1.04.2011

remaking the camel coat

earlier in the fall, i fell in love with the alexa chung x madewell collection and splurged on a greta coat. sadly, when it arrived i was disappointed in the fit and fabric. after some deliberation, i finally returned it. the solution? i dug out of my closet a 3-year-old banana republic camel coat (purchased on clearance) that i'd designated for 'special occasions'. but that just really meant that the sleeves were too long and i rarely wore it for that reason. i took the coat to my trusty drycleaner/tailor, who shortened the sleeves to a cropped, almost-3/4 length for about $25. the result? what's old is new again, and i'm wearing my 'new' camel coat a lot more :) the coat is still a little big, but the wool blend fabric has great drape and structure, and i love the real shearling collar detail.

j.crew stripe shirt, banana republic coat, mm6 jeans, HOPE ankle boots, dunlin bag

12 comments:

  1. That is an AWESOME coat. Way better than the Greta coat (which I also returned). The sleeve length is perfect.

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  2. thanks jennifer - i debated whether to take in the sleeves to make it a slimmer fit through the arm, but that's a much more expensive job. one of these days i'd really like to go to a master tailor in Hong Kong or somewhere and get some bespoke pieces made!

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  3. I need to get myself a tailor I can trust to get things right - have some things I'll like to tweak. All my friends whose clothes fit perfectly have one. The coat looks great - worth the money spent to bring new life into it!

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  4. lin - i'm with you on that - i'm kind of annoyed by the seeming gender inequality in the tailoring/bespoke world. extremely well dressed men seem to have their pick of expert tailors, Saville Row or otherwise, but even though women ostensibly have vastly more to choose from in terms of *fashion*, actual expert tailoring is really hard to find. i mean, there's couture i suppose, but that's not the same as having a really fantastic bespoke shop to go to for blazers, pants, and other everyday (but tricky to fit) pieces.

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  5. Nice job! I like the color and the collar. One of those days I need to take all the things I need to get fixed when I visit New York (which might be soon), I'm in a place where I hear too many horror stories about tops coming back having lost all the sequins, suits which got drycleaned and came with a stain, etc . . and the drycleaner just over-hemmed my pants the other day so now it doesn't work with any of the shoes I have. I agree that everyone should have a tailor whom one can trust.

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  6. great boots,I discovered Hope not that long time ago, their shoe collection is awesome, luckily they have store in Copenhagen.

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  7. I agree with lin.

    The coat looks great on you. I love the ensemble - very chic and je ne sais quoi...

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  8. I think you'll like this article - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704405704576063962680112114.html

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  9. lin - yes! thanks for posting about the WSJ article...i'm glad it's not just me complaining. truly irksome that women make the majority of fashion purchasing and yet are still categorically screwed over in terms of quality/price/fit.

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  10. Is that Hope Grace boots you're wearing? They're great! I'm hoping to get my hand on their Macy bootin soon./Sara

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  11. sara - yes, they are! they're amazing...easily my favorite zip-up-and-go short boots that go with everything. do you wear yours all the time too? they're so comfortable and just the right heel height for walking too...i'll have to check out the macy boots! :)

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  12. Yes, Grace boots are great! However, the Macy boots are probably more suitable for the Swedish winter! My shoemaker always praises the quality of Hope's shoes. They last forever. I have two more flat Hope boots that I've used for 4 years now, and they still look and feel great.

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