Wow, seeing all this, I guess I travel light. Except Mr. Candlebury back there (on page 1). He’s a zombietease in those threads. Cover yourself, you slut! 
Anyway.
Kevlar vest: Why? It goes to the ‘close to skin’ layer and it has fairly beefy stats. Most, if not all, other serious armor occupies the ‘normal’ or the ‘outer’ layer. Those layers get crowded easily due to backpacks and other assorted useful gear go there, making the Kevlar vest really attractive IMO.
Raincoat: Why? Reinforced with kevlar, it can take most hits and stay intact. Very effective at keeping you dry. Way lighter than the turnout coat, which I’d love to wear but it’s just too encumbering for my liking.
Head: Leather helmet, later army helmet. But I’m not really picky in the early game. Head protection is crucial. Two turbans make great first headgear. For that human Q-Tip look.
Eyes: Anything with 100% coverage, usually ballistic glasses.
Mouth: Various scarves, depending on the weather.
Hands: Leather gloves or tac gloves are plenty.
Arms: During winters I’ll happily wear 2x neoprene sleeves (they’re warm!) + elbow pads. Summers are trickier but sometimes I just take the heat penalty.
Legs: I used to just wear cargo pants but they got shredded too often. Ergo, leather pants, which are durable, sometimes with cargo SHORTS, which have smaller coverage than the cargo pants, meaning that they get hit less often. And knee pads always.
Feet: Steeltoed boots. Best footwear so far. Unencumbering, durable. Better than combat boots, which is bit odd IMO but I’m not complaining.
Backpack: Kevlar reinforced MOLLE pack eventually, but up until that I’ll happily settle for military rucksack or a leather backpack, which is way more durable than the cloth backpack. I always tend to play with the traits Packmule and Strong Back. They’re a blessing for natural born hoarders and digital hunter-gatherers…
Avoiding: Clothes that cover many body areas. Why? Simply due to their chance of getting hit more often. They get damaged faster, and you lose protection faster on several body areas in one hit. Something that covers torso, arms and legs is bound to get hit every time. Exception might be anything that’s in the ‘close to skin’ layer, as they’re likely protected by other stuff, or the really beefy armor that just never gets damaged. Regardless, I like my armor to come in specific pieces.