US Navy Digital Camo, Navy Work Uniform, NWU

On Saturday, I took a little detour while running errands and stopped off at one of my favorite treasure hunting spots............. the Silverdale Goodwill Store.  It was a very profitable stop.  I picked up a set of the new US Navy digital uniforms!  (At a thrift store price!).  I came home with a shirt and two pairs of pants, all in excellent to perfect condition, and all in my size!  I have been looking for a set of these ever since they first came out.

This new uniform is officially called the "Navy Working Uniform", or NWU.  It was officially phased into service beginning in 2009.  It is the new work uniform for all USN sailors.  Up until 2012, sailors were only permitted to wear the NWU on board ship or on base.  It was not allowed as a liberty (off base or ship) uniform until 2012.  As of January 2012, the Navy now permits the NWU to be worn while commuting to and from work, but not anywhere else.  Here is the Wikipedia page describing the uniforms:

wikipedia.org United_States_Navy_Working_Uniform

The US Navy adopted the same pattern as the USMC, and the style is nearly the same as the USMC as well.  The new Navy digital camo is not meant to be used as actual tactical camouflage.  The Navy says that the new pattern is intended to hide dirt and stains and paint while working.  I think they just wanted to have some digital camo like the Army and Marines!  The USN digital camo print even has tiny USN emblems hidden in it to show the fabric is official USN issued and has an embroidered USN emblem on the chest.  The USMC has these same features.  http://sharky-fourbees.blogspot.com/2012/01/us-marine-corps-marpat-cammo-shirt-mccu.html

*UPDATE 6/9/12* I have added a US Navy Digital NWU hat to my set up..... you can check out the blog page here.  I have also posted a video from the US Navy that describes the uniforms and how to wear them:    http://sharky-fourbees.blogspot.com/2012/06/us-navy-digital-camo-hat-navy-work.html

Here are some close-ups of these new uniforms:

Here are a few "action shots" of these uniforms in use: