A love letter to my red sweatshirt, statement coats, and a lesson learned
Why are dreary colors the de facto winter choice, how a girl in high school taught me a lesson, the sin of repeating outfits
Sweater weather is upon us, and I’ve been on the hunt for a few staple sweaters. I like to have a few colorful, warm, oversized sweaters that I can wear with jeans, leggings, or work pants. A touch of color, detailing, or dimension always adds a bit of spice to it. I’ve noticed that most of us wear dark and gray jackets and coats.
I’ve concluded it’s mainly due to three reasons:
Function - easy to clean and you don’t see stains. Candidly a bright red jacket is no place for a NY winter but it is possible to accessorize with a bright scarf, gloves, hat, or purse. However, that also doesn’t seem to be the case.
Abundance - black, navy, and gray are the main, de facto, outerwear colors that are sold at every department store.
Versatility - these colors go with everything, unlike a red or pink coat for instance. The cost per wear is truly much lower.
This is the magenta puffer jacket I brought on my most recent trip to New York. It’s not hot pink, it’s a bit more muted but definitely stands out. Puffer jackets, in contrast to wool or cotton coats, are very easy to clean which is an added bonus.
I’m not one to judge / here to shame the gray-coat wearers or say you should splurge on impractical clothes. But I do believe that color plays a role in our mood and that incorporating it even in the slightest ways can make the dreadful New York winters just a bit more bearable.
I have a navy coat and winter jacket myself. I do own a beautiful magnolia puffer; however, that’s reserved for fall and the transitional fall-to-winter days. While I may not go out and buy a red coat any time soon, I do want to make it a mission to find a quality sweater that will stand out and makes me feel comfortable and confident. I like to pay up for quality.
Just take a look at these two beautiful coats. They are probably (most likely) not worth the $3,000 price tag but there’s so many more options out there that are within a reasonable price.
I can’t blame anyone for not wanting to wear color in this sludge!
Subtle Statements Only
If you want to stick to darker tried-and-true colors, you can spice it up by adding some texture such as faux-mink. However, it’s not as non-conspicuous as it seems…
Voila, I present to you the back of this beauty! Love how the shoes match the back of the coat. Subtle yet a statement. The only downside is that it’s 100% polyester which can’t be warm.
A few more examples that I absolutely love (with a few tweaks).
This beautiful purple coat isn’t too bright but it isn’t dark or gray either. It’s a classic base color that can be paired with almost anything and is a great alternative to a black or gray coat.
This baby pink coat is probably best suited for fall weather (not in danger of getting dirty snow on it). However, I would actually prefer this red outfit with a dark colored coat, because I think the light pink washes it out. The colors are too competitive. A dark coat with this all-red outfit would look stunning. I would also change the purse to a darker color. I think matching shoes to a purse (especially if it’s bright red) is a bit of a faux pas. It works well with more muted colors or with a red-soled shoe.
I LOVE to stand out. I don’t want to stand out by wearing an all-leopard print outfit (maybe as an alter ego). I want to stand out by being stylish, sophisticated, and one who isn’t afraid of a little color. Even if it might be memorable, and especially if it is.
“Only the Rich Can Afford to Buy Poor Quality”
My mother always used to say “we’re not rich enough to buy poor quality things” meaning that paying up for a few quality things that will last longer is a worthwhile investment because we can’t be frivolous with our money. That’s especially true for coats (that keep you warm) and shoes (that must be comfortable for your feet). It doesn’t make much of a difference if you buy a white t-shirt for $10 or $100 (for the most part).
It’s as Eastern European a mentality as it gets.
Shopping In Person is Worse Than Doing My Taxes
I’ve given up on shopping in-store. It’s exhausting, inefficient, I can never find anything, store consultants follow me around like a puppy, and I hate trying on clothes in a tiny fitting room with lighting that seems to highlight every flaw. So I’ve fully turned to shopping online. Nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack, Bloomingdales, Saks Off - these are my go to’s. Wide variety of items and seamless shipping and return experience.
[Side pro online shopping tip: if you sign up for ShopRunner you can get free 2-day shipping and free returns on most eligible items from Bloomingdale’s.]
A Red Sweatshirt and a Lesson Learned
I remember being obsessed with this one sweatshirt during my sophomore year of high school. I wore it constantly, and this sweater obsession lasted a good two months. It was a school-spirit sweater (had the school colors, logo, and mascot on it). I’ve never owned any school spirit attire prior to that (partly because it was expensive and because as immigrants my parents didn’t think it was a smart thing to buy). To a peer, that sweatshirt might have been one out of a dozen they owned, wore a few times, then passed down to a sibling. To me it was the entry point into becoming one of them, an inch closer to being the “All-American teen who took part in school spirit and cheered on during football tailgates” and simultaneously an inch farther away from being the “weird Eastern European girl who doesn’t speak English and brings strange food”.
I recall one interaction in particular that has stuck with me to this day:
A girl from in one of my classes in high school came up to me and asked, “is everything was okay”. I was incredibly confused, and asked “yes, why?”, to which she flatly replies, “well, you’ve worn the same sweatshirt twice in a week so wanted to ask”. I was dumbfounded. What a foolish thing to ask? We don’t ask people why they wear the same jacket or shoes, so what difference does wearing the same sweatshirt over your top make? In what rulebook does it say that one mustn’t re-wear an outfit within the same two weeks (or dare I say week)?!
Nowadays, when I’m shopping, I often find myself asking the question, “is this too memorable?” and “can I re-wear this item within 2 weeks?” or some other variation of this ludicrous question.
Re-wearing clothes is a fashion sin
This is why articles like “Princess of Wales’s Best Royal Rewears to Date” or “So and so just re-wore this statement piece” often rub me the wrong way. I know they’re not harmful on the surface but there is a subtext there that is hard to brush off.
I guess it’s assumed that any time someone like Kate Middleton re-wears an article of clothing it MUST be because it’s an amazing piece or a brand marketing ploy because why would they even bother? With seemingly unlimited access to clothes, accessories, and stylists they aren’t ever supposed to wear the exact same combination.
I won’t even begin to speak on the benefits that re-wearing bears on one’s wallet, closet space, planet, heck even psyche. That’s for regular people, like you and me. Not for the likes of Kate Middleton. Kate Middleton is undoubtedly a style icon and anything she wears goes out of sale fast, and that’s (frankly) part of her job - to be the face of England as the Princess of Wales. However, I think these types of articles focus on the wrong thing. I would venture to guess that Kate Middleton would not want her life’s accomplishments to be reduced to the number of times she re-wore a dress.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not discounting the importance of appearance, looking polished, wearing clothes that are clean and fit properly, and dressing for your body type.
Find Waldo (aka the repeat offender)
I find articles like the one below much more inspiring. They really show how one can do a lot with a little by just being a little bit creative. For me, it’s less about anyone noticing. Let’s face it, adding a different belt won’t make it seem like a whole new skirt, but it will seem like a whole new outfit. It’s about the whole package. Frankly, it’s actually more so how you carry yourself when you wear the items.
Lesson Learned
I love fashion not only because it’s a form of expression but it’s wearable art and if an art piece is beautiful you don’t want to wear it once and keep it in a closet! The item might have some special meaning to you (kind of like my red sweatshirt) or it might make you feel more confident (like a little black dress or a powerful stiletto heel).
You know what the funniest part is? When I was younger all I wanted was to fit in, blend in, be like the rest. I thought that by dressing like a sheep I can become a sheep. But why did I ever even want to be a sheep? I guess that I thought that the right clothes would make me feel and be more accepted. For a immigrant kid there was nothing I wanted more than to be accepted… I’ve definitely grown and embraced my differences and individuality and can honestly say that now I want nothing more than to stand out (for all the right reasons). I don’t want to just be another gray coat walking down the street.
I have a green trenchcoat that I inherited from a good friend when she died. EVERY time I wear it three things happen: 1. I smile. 2. Strangers ALWAYS say they love my pop of cheer in the midst of the dreary day. 3. Strangers smile. There's something to color that lightens the soul.
Winter fashion and the psychology behind colour choices is fascinating! This post has a delightful blend of fashion exploration, personal anecdotes, and practical advice, making it a compelling and relatable piece. Thank you for sharing this Katarina.