February 5, 2018

Why You Need A Teddy Coat In Your Wardrobe & My Spring Wishlist

One: Because they are the cosiest things EVER

I must say that when it’s come to spending money on clothes over the past couple of months, I’ve really stuck to the confines of my capsule wardrobe philosophy. Although my work as part of the #TopshopGirls campaign over on Instagram has meant that there has been a steady trickle of a few new items making their way onto my rails (heads up, this post is not part of my work with them but this coat was bought with kindly given gift vouchers), aside from that thanks to our honeymoon and our funds being diverted elsewhere to boring adult things since we returned, I’ve instead been enjoying old favourites mixed in with the odd fresh piece.

Case in point: this Topshop Borg Teddy Coat. It’s annoyingly sold out online, but ASOS have some good dupes if you fancy yourself a coat that basically doubles up as a body toaster. It’s not groundbreaking in design, but it’s über practical and something with more of a vintage vibe than I’d go for. So today I thought we’d discuss coat purchases and what else is on my wishlist at the moment, because spring is just around the corner (kinda)…

OK, so teddy coats. They’re a bit of a trendy piece right now, aren’t they? I wouldn’t normally jump on such a bandwagon because I’m a Grandma who enjoys wearing my camel wrap coat day-in-day-out, however it’s sometimes nice to change things up. They sort of sit between a faux fur coat – which you guys know that I’ve been on the hunt for for YEARS – and a shearling jacket which are typically so expensive that they make my eyeballs fall out of my head. The fact this teddy coat style sits somewhere between those two pieces is what ended up suckering me in. And you know what? I’m bloody glad it did. The neutral palette has slotted easily into my wardrobe and they’re actually a practical purchase for these chill winter months. The denseness of the fabric means that it isn’t as bulky as a faux fur, but the fabric is soft and cuddly like a shearling. It’s the kind of item that you put on, feel like you’re instantly in the Bahamas and then want to spend the rest of the day hugging yourself. Being a trend piece (for me, anyway) I don’t think that it’s something worth investing massively in, so although this Whistles Ultimate Teddy Coat is the most aesthetically pleasing pick to me, I’d suggest sticking to this New Look Teddy Bear Coat which comes in at a sixth of the price.

MY TOP TEDDY PICKS

Upon creating this post I naively thought that I’d write my usual 1,000 word ditty as an ode to my new jacket. Of course writing such a wordy piece on jacket where all there really is to say is ‘I love it!’ and ‘It’s super warm!’ has meant that I’ve had to pad it out a little. However the padding comes thanks to a browse of the Mango website that is absolutely BANGING at the moment. I was searching online for the best high-street teddy coat finds (ASOS has the best FYI), but when I stumbled across the current Mango coat selection, I think I must have wowed out loud. Look at these beauties! There are jewel toned outer layers thanks to this Blue Unstructured Wool-Blend Coat – stunning. A Beige Double-Breasted Coat that I want to wear as part of an all-cream outfit NOW. Then a Masculine Structured Coat which is basically a great dupe for those pricey long-line blazers, at just £60. Of course there is no way that I NEED all of these in my spring capsule wardrobe, but they are definitely food for thought and have got me thinking about what coats it might be worth adding when spring finally decides to make an appearance and how to style-up my current collection.

MY SPRING WISHLIST

Going back to the teddy coat (which I really did think was called a teddy bear coat at first, which is a much cuter name in my book), as with all things trend-led I can see that in five years time we’ll all be saying ‘Wasn’t that a funny trend?’, then we’ll all be regretting giving ours away in 10 years time when they’re all the rage again. Hang onto it peeps! Really, the classic style in my wardrobe that I’ve worn in some way, shape or form, pretty solidly for the past five years, is a double-breasted pea coat. Sometimes shorter, sometimes a little longer. Often with two rows of buttons down the round, but occasionally with a wrap around tie. They tend to come from Whistles, in neutral colours – my black and tan are my most worn – and I can guarantee that I’ll be wearing them next season, and the next one after that, until I start spouting tales of Whistles vintage to my Grandchildren. So if you do fancy a classic coat purchase that will never go out of style I’ve linked up some dupes for my favourites below. You know how I was saying that I’ve stuck to my capsule wardrobe no-buy? That might be about to change…