Quest for the Perfect Travel Coat, part 2

My current “PTC” (Perfect -for me- Travel Coat) is a hybrid mix of a Lands End 3-in-1 Commuter Coat (sadly, Lands End only offered it for about 2 seasons) and an LL Bean 850 Downtek coat purchased off of eBay. First, let’s take a look at the Lands End 3-in-1 Communter Coat and then I’ll discuss how I added the LL Bean 850 Downtek coat into the mix for exceptionally cold weather.

Here is a photo of the Lands End 3-in-1 all put together. Notice that I have a “vintage” mink collar attached to the inside collar area of the coat. (Many people are opposed to using real animal fur so other options are to use a faux fur collar or a thick, soft fleece scarf if you like the idea of an additional layer of warmth right by your neck & chin area.)

As you can see from the photo, this coat already checks several boxes for my “must-have” list:

-it’s a 3-in-1 so it’s flexible for a range of temperatures,

-the outer layer is wind- and water-proof (so that’s good for cold, drizzly weather!),

-it has a hood (also good for drizzly weather)

-it has both inner and outer zippered/snapped pockets.

There is one problem that I find with the outer coat. The first photo shows it laying flat on a bed which highlights the coats square, block-like silhouette. (The coat does have an inner-pull at the waist that can adjust the coats waist to fit closer to the body – good for warmth.) Even with the pull adjusted, however, on me, the fit is pretty much like it is in the photo – square and block-like. The fact that the silhouette isn’t all that flattering, though, is not a deal-breaker. The coat has quite a few admirable qualities that offset it’s rather “parka-like” fit and look.

Let’s examine the outer coat pockets.

There are 2 outer pockets on each hip: a “hand-warmer” pocket with vertical zipper and fleece lining (very nice!) and a larger pocket with a snapped upper flap. The upper flap is just above the hand-warmer pocket. The actual larger pocket area rests just behind the hand-warmer pocket area.

The good attributes: both pockets can be securely fastened to prevent pick pocketing and things just accidentally falling out. The hand warmer pockets are also nicely warm for my hands on cold, windy days. The bad (to me) attributes: if I put my gloves in the hand-warmer pockets and my cell phone in one snapped pocket and some tissues in the other snapped pocket, the 2 pocket areas stacked on top of each other start to make a strange lumpy appearance right on top of my hips. The next set of issues with 4 pockets for me: the more stuff is put in the coat’s pockets, the heavier the coat gets and the more out of balance it starts to hang on your body. (Some people are very disciplined and will use only those pockets that they need. I, however, tend to fill whatever pockets are available.)

Let’s take a look at inner pockets.

In the photo above, you see a zippered pocket right on the top, left chest area of the outer coat. If I wear just the outer coat, this inner pocket is readily available. If I wear the coat with the liner zipped in (which I usually do), the black outer coat’s inside pocket is covered and I use the blue liner coat’s inside pocket. See photo below. (In this photo, the blue liner coat is not completely zipped into the outer coat so it is possible to see that the black outer coats inner chest pocket fits right under the blue liner coat’s inner chest pocket and how the blue liner coat zips into the black outer coat.

Let’s take a look at the blue liner coat. In the 2 photos below, you can see that the liner coat has a more tailored, slightly shaped look that is achieved with princess seams (seams that run vertically from shoulder to hem midway between the center and shoulder outer-edge. These seams are in addition to the center seam and side seams). (I had an tailor take up a bit of extra material in the back and on the sides.) The coat has a light down interior for extra warmth. It also has a diamond quilted pattern on the exterior – this acts to keep the down in place. Note: When the 3-in-1 commuter coat was offered on the Lands End website, quite a few purchasers left comments that the down from the liner “leaked” out and left a down residue on the interior of the black outer coat. Then, if the person tried to wear just the outer coat, the down residue transferred onto whatever clothes the person was wearing. I can attest that these comments are true. It doesn’t bother me, though, because I usually wear the 2 layers together. If I do wear just the black outer coat, I roll the interior with a lint-roller to get rid of the stray bits of down.

The photos just below also show that the liner coats outer pockets are placed vertically on the princess seam and have zippers.

There is a lot to love with this liner coat:

-the zippered interior chest pocket which is the perfect size to hold my travel wallet plus a lipstick and chapstick,

-the more flattering, fitted silhouette given by the princess seams,

-the zippered, outer pockets placed vertically on the princess seams (they are not placed on the side seam so they don’t add width at the hip area.)

-the neck is stand-up style (which I prefer.)

This is a long post describing the pros and cons that I have found with this particular 3-in-1 coat. The next post will show how the LL Bean 850 Downtek coat is added to the outer liner when I need extra warmth (useful if I am visiting Montreal or Chicago in the winter!)

What attributes do you find particularly useful or annoying in your own winter coats?