Fall Outerwear: Wool Coats, Trenches and Barn Jackets

Your coat is the one piece everyone sees, every day, from October until the first warm week of spring. It is worth getting right. This season the shapes are generous and easy: long wool coats that fall below the knee, trenches with a little extra volume through the back, and cropped jackets in suede, quilting and waxed cotton that sit neatly over a sweater. The palette stays grounded in camel, chocolate, charcoal and black, with the occasional animal print or buttery yellow to keep things interesting. A strong coat can carry a very simple outfit. Jeans, a white tee and loafers look deliberate under a sharp wool coat, and the same coat goes straight over a dress for dinner. Begin with the long coat, then fill in with a shorter jacket for the in between days. I went deeper on a related idea in Good Designer Jackets: Leather, Wool, Suede and Cropped Coats. I went deeper on a related idea in Barn Jacket Edit: Chore Coats, Waxed Cotton and Quilted Layers.

When you try a coat on, wear the thickest sweater you plan to put under it. Check that you can lift your arms without the shoulders pulling and that the sleeves cover your wrist bone. Longer lengths are more forgiving than you think and make legs look longer, especially in a single tone. For jackets, a boxy cut over a slim bottom keeps proportions balanced, and a belted trench works with almost anything.

We think most closets need exactly two pieces here: one long coat in a neutral you love and one shorter jacket that handles rain and errands. Spend more on the coat, because wool quality shows quickly in how it drapes and pills. Our honest advice is to skip anything with a lot of hardware or trend detailing on the main coat and let the shorter jacket be the playful one. Brush wool after wearing, store it on a wide hanger, and it will hold its shape for years. The camel or grey long coat is the safest place to begin.