Blew my last $80 of Banana Republic GCs
June 2, 2008
on a Classic Trench Coat that actually fits! I know, I know, I’m announcing the purchase of a trench coat on the cusp of summer? I must be crazy. But! It was 50% off, the coat fit me, and I had well over half of the cost in gift cards, and those are three moons that seldom align just right. Unfortunately, I did have to pony up an additional $22 for the balance because 50% off plus tax = $102, but I’ve even checked on ebay and on Banana Republic’s website to make sure that I didn’t pay too much: ebay’s selling it for up to full price ($159-$198) and it’s not even on BR’s website anymore.
Until the dead of summer, the train is always just a shade too chilly to go without some piece of outerwear in the mornings, and it starts to get chilly at night when I get home from work. I’ve worn it every single day since I bought it (8 times), and twice at the end of the week. I expect to continue to wear it every morning until it’s actually hot enough in the mornings to go without.
There are a plethora of buttons, and I can really batten down the hatches if I want to with the “tabs” that extend from the shoulders. I don’t know what they’re called, and you can’t see them hidden under the lapels in the images I found, but they add a little touch of class to the coat. The entire coat is lined with a layer of cotton. It’s big enough for me to wear a sweater underneath but it fits perfectly in the shoulders so I can just tie the belt tighter when I forgo an extra layer. It doubled perfectly as a blanket for the flight down from the Bay Area, and it packs down nicely, because it’s thin, when I have to stuff it in my bag. While it wouldn’t fit into my everyday bright pink bag, I think it will into whatever grown-up bag I finally get. It’s knee-length, and belted, so I’ll be able to wear it over a dress or nice slacks ifI go out in the evenings. All in all, this coat fits my need for a knee length, light-colored, lightweight, all purpose coat that can go formal or informal. My only concern is that it’s dry clean only, and the light color combined with my klutziness/accident proneness could be disastrous.
And this is why I have 3 trench coats
Okay seriously.. I do!!
But only 2 can REALLY be called trenchcoats, the red one is just because it’s my favourite out of the 3…
It’s a good investment! A shade too chilly = a need
~FB~ Because they’re awesome and we’re suckers for coats? š Yeahhhh…..
Definitely glad that I didn’t spend much cash on it, though. And I wear it every morning to work, and every night to walk my dog (even when it’s not that cold at night, hehe).
I think it was a wise decision! Very classic!
~savingdiva~ Thanks! It seems pretty durable so I hope that it’ll last a long time, too.