How To Pick A Quality Coat (NAPS)—There are a few important outerwear features to look for to ensure a coat will do everything from fight off wind chill and wet snowflakes to insulate and last throughout the season and beyond. Features to consider include: Adjustability While looking stylish is important, a jacket’s function ranks just as high. Adjustable features let the wearer personalize how the jacketfits or even performs during different activities. Features such as articulated elbows, adjustable toggle hem or waistline and adjustable cuffs are all useful. Extra Features Features setting the curve in outerwear are cell phone and MP3 player pockets, a stow-away hood with a welded visor and a removable snow skirt that comes in handy during extreme days on the slopes. Insulation Look for high-quality insulating materials such as PolarThin. This is a type of premium insulation made from ultrafine fibers that create more space inside a jacket, for more warmth without bulkiness. Another premium insulation is goose downfill. Using the same warming philosophy, Lands’ End uses more down and less feathers to create more insulation space, providing ultimate warmth. Water Resistance To be protected from rain, snow and sleet, look for technically advanced water-resistant finishes on coats, such as AquaCheck and DriOff. Also look for taped and sealed seams to make sure water won’t penetrate the jacket at any point. ‘i oN @ a Style, comfort and function are important when selecting outerwearfor the whole family. Temperature Ratings Making sure coats provide warmth in the worst of conditions is a very scientific process. Lands’ End uses sensored mannequins that are outfitted in outerwear, then sealed in a climate-controlled room. The companyoffers detailed temperature ratings representing a comfort range based on dressing with extra layers such as long underwearor fleece, to dressing without extra layers. Warm rating: Kids 5F to 25F; Adults 5F to 20F Warmerrating: Kids -10F to 15F; Adults -15F to 5F Warmestrating: Kids -25F to 5F; Adults -40F to -15F. Top Ten Outerwear Trends Shiny Style—tike the sunglisteningoff a frozen lake, shiny, icy metallic fabrics in golds and silvery tones provide a lustrouslook. Swing Away—Shopedto fit on top and then flaring towards the bottom hem, a fun Aine silhouette provides movement andfeminineflair. Quilted Fashion—The tiniest bit of embellishment adds a wholelot of style. Quilting in vests, parkas and even ski jackets transforms a flat finish into something much moreeye-catching and provides texture. Visions of Vests—What started as a way for skiers and hikers to havefull range of motion and movementhas blossomedinto one of the most popular fashion trends—the downvest. Pretty Puff—Puffy coats wereonceselected for ultimate warmth but are now a key fashion trend. Vests, parkas and form-fitted coats filled with down make warmth a trend of choice. Fashionable Fur—tt’s not the longfur coats of the 1980s that are making headlines but rather fur accents aroundthe collar and hood. Everything from dress coats to ski coats and accessories are sporting thesoftness of mainly synthetic fur. Inside Out—Piping, embellishments and patternsonthe inside of coats and jackets mean just as much as the outside appearance. Toasty Necklines—tThe newest neckline in outerwear provides protection from the wind and is as cozy as can be thanks to the taller collar and plush,pillow-top neck muffler design. Besides serving an actual function—warmth—these neck mufflers also bring a senseof style and sophistication to the coator jacket. Shapely Silhovettes—Foryeurs, outerwear was shapeless and bulky. New styles are designed to fit well through the shoulders, chest and torso to keep warmth in without adding extra bulk. Wonderful Color—While the dassic colors of black, browns and charcoal will never be out of style, this year, the color classics are joined by a burst of new hues. Vivid colors such as berry, pistachio green and heatherblue once reserved for ski jackets are appearingin everything from raincoats fo pea coats.
