Help me figure out outerwear
Hey all, I've been trying to put more effort into my clothes for a short while now, one area that I've not expanded into so far is outerwear. I've gotten by with a utilitarian rain coat and a black kinda bomber-adjacent jacket. I'm trying to look around for more varieties that I have in my head, but I'm just really struggling with the language and categorizations of things, so I even know what to ask about or google search for. Any advice for learning how to talk about this stuff?
In particular I've been looking for something lighter weight to wear over a top or maybe a sweater (ref pics 1-2), and some longer options that go past my waist (ref pics 3-5, something potentially a little smoother/lighter weight than those as well). the ref pics are just yoinked from WAYWT to give a vague reference of what's in my head.
34 Replies
Both of the first two are kinda giving takes on a chore coat, so I would look in that area.
For a longer coat you can find stuff like what those people have on in a Cotten twill that will be smoother and lighter than a heavy wool
Check out Universal Works et al if you want something along the lines of pic 1-2 which are chore coats/overshirts, vintage raglan coat for 3, overcoat for 4 and I think that’s a polo coat or something similar in pic 5. Definitely go vintage/used for 3-5.
Awesome chore coats can also be found vintage
"twill" is a word that has been missing in my vocabulary thank you
A jungle jacket has a similar vibe to the first couple of jackets you posted
def, looks similar with maybe a bit more depth/complexity to the pockets
Yeah, bit more of rugged look than a chore coat
first one is me, it's a ripstop Engineered Garments bedford, kind of a mix between blazer/chore.
:D hello, great fit
I kinda saw that that one didn't strictly fall into the categories I've seen but I like how it's rounded off a bit
A sport coat is a great casual outerwear option. This Corduroy fit was posted by Shrimp a while back
Yeah that's on my short list as well, I bought what I think is more of a blazer than a sport coat (is there a significant difference?) just recently but I worry that it leans just a bit too formal. very "smooth", probably twill, to use my new word. so I'm struggling to wear it out as much. I'm working on breaking that anxiety but I still would like to get a softer one at some point. probably not corduroy tho, not my thing (shrimp rocks it though)
don't get me wrong, I think I look real slick in it, but just have the thing that I assume a lot of people get where putting in more effort and liking my appearance more makes me feel like I'm perpetually over dressing
roughly what area are you in, as much as youre comfortable sharing? There may be stores nearby with curated selections that can really make your life easier
Pittsburgh!
do you have a picture? Sounds like it could work
Was looking at stores there, and a place called Vestis looks like it has a great selection of stuff
seconding the previous recs, EG and UW both seem right up your alley. Franklin & Mercer and Vestis both seem to have pretty decent stock
Orslow, Portuguese Flannel, and merz are all great brands right on the front page of Vestis' website. Probably a pretty cool place to check out
I actually was just at Vestis and Franklin & Mercer a couple weeks ago haha, found some great sweaters and button ups (flannel and not). Jacket selection was a little lacking I think, but I wasn’t looking for them in particular when I was there.
I’m currently eyeing an olive chore coat from uh
One sec can’t remember the brand
Service works, found it browsing some other threads
Def once I have the right words for things, the research part gets a lot easier
Making decisions is still hard but idk how much easier i can expect that to get xd
Very rushed pic but here
that's not a chore coat
I know!
I said it was a blazer
Although maybe everyone was reading chore coat not sport coat there
Or maybe I’m very confused
Nah, you were pretty clear about having a blazer. Think they just misread ya
ye, I mean I of all people understand, I've learned about at least 3 types of coats today. I think there are maybe too many coats.
anyway thanks all for all the tips, I think I will at least have a chore coat soon
hopefully I will crop up in #waywt soon too, I realize that the best way to figure out how to talk about this stuff is to read and talk about it, so I've moved this server out of the megaserver folder I never check xd
Hell yeah, look forward to seeing it!
it can be a lot to take in because there's many different jackets out there but the fact that you have a sense of your preferences is a good sign
finding a chore coat feels like a good stary; it can function similar to a blazer https://discord.com/channels/1116793467654381685/1116800072093532191/1283933104997662782 or regular layer
looks fine to me bud. i think the colours aren't really working for me in this outfit but the blazer doesn't look too too formal in this, i think you can dress it down
yeah I literally threw it over what I was wearing at the time, but I appreciate the reassurance about it generally
also 4 is me - that's a vintage double breasted wool overcoat; i found mine at a local flea market but they are plentiful on ebay and similar stores
I am still trying to figure out how to style it
Yeah I actually recognized your username haha, I fuckin love your fits
that's very kind ✌️what helped me in styling blazers was looking at and copying people from #waywt and just wearing it regularly, to lessen the mental hangups about their formality
Shrimp My Ride, ethan (sioku), pumaturtle, kstocks, dosius, art (artvandelayimporting) and I (sometimes) are good bets for casual blazer fits if you're looking
yeah that's my goal, just wear it wherever I can until I feel normal about it. I felt that way about button downs when I first started buying things that weren't tshirts, and of course that went away honestly moderately quickly
yep, I'll be watching waywt a lot more I think
Some good things to add to your ebay vocab: herringbone is a type of alternating twill, harris tweed is a very hairy and more causal wool from scotland, gray herringbone Harris tweed sport jackets are the raw denim of blazers, an absolute mainstay that you can find on ebay under $100 rather easily
Donegal tweeds are irish and usually have a good color variation, one of the most prolific mills that also has an in house line is Magee
Overcoats are a rabbithole and a half, die workwear has a great piece on the different overcoat styles. Figure out if you're looking for a raglan sleeve or a set one first, and try tacking on modifiers such as camelhair, tweed, etc.
IMO, a great lose fit denim chore coat is perfect for throwing on over a sweater and you can find old american made vintage pieces on etsy or ebay for nothing, like $50. Try using "nos" for new old stock, or "nwot" for new without tag on ebay or etsy
god I need like a whole article on these terms because it's just making so much click for me, thank you
really I just need to start googling words I don't recognize
Seriously though, that Die workwear piece on the different kinds of overcoats is an absolute goldmine