If you want to know what I’ve been doing over the last few months, it’s looking for a new winter jacket. Do you want to know how many winter jackets I have now, after my extreme and extensive search, zero.
Yes, I too am deeply saddened by this, considering now I have to dedicate the rest of my existence to finding one, because something you don’t know about me yet is if I can’t get the thing I want, even if I now don’t actually want it, I have to keep going till I get it. That whole not having the thing makes you want it more, is in fact true, I can confirm.
Here’s the thing though, is it easy to find a winter coat, yes, is it easy to find one that meets my criteria, absolutely not. So what are my high standards I hear you ask, I’m so glad you wanted to know because for some reason no one else in my life wants to hear me talk about this subject ever again.
It probably needs to be some kind of puffer. I personally am not really a fan of this style but I’ve been wearing one for a few years now and I have to admit there truly is nothing else better that actually keeps you as warm. I would love to be looking all cool in a wool coat but honestly the minute that rain touches it, you smell like wet dog, I have no idea why but you do, it’s just like a total fact of life.
It needs to be warm. This is the thing that has blown my mind the most in my search, the majority of puffers are cropped, or extremely thin, I mean I just don’t understand it. If you live somewhere that you’re able to wear a cropped puffer jacket then you obviously don’t need to be wearing a puffer jacket, so like live your life free of them. I live in Scotland and it routinely can stay in the minus degrees for weeks on end here, so I need the warmth. I don’t want the coat to be long because well, I’m pretty short but I don’t want the coat to be short either because well, the cold. Wait…am I, am I the problem?
And lastly it needs to be non toxic, or as non toxic as an extremely large plastic jacket can be. I really don’t like wearing plastic, in fact I just don’t do it but I’ve never seen a waterproof, warm puffer jacket made of anything else, so I’ve had to give into it. But it needs to have a non toxic waterproof coating on it at least.
So I may not have found my one true love in the winter coat world (yet) but I wanted to share with you the styles and brands I’ve found that I liked, in case you are also on the lookout and don’t want to dedicate your life to finding one.
Something unexpected on my coat journey was coming face to face with every single jacket that people wore when I went to school (anyone from Glasgow born in the 90s will get me here) for some reason outdoor rock climbing ware was all the rage in the early 00’s for the teens, I still haven’t worked out how that started but I swore I would never in my life wear these brands and here I am trying to throw £300 away on them. Anyway, The North Face now uses Non-PFC / PFAS-Free coating on their waterproof jackets. Honestly, my 15 year old self is freaking out as I’m writing this but they really do look the nicest, I LOVE the nuptse one but I just think the women’s ones are really too short for what I need, so I’m thinking I might try and get a mens one and see if they are longer.
Genuinely overwhelmed by writing this as this brand was the big man on campus in my school years and honestly I think it’s a just a step too far for me to be able to buy one, like could I physically do it, it’s really unclear people. Anyway again these all have PFAS-Free coatings. They have more generic outdoorsy designs I would say but really good if you are looking for something more traditional and simple and don’t have any kind of memories attached to them from being 15.
This is the one I thought I would be buying but one of them is too short with no hood and the other is in white and light blue, like I am so happy it’s not another black jacket but have you ever been to Glasgow on a wet day, those colours are just not going to come out of it looking good. I really like these though and they look so lovely and warm.
I really like this brand and a lot of their jackets, I have no teen associations with the brand (I heard you all sigh in relief) but none feel quite right. I know I’m sounding like goldilocks here. Some that I like don’t have hoods and aren’t long enough but some are still contenders. Again their waterproofs are PFAS-Free.
I’d never heard of this brand before. There designs don’t work for me but I think if you’re looking for something lighter, you might find something great here. Also not every jacket is 1 million pounds. That’s another thing, who knew that outdoorsy people where so rich to be able to afford all these expensive jackets, like I’m hanging with the wrong people.