me I shouldn’t say this because I’m practically unemployed, but there’s only one thing you need to know about fashion this season. What I mean is, there are thousands of ways to tie a scarf, curate a necklace, or layer knitwear. I plan on listening to all of this over the next few months.
The coat should be long. That’s the big news. You’ll look like you know style when your coat reaches your ankles. Like your hairstyle or the width of your jeans, the length of your coat is one of the details that informs your fashion. It doesn’t lie. It gives up on you, for better or for worse. Someone walking towards you will recognize it, placing you on the style spectrum before they get close enough to see your face.
I know, I know, I think these days we have to look beyond trends. But this is one of the bigger picture changes that goes beyond just a fad. What seems right has always changed over time, and this goes for everything from architecture, clothing, to the lettering and layout of restaurant menus. all. So just because you no longer sweat the small details of fashion doesn’t mean you can’t pay attention to which direction the winds of change are blowing, right?
Say goodbye to knee-length coats. The jacket is still ok. Because that’s a completely different rule. However, if you wear a proper coat, it should fall below your knees. The neat, sharp, Crombie-style, knee-length coat will be stored in the attic for now. Outerwear should end at the waist, hips, upper thighs, or down to the calves.
As always with coats, the change in shape is partly about what we’re wearing. When pants were tight-fitting, a straight-cut, knee-length coat was the logical top layer. But now the trousers are a bit baggier, and the neat, fitted coats are out of proportion, making them baggier and longer.
I spent most of last winter wearing an oversized wool coat I made from my beloved black coat from & Other Stories (soft shoulders, full sleeves, self-tie belt, and shin-skimming hem). I’ll take the coat out of the attic box and give it some sensible ironing in a moment. This is an easy choice, but the fashion news this season is that long coats are building confidence and attitude. The plain, dark wool long coats that I and others wore last winter are now joined by bold checks, full-length faux fur, and long leather coats.
Burberry and MaxMara are high-fashion luxury brands where coats are the most important. So when they both hit the trend big, we can be fairly confident about our fashion predictions. At Milan’s MaxMara, cozy shearling had dramatic, sumptuous collars and floor-skimming hems. There were also long double layers of floor-length fur gilets worn open over belted quilted ankle-length coats. On the Burberry catwalk at London’s Tate Britain, long coats were seen on every famous model (an image the brand knew would attract the most attention). Richard E Grant wore a giant’s belted dressing gown, while Lesley Manville refuted the adage that you have to be tall to wear a long coat. The diminutive 1.57 m (5 ft 2 in) Manville wore a soiled Devoret flocked trench coat, tightly belted a few inches above the ankles.
It may feel a little early to talk about winter coats, but it’s not. You might want to think again about this, as it will shape your look this season. During the coldest months of the year, coats are pretty much all most people see. It’s your personality so it’s a big decision. There was a big emphasis this year.
Model: Ellen from Body London. Hair and Makeup: Delilah Blakeney and Mario’s makeup using Olaplex. coat, £249; john lewis. silk scarf jumper£169, puzzle. jeans£280, pg. loafers£330, by Aeyde; From Net-a-Porter. earring£34.99, Pilgrim. belt, From the selection, by Amanu, from fwrd.com