New overcoat commission - What colour? - Page 2

LOL at the bald guy trying to be a model. FAIL.

Who the hell would take photos of Luca Rubinacci! 

 

 

A camel polo coat (such as the one pictured in the OP) is traditional even with black tie, at least in the US. I have a RTW one from O'Connels (with peak lapels, which isn't ideal) and wear it with everything despite the fact that I've got other overcoats (loden, navy, large herringbone). I wouldn't buy it again because the cloth isn't great, but still.

Wouldn't black be a better choice for a first overcoat?

Have been in the tailoring business over 40 years and can only remember making 2 black cashmere topcoats over that time span. Not very popular with my clientele.

If you like dark colors, get a charcoal overcoat. Looks much better IMO.

LOL at the old guy with the big ears and sheepdog trying to be a model...FAIL.

I have a medium gray overcoat, and absolutely love it. It's not a common color in an overcoat for some reason, but it really works quite well. If you think camel might be a bit too much, but you don't want something as droll and boring as charcoal or navy, that could be an option. Or a light gray. Or an olive. Or brown.

I've always really liked that one. It'd get noticed more than Alden's charcoal-brown, but it is beautiful. And in SB, it can go from country to city. In DB, it's the perfect daytime coat for the suburbs.

Navy - no question.

If you go with navy, charcoal or black, change the styling of the coat. If you like the styling of the coat in your picture, don't do it in navy, charcoal or black.

Really! Wow black cashmere can look so deep and lustrous almost like mink! My black cashmere is definitly a little more lustrous than my navy one. Both from the same H&S cloth bunch. Just a fluke?

I had to get rid of my last navy overcoat about a year or two ago; can't remember exactly when. In the winter(s) between, it was very noticeable by its absence. I can't remember an item of clothing that I've missed more. I have other useful (and not so useful) colours - chocolate brown solid, mid-grey solid, two different brown plaids - but kept wishing I still had the navy option. With suits especially, navy works so much better than any other colour IMO. I recently bought a navy cashmere overcoat to fill the gap. Probably overpaid, but sod it, it's rare to find one in a size & style that I like and it wasn't more expensive than getting one MTM, so...

 

Having said that, I don't think it's possible to have one overcoat that works with all of the different styles the OP wants. Either the colour or the style will be off. The overcoat in the photo is inherently quite casual/sporty, and takes to a similar fabric, like camel. Despos has gone into a lot of detail upthread about this; listen to him.

 

The closest I've seen to a universal coat is the (IIRC) Ich Dien's martingala-styled navy coat. It's just about funky and informal enough for sporty/casual looks, certainly fine for odd jackets, and just about dark and sober enough for casual-ish suits. It wouldn't work with a very Citified suited look, but it's still pretty versatile in style & colour.

I would go with Navy or Charcoal. Both more versatile than tan, though I do like tan for the daytime.

Also, depending on your budget I'm not sure I would go with MyTailor. I've only ever ordered shirts from them, but I did find the quality fairly poor.

A good overcoat should last you a long time, it's an investment piece, so I would explore your options (mtm or bespoke in toronto perhaps) or higher end RTW.

Some navy overload in here, I'll put in a vote for camel.