What is the ideal coat (or jacket) for your style? – Readers’ letters #32

Cover image: Thomas Farthing lookbook

As the cold weather slowly sets in, you're looking for a good coat to keep you warm this winter. .

Assuming that this will be your only coat, many questions arise: should it be short or long? With or without a hood? Padded or not?

Here is a little guide to help you choose the coat that will suit you best according to your style.

Also feel free to take a look at other content already published on this topic:

• Let's Talk Clothes #19 - How to choose your coat
• Tips: How to choose a winter coat for men?

The overcoat (mid-length or long, straight or double-breasted)

Suitsupply Single Breasted Overcoat

A dress coat par excellence, it is perfectly suited to a formal style, of course. It will be your first choice if you wear the suit to work or if you like the tailoring style in general.

Keep in mind that a double-breasted coat is more formal than a straight coat: the double-breasted buttoning adds a certain extra presence.

If you are unsure about the length: take it long (at the knee) if you are comfortable with the silhouette that a long coat gives. Take it mid-length (mid-thigh) if you are not sure about your move.

Also, I can only advise you to try coats of different lengths to see what you prefer.

I encourage you to try on some long coats, if only out of curiosity. Well-made Overcoats

The overcoat is also completely suitable in a casual chic style , where jeans, an oxford or flannel shirt, a wool sweater can be integrated.

Our navy coat integrated into a very casual outfit.

If you want to wear an overcoat in a mainly casual way, don't hesitate to choose one that is a little looser, less structured, and why not with a slightly more assertive pattern.

A very good example with this overcoat l'Exception Paris . You will notice how the raglan sleeve (without seam at the shoulder) deconstructs and relaxes the piece.

The winter parka

Parka Norse Projects

While there are lightweight parkas , we're going to talk about winter parkas here. You know, the ones that are really thick and padded or warmly lined.

It will of course have its place perfectly in casual and streetwear looks.

A knit of your choice, jeans, boots. And there you have it. Ten C Parka

It will also fit in with casual outfits: yes, it is possible to wear a dressy outfit with a parka.

The overall look of the outfit will be less elegant than with an overcoat, but this is not necessarily a problem.

Just make sure the parka has a sufficiently urban look.

It is also the perfect garment for people who are very sensitive to the cold, and in my opinion it is also much more aesthetically pleasing than a standard down jacket. .

The pea coat

Armor Lux Caban

It is a rather casual coat with a touch of elegance thanks to its wide lapels and double-breasted buttoning.

I find it a very reassuring coat : by avoiding the black color, you can't really go wrong with a pea coat, and it goes with everything.

Mackintosh Pea Coat

Can you wear a pea coat with a suit?

I think it's not an ideal combination, but it's still perfectly acceptable.

In this case, just make sure that the pea coat is longer than your jacket.

The short jacket

Frog Leg Jacket

With a bomber or shirt collar, zipped or buttoned, the short wool jacket will go very well with a casual, workwear or streetwear style.

A very good inspiration by our friend Boras .

Too short and casual, it is however not suitable for wearing a suit or blazer. .

Shearling

Shearling Mr. P (Mr. Porter e-shop brand)

I get a lot of questions about this garment, which apparently has a special aura, just like the unlined leather jacket .

As a reminder, shearling is a type of leather jacket where the hair side is used on the reverse side and the skin side on the front side.

I have two pieces of advice for you about buying and wearing shearling:

1. Don't buy a "cheap" shearling . Nicolò wrote a full article on why you should not buy a cheap leather jacket . All the arguments are valid in choosing a shearling. A decent shearling costs at least 800/900€, or even rather 1000€. Below that, you have a good chance of getting a fairly mediocre product (not very pretty, badly cut, low quality corrected leather, synthetic lining, etc.). Spending 500 or 600€ on a poor quality shearling seems to me to be a really bad idea, both for your style and for your wallet.
2. Shearling is a garment with character. Do it justice and wear it with beautiful materials or materials that have lived in it: distressed jeans with cargo, thick green cargo, a wool sweater with a big knit stitch or a good pair of boots, for example.

Here is an example of a well-executed outfit by Officine Générale :

And for the pleasure of the eyes, a shearling worn on a double-breasted suit by Shuhei Nishiguchi :

Duffle Coat

Gloverall Duffle Coat

The duffle coat is a long coat traditionally made of wool, with a hood and closing at the front with a fastening system made up of curved buttons called brandenburgs.

It's a garment that doesn't seem to have been popular in recent years and that I've rarely seen used by brands.

However, it is not without interest: practical with its hood, often thick, it is a sort of more urban version of the thick nylon or cotton/nylon parka.

Wear it in looks ranging from casual to workwear to more dressy outfits , like here with the return of our friend Shuhei, an inexhaustible source of inspiration:

Hey, we also make coats and jackets!