and it is not the one listings talk about.
Cotton stops a sting by being thick; ventilated mesh stops it by holding the fabric further away than a sting can reach. Which you need comes down to how many hours you spend at an open hive in the heat.
Heat, bee behavior and being able to see what is crawling on you — three reasons bee suits are white, ranked by how well each one actually holds up, plus an honest look at whether colored suits work.
Full suits cover you ankle to veil; jackets stop at the hips and go on in seconds. Which one you need comes down to your bees, your climate and your experience — here is the decision, with a side-by-side comparison.
