Can Puffer Coats Be Cool? A Guide On Selecting Slay-Worthy Puffers

Fashion

Feb 7

It’s six degrees in NYC today. My beautifully-tailored menswear-inspired long wool coat simply will not due to keep me warm when I head out this afternoon to meet with a fashion business consultant to chat about ways we might collab. It’s time to break out the full-on ankle-grazing, thoroughly-insulated hooded puffer, and thank god I finally found one that doesn’t relegate me to fashion mediocrity with the rest of the normcore bores walking the wintery city streets in their unremarkable Canada Goose coats. (They. Are. Everywhere.) I get it; they’re super warm. But are they cute? (Editor writes rhetorically.) That coat is far too basic for a gal who wants to make a statement with her wardrobe no matter the time of year or the temp. (Also, not super interested in paying upwards of $1,000 on a puffer at the moment. #NotQuiteThereYet.)

Puffers are tricky: they’re definitely necessary in below freezing temps, (and this wind chill, OMG), but most of them are totally lame looking. And if you’re a kindred spirit such that style trumps lame-looking-but-warm-clothes - you understand when I say the puffer coat struggle is real. Well, fret no longer, like-minded ladies! Enter savvy fashion editor who knows how to find the coolest clothes!

I’ve pinpointed the pitfalls of puffer coats and am offering up some What to Try Instead shopping tips for finding one that lets the world know you are traffic-stopping-sensational no matter the weather!

Pitfall #1: The cookie-cutter cut (anything for a fashion pun!)

So many of the puffers on the mass market look the same. Why? Because they have the same cut; i.e., the shape of the coats does not differ much among the mainstream selection.

What to try instead: Look for a puffer with an interesting cut. Such as:

Faux-Fur Collar Quilted Puffer Coat by The Kooples $243

Sleeping Bag Oversized Shell Coat by Norma Kamali $800

Pitfall #2: Bland black

Okay, I admit it, my puffer is black. (What can I say; I’m a stereotypical New Yorker that way). But, I’m off the hook because the cool oversized cocoon cut of my wearable sleeping bag makes the coat stand out. A bland color on a boring cut serves no one.

What to try instead: If you connect with color, consider these brighter options:

Matte Freestyle Short Down Puffer by SAM $325

SPACESHIP Jacket in Gunmetal by Jocelyn $795

Oversized Color-block Puffer by Tommy Jeans $349

Pitfall #3: Sleepy solids

Most outerwear comes in solids because we want our coats to have versatility. I mean, I can barely fit my one giant puffer coat in my tiny NYC closet; a puffer coat collection is spatially out of the question. I need one coat that goes with everything. That said, if you’re daring and have the closet space to support both an everyday puffer and one to wear on occasion, this tip is for you!

What to try instead: A puffer with a print is a no-fail approach to adequate warmth with an exclamation point.