I’m really talking about cloaks here, I suppose - amongst the range of coats available for men, there are lots of short ones with hoods - like, say this one, and there are lots of long coats, like this one…
… but there don’t seem to be many, or any long, hooded coats. Women can get 'em, but the only ones available for men are really conspicuously Gandalf-Obi-Wan-Dumbledore-Grim-Reaper style.
A three-quarter or full length wool or cashmere overcoat with hood would be supremely useful to me. Why can’t I get one?
I also like the way that looks, and have difficutlty finding one. It’s not impossible, though; whenever I see someone wearing one I ask where it was purchased. Then when I am told it was a gift I howl in rage. Sometimes I find a store that sells 'em only to find my stupid broad shoulders renders all those in stock impractical for me.
WhenI track down something that fits, I shall buy two. Possibly three.
I have one like you describe and they seem to be fairly easy to google. Use the key woods ‘full-length hooded coat mens’ and you will see some. Here is a decent one.
Men just don’t wear certain things in certain eras. Like a lot of conventional masculinity, it is not explicitly decided or defined - it just happens, then becomes part of the semi-conscious or conscious code of conventional men. Manly is as manly does; whatever it does not do is unmanly.
I don’t think they need look creepy or wizardy, unless designed that way, but nobody really seems to do it (none of the products linked so far are really what I’m after - I certainly don’t want leather - I’m after a thick wool or cashmere fabric, really - because it’s comfortable and warm and stays warm even if it gets a bit wet).
I have a 3/4 length black coat like the one at the bottom of the first link that I got at Burlington coat factory. It has a zip in liner and a zip on/off hood. So you can use it hoodless most of the time but have the option if you need it.
I really wanted a full length coat with hood but those are nearly impossible to find in normal stores - unless if you live in a major city possibly.
I know what the problem is, really - because this sort of thing happens to me quite a lot - I get some idealised notion in my head of something I’d like, then frustrate myself trying to find it in exact form in reality.
It happened when I needed a rew mobile phone, it happened quite recently when I needed an umbrella. In the specific case of the umbrella, I had the perfect one, but lost it, only to find that nothing on the market was quite its equal.
At least in the case of the coat, I suppose there is a possibility of having it custom made.
I had one of those. One of the best coats I ever had. Incredibly warm (I had the fleece lining), windproof, an rugged. If anyone is thinking of a duster, Drizabone is a great way to go. But I don’t think it’s what the OP is looking for cloak-wise.
In the case of men’s clothing, I find it’s often because the image in my mind is too simple. Retailers need flash for their racks, even if men don’t care to buy and wear it.
Example: You can get shoes with side swoops or padded ankles or potato-digger toeboxes or hi-tech XYZPDQ outsoles or molto dorko designer stitching. But type in “plain brown lace-ups” and you’ll find about three kinds, one of which will be cruddy-cheap and the other two $500 a pair.
If I may be so bold, the company I work for carries this North End 3/4 length hooded jacket and thisPort Authority parka. Both of those are good brands. They qualify for free shipping, too, and you can get 10% off with the coupon code WINTER10.
