Coats! Just thinking about the word brings to mind the overwhelming amount of styles and types of jackets out there to choose from. Let's take a step back, relax, and read on to show you your options to buying and wearing coats and jackets! Since there are just so many of them, I'm going to pick the few that I think are most versatile outfit-wise and look great on all body types in order of least formal to most formal. Let's begin!
Denim Jacket
First up we have denim jackets. These are great for the seasons you can wear them, but those are few and far between. They're really only for moderate temperatures and mild weather, so they work best during the first half of fall and the second half of spring. You also have to be careful when pairing them with jeans. The key thing to remember is contrast. Make sure the color is different and one piece of denim is more distressed than the other. With that said, matching denim with denim is entirely doable. Just follow the guidelines for matching them and you can't go wrong (unless you're wearing acid wash, but you wouldn't do that, would you?). When you do wear them though, they work great with any and every casual outfit you can think of. The farthest I would go is a nice pair of chinos and a sweater, for instance.
Harrington Jacket/ Bomber
Next we have the Harrington jacket. These are traditionally British jackets, but they look great anywhere you go. They blur the line awfully well between casual and more formal wear. With that in mind, match them with pretty much anything and everything from dressier outfits to super casual t-shirt and jeans outfits. They look just as good on both. Shoot for a darker color when picking out a Harrington, something like black or navy.
Bombers are similar to Harrington jackets, just a little more casual. It's best to pair them with more casual outfits, but they really shine when you do. They're one of the best looking casual pieces of clothing a guy can wear in my humble opinion. Because of their casual nature, feel free to pick up a more fun color like tan or red. This is a jacket that you can have a lot of fun with in pairing it with other pieces.
Leather Jacket
These are so classic. There's just something so sexy and versatile about leather jackets that have made the such a staple in men's (and women's) fashion for so many years. They pair the best with casual outfits, so go no dressier than sweaters and chinos. Wear a brown or black leather jacket for something versatile or go a bit out there with something like a shade of red to have some fashion fun.
Pea Coat
These are essentially the Harrington jackets of warmer coats. They just walk the line between casual and formal dress so well and are also cemented in men's style history with their use in the navy. Wear it with ripped jeans or slacks, you can't go wrong no matter what you do with a pea coat. The one exception is suits. Fear not, suit-wearers need look no further than a few inches below these words for the best coat option for them.
Overcoat
Overcoats: they're like the pea coat's more formal older brother. These are interesting beasts. You can do a few things with overcoats. First, you can wear them with suits. Unlike pea coats, suits won't awkwardly stick out from the bottom of your jacket. Instead, the outfit will flow in a way you just couldn't get wearing a pea coat.
However, they also work alarmingly well as base pieces for a more fashion forward outfit (see pic immediately above). If fashion forward isn't your thing, then wear your overcoat solely for suiting up. But if you like to have fun with your style and have the courage to go through with it, give this one a try! You'll be pleasantly surprised with the outfits you can come up with.
Those are my personal picks for the coats and jackets that you should be wearing. Again, there are many more (as illustrated in the chart above) but these are the most versatile and work on the most body types. But if you find a different coat you like and want to try it out, go right ahead (just keep the receipt).
This amazing coat infographic and many more provided by Real Men Real Style! RMRS is a great style resource with a ton of articles and YouTube videos for style beginners and experts alike. Antonio's content is how I learned much of what I know about fashion, so check him out!
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/RealMenRealStyle
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