Help me find a very warm, yet stylish, coat!

In My Humble Opinion
1

Or two.

I’ve been wearing the same two winter coats for about a decade - a navy hooded ski parka, and an ankle-length, dark red, slim-cut single breasted hooded cloth coat. The former is plenty warm, but embarrassing to wear as an adult professional who isn’t engaging in a winter sport at that particular moment. I’ve always loved the latter, which looks great on me although it’s no longer particularly stylish (3/4 length coats have been in for a while). It’s just not at all warm, and I find myself shivering when the temperature drops below freezing. I live in New York, which isn’t exactly Arctic, but sub-freezing temperatures aren’t unusual, either.

I am a lucky person, blessed with generous parents and in-laws. My MIL offered last winter that she will buy me a new every-day coat when I find one to my liking; I’m not sure of the budget, but my guess is that she’s willing to spend up to $250. After a conversation with my mom recently in which she noted the shredded lining and asked me how long I’d been wearing the red coat (eleven years), my parents have decided to give me a new formal coat, I guess as a Chanukah present. My father’s exact instructions were ‘don’t skimp,’ specifying a budget of $300-400.

I’m planning to keep the parka for winter sports, but I’d like a VERY WARM, yet acceptably professional coat for every day. I think this means a down coat of some sort. Ideally, it would be not black or brown (I like being able to easily find my coat on a coat rack, and don’t wear brown in general), but also not a color that would get grubby looking easily. It must have a hood, not be annoying to put on/take off (eliminating many belted coats, although I like the look), not have cheap-looking hardware, and wear well. Anybody have suggestions? It’s hard to shop online because I can’t tell by looking if things are really warm, but I figure that some of you live in Edmonton or Oslo, and might know of good brands. I’m willing to spend up to $350; money is a little tight here, but I can chip in another $100 on top of my MIL’s offer.

Does a very warm cloth coat exist? I need one for synagogue and other very formal occasions. Yesterday, a salesman at Macy’s who seemed to know his stuff mourned with me that no, it doesn’t; they’re all a single layer of thick cloth plus a polyester lining, no insulation whatsoever. If they really don’t exist, then I guess I’ll move on, but if there is a warm, non-black, non-brown formal coat (I really love that dark red!), ideally with a hood, can anybody point me in its direction?

2

I’m confused by the term “cloth coat.” Is it a wool dress coat, a “wool-look” acrylic overcoat, or just a heavy cotton trench coat? I have a nice thick wool dress coat and its nice and toasty in NYC. The fabric’s like 1/4 in. thick or more. It’s very like this one in looks:
http://www.overstock.com/Clothing-Shoes/DKNY-Womens-Cashmere-blend-wool-Fitted-Coat/5606384/product.html?rcmndsrc=2

Sheds rains and keeps the wind out. Until this week, it was far too warm to wear.

If you’re wearing cotton or acrylic, switch to wool. If you’re wearing thin wool, switch to thick wool.

3

My red coat is 100% wool, and doesn’t feel noticeably thinner to me than the other wool dress coats I saw yesterday at Macy’s.

I’m a skinny little thing, and get cold easily. I spend the winter in shearling slippers over thick socks.

4

L L Beanrates their coats by temperature; some are very sporty, but not all–& prices are reasonable. Eddie Bauer is in the same vein but a bit more expensive; again, lots of sporty stuff but some dressier options.

If you want to dream, check out Belstaff. (They made Sherlock’s coat.)

I live in Texas but commute by bus & rail, so I have a passing interest in cold weather gear. Nothing like what’s needed up north–but I see people shivering in our cold spells who could afford to avoid all that pain. And I don’t care to look like the Michelin Man–except in some dreadful shade of aqua…

5

Oh, one other thing - no fur trim on the hood. Blatantly fake fur trim is acceptable, but not preferred.

6

For great, reasonably-priced typical coats I find “Burlington Coat Factory” is pretty much on the ball.

But if you want to be obnoxious like me, I cannot highly recommend enough https://thejacketshop.com/

For a mere $300 they were able to produce for me an entirely custom made, wool,/leather Justin Bieber - centric Letterman jacket.

(pix or it didn’t happen)

horriblenness “A”

horribleness “2”

Bonus points if you get “94” or “1X”

7

Lands End has some dressier options, such as this one, which claims “TEMPERATURE RATING - WARMER: 0° to 20° Fahrenheit.”

8

I think what you’re looking for is Boiled wool. There are fewer options in long coats, but the fabric shrinks into a tight, thick, wind and cold-proof nap.

Here’s one example:

Another possibility might be a good trench with a zip-out lining. Look for the word “Capelet” which adds an extra layer right around the shoulders.

9

I love the quality of LL Bean products (my parka is LL Bean, and going strong after years of use), but I find their products boxy in cut, and frequently a little dowdy. Ditto for Eddie Bauer and Lands’ End. Is there nothing really warm that’s a bit more stylish?

TruCeltThe boiled wool thing is interesting. I was vaguely aware of the material, but I don’t think I’ve ever tried it on, and I’ll be on the lookout for it now. The coat you linked to is lovely, but sadly not available in my size.

voguevixen, you’ve totally lost me with the 1X, but Bieber was born in '94, right? I hope it’s worth every penny of the $300 to you.

10

What size are you looking for?

11

You like what you like, of course, but did you look at the Lands End link? There’s nothing boxy or dowdy about that coat. YMMV.

12

LOVELOVELOVELOVELOVELOVE!!! Sadly, it’s not available in my size either (I’m on a whole different size spectrum than GilaB)

13

I find Patagonia and North Face long down coats to be less boxy/more stylish than LL Bean or Land’s End. And to me, down-filled is the only way to go for really cold weather. They are pricey, but worth every penny IMHO. You can find a few longer ones here, and sporting goods-type shops are your best bet for additional styles.

14

My new coat is Lands End (although it’s belted, which is adorable but like you said a pain) and they aren’t all boxy. (I’m sure some are - that’s one place where you just have to be careful and look at everything, but they make it very easy to return things.) Many of theirs are available with Thinsulate linings.

15

Can’t speak for the OP, but I’ll thank you for the link. I’ve been looking for a good - weather proof - long wool coat. I’m holding out hoping it will go on sale (as it has in the past). One complaint is the lack of color choices though; I’m trying to avoid black, and the vicuna is not as dressy or versatile (not to mention the practicality of wearing a lighter color on the trains and subways). Like the OP, I was hoping for a dark red or burgundy color option.
For GilaB, when you come back to this thread: Did you check out the Alpaca coats by Jones NY at Macys? The long one is only available in black, but they do have a 3/4 in a nice claret color. Unfortunately, those are probably the warmest options available for less than $500.00. I’ve been looking, too.

It’s possible that some higher end wool long dress coats will be available in January for less money. I saw one last January in Macys, but decided to put off buying a new coat to this Fall, and now I’m kicking myself, because there’s nothing comparable available anywhere.

16

I have this:

http://m.landsend.com/mt/www.landsend.com/pp/LuxeWoolCarCoat~227376_59.html?bcc=y&action=order_more&sku_0=::VCA&CM_MERCH=IDX_Women-_-Outerwear-_-JacketsParkasCoats-_-Coat&origin=index

in white. Not boxy at all, but very elegant. But I’m pretty tiny, if you were a bigger gal it might look boxy.

17

Are you on their e-mail list? They offer quite frequent sales, etc. that you won’t see on the main website. (The last one I took advantage of was something like 30% off everything, including clearance items.) Of course, they may offer better in January, if they have anything left in your size.

ETA: actually right now they are offering 40% off any one item, plus free shipping over $50. That’s pretty darn good.

18

Thanks for the heads up, the 40% off is tempting, I’m only hesitating because of the lack of color choices. I just ordered a swatch of the vicuna (camel brown). LLBean has more color choices but a boxier style, so now I’ve got a couple of options to consider.

Also, in case the OP or anyone else is looking for an extra warm long wool, there are some choices at JCrew online, with thinsulate lining, and quite a few colors. Fitted and stylish:

http://www.jcrew.com/womens_feature/giftyourself/PRDOVR~49619/49619.jsp

19

Hmmm, no hood and it comes in black, brown and camel (no red) but I really like this one from Garnet Hill.

This one from Boden seems to have a hood and comes in some pretty colors (navy, green). Might not be warm enough :\

This is fabulous looking not sure if it’s warm enough.

20

LL Bean carries exactly what you are looking for.

http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/56558?feat=610-GN1