Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette!
In today's video we'll discuss how to style and combine the overcoat so you create dapper
outfits that look the part.
So, basically you just put on your overcoat and you go, right?
Not quite!
An overcoat is an integral part of a classic gentleman's wardrobe but it requires a little
bit of thought about your outfit and the event you're gonna go to as well as the temperature
outside to come up with an outfit that's both functional and stylish.
A great overcoat will accentuate your style.
It will hide all the flaws and just look very debonair.
So how should you choose an overcoat for your outfit?
As a core principle it should ideally contrast other elements in your wardrobe.
So if you have lots of dark elements in your wardrobe such as gloves, hats or pants; I
suggest you go with a lighter overcoat.
Vice versa, if you have more lighter accessories and pants, a darker overcoat is better because
you always want it to contrast.
If you have lots of solids in your wardrobe you can either go with a solid overcoat or
with a patterned overcoat.
If you go for a solid I suggest to go with an interesting texture, maybe a tweed, maybe
a bold weave in a solid color because that makes just all the more useful because you
can combine it with different shades of colors but also more interesting and it provides
a certain amount of contrast from your otherwise solid pants.
Also you want an overcoat that suits the rest of the formality of your wardrobe.
So if you like to go with more casual slacks, maybe go with a shorter overcoat in more brown
tones.
On the other hand if you go to an office and you wear business suits every day, maybe a
darker coat with grey elements, blues or blacks are better for you.
The same is true for overcoat details.
Things like patch pockets, notch lapels or toggle closures as you can find in my duffle
coat are all more casual items.
On the other hand, peak lapels on a double-breasted coat, jetted pockets or flap pockets maybe
an elegant back belt, those are all things more associated with formal garments.
So how do you style certain overcoat colors?
First, let's talk about navy because I think a navy overcoat is perfect as the first overcoat
in your collection because you can wear it with formal outfits.
You can wear it in the evening as well as informal outfits if you choose the right texture
of the fabric.
For example, here you can see me wearing a double-breasted navy overcoat that is made
of a hundred percent boiled wool.
As such it's denser.
It has this wonderful knobby texture which is just interesting than if it was a plain
weave.
As you can see it has a belt so it makes it a little less formal and more casual so I
can wear it with a broader range of outfits and it's double-breasted which means I get
two layers of fabric that keeps me warm.
Here, I combined it with brown corduroys that provide some of the contrast just like the
tan shoes.
My cashmere scarf in a burnt orange and gray herringbone pattern from Fort Belvedere is
also contrasting even though it's not a really bright and loud color.
Rather than going with boring black gloves, I went with a petrol blue pair from Fort Belvedere
which is lined with cashmere.
I could have also opted for a gray pair which would look like wise as dapper and it would
have picked up the color in my scarf.
That way you tie in the entire outfit together.
Overall, I could have topped it off with a hat, either a navy one or even a brown one
that would go with my pants but it would have created a nice contrast with interesting visual
points such as my scarf, my gloves, and my overcoat.
Everything works together but the individual items stand out in a stylish way.
So let's say you don't wear suits to the office.
A great first overcoat would be one in a solid tan color such as the one I'm wearing here
right now or in a different color.
In terms of color, they go with any winter color and in general with almost any color
out there.
For example, here you can see me wearing a British warm overcoat which is a very heavy
wool fleece coat.
It has brown contrasting leather buttons.
It has epaulettes, peak lapels and it's just everything that is designed to keep you very
warm at the same time stylish.
As you can see, I'm pairing it with a brown fedora hat as well as cognac colored cashmere
lined leather gloves from Fort Belvedere.
The scarf is likewise from Fort Belvedere and is made out of a blend of silk and wool
which makes it softer than just plain wool and it's in green and red which is different
than the hat but at the same time it's a winter color so it all works together.
Alternatively, you can opt for a more formal tan coat such as this military inspired overcoat.
It has an Ulster collar.
It has gold buttons, epaulettes and it's cut more like a body coat such as a morning coat
or an evening tailcoat.
You can see that by the seams in the back.
It also has a half belt in the back which is quite decorative yet it's not as informal
as a full belt.
If you note it, it also has interesting details such as a flap chest pockets and angled flap
front side pockets.
As you can see, I paired it with dark brown contrasting corduroy pants, brown shoes, as
well as a burnt orange and grey scarf and chamois yellow HydroPeccary gloves from Fort
Belvedere.
It's just a very elegant color.
Yes, it's bold but with the tan it works quite well and the gloves are perfect for winter
because they are lined with cashmere and they don't get wet because they have this treatment
that is really really water repellent.
So no matter if you have to scratch the ice of your car or shovel the snow, these gloves
are great.
I topped it all off with a brown fedora hat to provide somewhat of a contrast.
Now, apart from solid overcoats some of the most popular ones out there are herringbone
overcoats.
Herringbone is a very classic menswear pattern.
It's timeless but for overcoats you want to make sure that it's over scaled and large,
unlike with suits or sport coats where it can be smaller.
particularly like these overcoats like the Donegal tweed which means it has a rougher
texture made out of a hundred percent wool with contrasting coloured flecks.
For example, here you see a brown herringbone Donegal tweed overcoat but it has flecks in
blue, green, yellow, pink and orange.
It just lightens the entire outfit.
It also means it's very easy to combine with any kind of other colors in your accessories
as well as your pants because it's already part of the overcoat and so it ties everything
together.
For example, the yellow flecks are picked up by the chamois yellow gloves from Fort
Belvedere.
The blue flecks are picked up by my blue and gray scarf.
The brown tones are picked up by my brown and gray velour fedora.
And overall the overcoat has quite some interesting details.
It has some cuffs.
It has a seam on the outside of the sleeve which is also very dapper and very classic.
It has a back belt, patch pockets, it's double-breasted but it has also peak lapels to make it a little
more formal.
Of course if you're not a friend of all those really colorful flecks, you can also go with
something a little more subdued such as this overcoat.
It has an even larger scale herringbone pattern but the flecks are more like tan, yellow,
orange and brown and are therefore more subdued.
Because of that I could have worn them with any kind of brown or tan glove.
Personally I chose to go with a burgundy glove because it's a touchscreen glove and it's
exactly what you want when it's really cold outside so you don't have to take them off
when you want to check something on your phone.
Obviously the belt on the coat makes a little more casual and the mustard color and grey
herringbone cashmere scarf from Fort Beveledere picks up the yellow flecks in the coat.
Overall the scarf is contrasting but it's tied together by those individual flecks.
That's why this combination works so well.
The same is true for the hat.
It has combinations of black and brown which you can find in the overcoat as well as in
the pants and the shoes.
Because of that, it's a very harmonious outfit that provides lots of contrast but it's very
pleasing to the eye and the viewer.
If you're more at home in a traditional white-collar environment you want to invest in an overcoat
that's either gray or charcoal or something that combines all those colors.
For example, the overcoat I'm wearing here right now consists of a really nice wool fabric
with an interesting weave that contains tones of grey, charcoal, black and blue.
Because of that, you can wear this overcoat with any kind of business suit.
Whether it's light grey or charcoal.
Black would even work as well as Navy or blue and it's just fantastic to have just one overcoat
that works with every kind of suit you have.
To make it visually more appealing, a contrast velvet collar in black was added which goes
really well with the overall Paletot style which is double-breasted in this case.
It's very easy to combine and in this case I chose a red and blue pattern wool silk scarf
from Fort Belvedere with petrol blue gloves.
The hat is likewise dark and picks up colors of the overcoats and so are the boots.
Overall, if I had to get just one business overcoat it would be this one simply because
of the versatility of the fabric.
Now, how do you style bolder colored overcoats?
First of all let me say I don't think it's a wise idea to invest in a really bold overcoat
in yellow, red or maybe green early on because it's just a very narrow field where you can
wear it and the cost per wear will be quite high.
It's also quite a statement piece and because of that I think it's only suited to someone
who really knows what they're doing and who has an advance closets where all the basics
are already covered.
That being said, if you end up with a bold overcoat such as this green duffle coat make
sure to tone down the rest of your outfit.
For example, my scarf has subtle brown tones.
Same with my cognac gloves which are likewise not loud and bold but very classic.
They work well with my dark brown pants as well as my boots.
Now overcoats are not cheap and most men have just one or two.
In order to not keep it boring and to create different looks, I suggest really pay attention
to your accessories.
First of all, if your lapel is wide enough and it features a buttonhole you may want
to consider a boutonniere.
During the winter season, a real boutonniere is hard to find and because of that we created
silk flowers from Fort Belvedere which you can find in our shop here.
Typically during the winter season I don't wear them on my jackets because they would
be squished by my overcoat.
So you wear them in your overcoat and when you hang it up, you can exchange it, put it
on your suit, wear it around and then transfer it again when you go back home.
That way you're stylish in your suit, in your overcoat, you don't squish the flower and
everything is dapper.
When it comes to scarves, I suggest not to wear solid scarves with solid overcoats.
Always try to go with some other pattern whether it's a stripe, a classic herringbone or some
other printed patterns.
If you have a patterned overcoat, you can also wear a patterned scarf just make sure
the scales are different.
For example, with a bolder overcoat you can get a finer pattern in your scarf and vice
versa.
When it comes to hats, bear in mind that an overcoat is a traditional classic garment
that's meant to make you look elegant.
Because of that, you should go with more formal choices.
So skip the baseball hat or a self knitted hats and opt for a stylish Fedora with your
business overcoat maybe something like a flat cap or a newsboy cap for your more casual
overcoats and that will just create an overall look that is very debonair.
Just like with scarves, when it comes to your gloves you want something that's contrasting.
I've always been a big opponent of black gloves because not only do they look boring but they
also oftentimes like the desired contrast and it's not something an elegant gentleman
would have worn a hundred years ago.
Instead, stylish men back then and today would wear different colors such as a grey which
is much better than black because it's likewise formal but you can wear it with the blue suit,
you can wear it with a charcoal suit and it will always contrast.
If you live in a warmer climate, you can also go with unlined gloves or even driving gloves
for regular wear because they keep your fingers warm without making you overheat.
For a selection of high quality gloves made of different leathers such as peccary and
lamb nappa, lined or unlined in different colors with button closures, please check
out our shop here.
In today's video, I'm wearing a light to medium weight overcoat which is better suited to
not super cold climates.
Because of that, I'm combining them with dark green driving gloves from Fort Belvedere which
are unlined and a flat cap which picks up those green colors.
My scarf is a black watch tartan scarf likewise from Fort Belvedere.
It's a very classic tartan made of black, navy and green and so it picks up the green
tones in my gloves and in my hat.
The scarf I'm wearing is called black watch tartan and it's a very traditional well known
tartan consisting of dark green, blue and black.
The slacks I'm wearing are part of a brown pin dot suit.
They are not too heavy and so I'm wearing it with a pair of tan boots which contrast
the pants and work quite well with the overcoat.
They're double soled but just leather lined because it's a pair of boots for not very
cold climates.
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