Once again, the shops were filled with inadequate coats that were too long, too blingy, the wrong colour and/or with too many fussy details. I just wanted a black or charcoal grey wool coat, preferably single-breasted, and at a reasonable price. Was that too much to ask? I did find a coat that fit the bill in H&M, but they only had one left and it wasn't my size. Instead, I turned to the pretty, bright pinky-fuchsia coat that was reduced from £49.99 to £24.99; as I also had a 25% off voucher, this brought the price down to under £19. I tried it on in a size six, and the fit wasn't bad. A little baggy perhaps and I definitely wouldn't have bought it at Banana Republic or J. Crew prices, but I'm prepared to be less fussy about fit for coats that cost under £20. Up close, the material looks a little cheap, with some odd white strands amid the pink. And it's a "wool blend," of course (i.e. mostly polyester).
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L: Benetton coat; R: H&M coat |
Having trawled pretty much all of the high street shops, I bought the coat and took it home. Today, though, I was in Benetton and found this year's version of my navy coat, in a range of colours and reduced to £62.50. They didn't have any of the black coat left in my size, so it came down to a choice between grey and...fuchsia, albeit in a slightly more purpley shade than the H&M version. Grey would have been more neutral, but it was quite a light grey and I prefer to have coats on the darker/brighter end of the spectrum, so it was the fuchsia one that I bought. Besides, I wear so much grey, black and dark purple that fuchsia is practically a neutral for me. I'll be returning the H&M coat next week.
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Top: Benetton coat; Bottom: H&M coat |
From a distance, the coats look pretty similar in quality, but you can see the difference up close. The Benetton coat was "wool blend" too, but with a higher proportion of wool, and it definitely feels warmer and looks smarter. It was slightly longer than the H&M coat too, although still hit me above the knee. The Benetton coat is also more fitted, although I prefer the pockets and the sleeves on the H&M coat. If you're after a fun, ephemeral coat in the pinky-purple family to wear for a season or two, you could probably manage with the H&M coat, but for a warmer and longer-lasting version, I'd go for Benetton's coat.
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J. Crew Lady Day Coat in fresh plum |
Of course, both coats are cheaper versions of J. Crew's Lady Day Coat. I bought one of these six years ago and wore it to death--after four years, the silk lining had started to disintegrate and I had also become a lot fussier about fit and found it too baggy on me. As J. Crew have gone through so much vanity sizing, I didn't know whether to go for a petite version or not, and the faff of having to send back an ill-fitting coat was not appealing. Also, J. Crew's website isn't always great at capturing a garment's colour, so although the "fresh plum" colourway looks good to me online, if it's a lot paler or darker in real life, I would be disappointed. The full price of £267 is also way too expensive. I've considered waiting for super-sales, but even if the price including shipping and duties dropped to under £100, the fit and colour problems would still be there.
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