Advice needed for a navy overcoat

[MidnightSuntan]

Hi guys, long time reader of the forum here.

I'm looking for advice on buying a winter overcoat. I'd like it to fit over and work with navy and charcoal suits as well as more casual outfits like sweaters and jeans, and I would prefer it in navy as it seems to suit me better than grey or brown.

From my research I gathered that two of the most versatile styles are ulster coats and balmacaans. I quite like the look and feel of ulsters (all double breasted coats really) but I get the impression that they can make an outfit look a bit like a costume, though I've only had compliments on my peacoat which is sized to fit over a jacket. On the other hand, balmacaans seem more relaxed, but I feel the A-line silhouette may not suit my build and swallow me up without any sort of defined waist suppression. For reference, I'm 6'4 tall with a 43" chest and 34" waist and I'd like the coat to reach around my knees, which means a length somewhere in the range of 40-45".

My grail I've wanted for some time is this coat by Marks and Spencer, which is sadly no longer offered. Then I recently ran across this similar coat from Belstaff that I'm tempted to buy, though it does look a little more like a long peacoat. Alternatively, there's this PWVC balmacaan in navy/black donegal tweed, a fabric I really like, which might be a bit more versatile but I suspect less flattering for my build.

So in short, I would love opinions from you fine people on which out of the Belstaff or PWVC would work best, or recommendations for other coats that might suit my needs if I'm far off-base with the coats I've linked above. Thanks in advance

 

[johng70]

I'm not a fan of the PWVC - don't like the material used. I love tweed, just not that tweed for an overcoat - too busy.
Yes, the Belstaff looks like a bridge coat (long peacoat). Nothing wrong with that if you like the look.
What I do like about it is the length - it seems a lot of men's overcoats these days are shorter - which I don't like because they don't protect your pants as well as a full length - especially if you have to sit down outside. So, I'm a big advocate of a full length like the Belstaff.

Now, to me, the other critical factor is the warmth of the coat. Where I live in USA our winters are 20-30 degrees F. So, a number of the thinner weight coats just aren't warm enough. The Belstaff coat doesn't seem to list the fabric weight so that would have me curious. For example, I have a great peacoat from Crombie with Loro Piana wool. Looks and feels great - but it's a thin weight - so really not well suited for my winter without layering.

I had 2 overcoats made by Bookster Tailoring - one in their Coating fabric (charcoal) and one in Keeper's Tweed which is actually warmer. They're a similar price point but they're all made to order - last year it was about 3 months wait time for items - not sure what it's like now. But it's great that you can design your own coat (single, double breasted, outer fabric, lining, etc). Definitely an option - I've been very happy with my overcoats from there.

 

[ter1413]

I don't like the PWVC as the pockets are "peace coat styled". I would take the Belstaff one that one by a mile.