Trying to buy a jacket

[redbird]

Coats, and other clothing stuff

My body shape has changed over the last couple of years, which means that a bunch of clothing that used to fit doesn't.


I've lost some weight. This isn't an accomplishment or a medical issue; it's a fact, and one that feels weird sometimes. (At some point I hope to post a bit more about weight and body image stuff.)

The immediate problem is that I need a fall/spring weight jacket. The one I've been wearing for the last few years is now loose around my middle, and the elastic at the bottom no longer keeps cold air out. My long wool coat doesn't fit either, but I didn't wear it very often, and my parka does still fit.

This morning, I took the wool coat downtown, donated it to the NYCares charity coat drive, and then had some tea while waiting for Macy's to open.

Four stores later, I had learned a few things. First, it's mid-November, and there aren't a lot of fall-weight jackets on display. Mostly there are serious winter coats, and some light windbreakers and fleece hoodies. This is inconvenient for me personally, but it makes sense: you shouldbe able to buy a winter coat at this time of year.

Second, I seem to still be a size/shape that the clothing industry doesn't believe in, though a different one than a few years ago. A lot of women's coats are made for women with very thin upper arms, narrower shoulders than I have, or both. (I found a couple of men's jackets that fit my torso and even shoulders, but the sleeves were much too long for me, no surprise there.)

Third, PSA: if you are at all bothered by blinking lights, avoid JCPenney, at least until next year.

After four stores and about 90 minutes, I needed a break. I decided that a quick stop in the Village to buy coffee beans counted: I knew Porto Rico would have them in stock, and I wouldn't have to try anything on. They did, and I saw a light-purple rhododendron in bloom in Minetta Triangle. Seasons? What seasons? Then I met cattitude for lunch in Chinatown, and he accompanied me to REI. OK, make that five stores that didn't have the right jackets for me, but I was sort of expecting that. The REI stop counts as successful, because I got the socks I wanted, we got the light-weight first aid kit Cattitude wanted (after discovering during Sandy that we didn't have one), and he even found some gloves that seem to fit him.

(Fortunately, my glove size has not changed.)

Just to complicate matters, both the jacket I'm replacing and my parka came from catalogs. I don't feel comfortable buying a new jacket from a catalog, because the size charts aren't specific enough, and would have steered me toward some of the things that didn't come close to fitting this morning. Right now, I don't even know which companies are likely to make anything that fits me: I used to have some idea, but that was for a different-shaped me.

Comments

[jesse_the_k]

I hear you about coats. I could never get one that fit both upper and lower me. My body is also changing — I'm putting it down to post-menopausal meander.

Luckily now I have a vast leather winter cape. Depending on the temperature, I pile between two and five layers of warm stuff underneath it, and the cape seals in the warmth.

Good luck in your search!

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

The season-ahead thing can be deeply obnoxious. Online catalogs like Land's End help with things like gloves where you don't need to try it on in advance. I'm sorry they won't work here.

[redbird]

The thing I really like online catalogs for is "I like this shirt/pair of pants/widget but it's wearing out, so I need another just like it." The black jacket I need to replace, in fact, is one I bought after wearing out a blue one just like it.

[bohemiancoast.livejournal.com]

I was going to recommend Land's End anyway, because they're so very helpful with returns and guarantees, and because I've had numerous phone calls with them of the 'can you tell me the exact size of this measurement, because the web site says loose-fitting...' and 'I know there's nothing in your current catalogue, but are you still selling x...'.

[beginning.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the JCPenney warning.

I've been having a similar issue. L. L. Bean was my solution. I did in-store measurements to make sure we got the sizing right, and then they placed the order for me and had the coat shipped for free.

Also, although I know it's rarely a first choice for people, the selection at K-Mart is really not bad. I've bought several coats there over the years because they carry lots of different sizes and weights.

[athenais.livejournal.com]

Curiously enough, I bought a wool pea coat from Macy's today, a London Fog 1X in chili color. It was expensive-ish, though on sale, but I really needed a warm short winter coat. I went in person as I cannot ever trust catalogs to get my size right.

[quility.livejournal.com]

When I lived in NYC I had success at Burlington Coat factory.

And now I love Goodwill. Lots of sizes... little consistency. I don't remember ever seeing a Goodwill in NYC...

Good luck in your quest!

[redbird]

Burlington Coat Factory is one of the places I tried this morning.

[daharyn.livejournal.com]

There are lots of goodwill locations here in NYC! You just have to keep an eye out, they're not obvious. But there's a great one near my teaching job in the west 20s that I visit all the time. :)

[redbird]

Where in the West 20s, please?

[daharyn.livejournal.com]

http://www.yelp.com/biz/goodwill-new-york

W. 25th St.

[papersky.livejournal.com]

Was there nothing at the place you donated the old one? Thrift stores tend to be much less focused on the season ahead, at least around here.

[redbird]

I didn't take it to a thrift store: there's an annual "coats for the homeless" charity drive, based on the fact that homeless people generally don't have a place to store coats during the summer, so they need new(ish) ones every year. This year they've started early, because more coats are needed after Hurricane Sandy.

[daharyn.livejournal.com]

Hmm, I don't know if this will be as helpful as I want it to be, but Land's end has a partnership with Sears, so they sell their stuff there. If you tried on some stuff in person, maybe that would give you an idea of the size range that works for you now, and thus how the jackets might fit? Then you could order (perhaps over the phone; they are helpful people) with more confidence. I think I would suggest a look at Sears anyway; they pleasantly surprised me recently.

If you're ever in Queens, I tend to visit the big shopping complexes off of Queens Blvd in Rego Park. There are two, one right behind the other--one has a Sears, the other places like Century 21 (one of the C21 locations might be worth a look, but I don't know for sure, as they don't do clothes in my size).