My Hunt for a Not-Too-Expensive Wool Overcoat

100 percent pima cotton; unlined

I’m starting with this fall coat I bought last August as an example of a silhouette that works extremely well with chunky knits. It has a relaxed A-line silhouette, raglan sleeves, and a button tab in the back vent for more adjustability. The shell is cotton, and the coat is unlined (with wool-blend cuffs and collar), and I can wear this only for a couple months out of the year, but I am constantly getting compliments on it. Someone once asked if it was The Row. Last year, it was about $100 less and came in black, but I have seriously been contemplating getting it in green, too, because it’s such a good coat. COS is calling it a car coat for its swingy style and shorter length, though I will say that it is extremely oversize. I sized down to the XXS, and it’s still pretty relaxed on me and quite long (I’m five-foot-two). I always wear it cuffed because otherwise the sleeves are rather long, but I think it actually looks better that way.

100 percent camel hair; lined

This coat I called in from Quince is made from 100 percent camel hair and is extremely soft. It’s a slouch coat, which means it has an oversize, slightly cocoon-y silhouette around the hips. I got this in an extra small, but I probably should have sized up as it’s a little snug. It definitely works with a voluminous sweater thanks to its dropped shoulders, but because the fabric is very pliable (because of how soft it is), it’s a bit too relaxed for my taste and doesn’t drape as nicely because it’s on the lighter side. I would call this a solid coat for fall, when you’re wearing thinner layers. And I love how luxurious the camel hair feels.

72 percent recycled wool, 28 percent polyamide; lined

Because I love my COS car coat so much, I thought I’d try some of the brand’s cold-weather jackets. At the store in Soho, I saw this double-breasted coat that fit my search criteria. It was mostly wool, oversize, long, and with dropped shoulders. I don’t remember which size I tried on, most likely an extra small, but it was quite large. Too slouchy, in fact, and looked sloppy on me. The fabric was on the lighter side and therefore didn’t drape as nicely on me, either. And for nearly $500, I thought it was overpriced.

100 percent 360 GSM Donegal tweed; lined

I also stopped by the Buck Mason store to try on this classic balmacaan coat, which gets its name from an estate near Inverness, Scotland, where the style is said to have originated. The overcoat is typically made from a rougher wool like tweed, and Buck Mason’s take incorporates all of these details. The single-breasted coat is made from Donegal tweed woven in Ireland by artisans at Magee and has a relaxed and roomy cut with raglan sleeves, flap patch pockets, cuff tabs, and a back vent. I wanted to love this coat because I started my search with an authentic balmacaan in mind, but I quickly realized that this kind of tweed fabric is too soft and unstructured and therefore not very flattering. Worn over layers, it looks lumpy as the fabric doesn’t drape or smooth what is underneath. And the coat ends up looking a little shapeless and frumpy. But it’s a very cool coat if you’re looking for something a bit more masculine and casual that you can throw on over your clothes, though it is definitely on the higher end of the price spectrum.

70 percent virgin wool, 20 percent nylon, 10 percent cashmere; lined

Aritzia makes nice, classic coats at a good price point. There are tons of styles, fabrics, and colors, and you can usually find something that works for you. You can even find 100-percent-wool options if you look carefully. The coat I wore all last winter was from Aritzia (more below), so I already knew what to expect. I called in two coats to test. The Beatrix and the Constant are more tailored coats, but I wanted to see how they fit. This one is 70 percent virgin wool and 10 percent cashmere and is on the thinner side. The material feels soft to the touch. (The fabric was made in Italy, but the coat was made in Romania.) I like the double-breasted closure and pointed collar, and it looks quite smart on. It has narrow shoulders, so a chunky knit wouldn’t necessarily work very well. I got it in small, and it is true to size. It’s not technically an overcoat, but I still like this coat and would add it to my rotation.

70 percent virgin wool, 20 percent nylon, 10 percent cashmere; lined

This is the other coat from Aritzia I tested. It has the same material composition as the Beatrix and is also made in Romania from Italian fabric. It’s double-breasted with a peaked lapel, and the gold buttons against the navy makes it look vaguely military, which I like. It has regular sleeves and narrow shoulders, so this would be more of an evening coat, but I think it looks quite nice for how much it costs. I also got this in size small. Again, not an overcoat, but a nice option nonetheless that I would be happy to include in my wardrobe.

46 percent wool, 37 percent alpaca wool, 17 percent polyester

British label Toast makes coats that, to me, at least, look straight out of a book set in the English countryside (basically, the coats of my cottage dreams). I went to the store on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn to do a little cosplay. They’re expensive — on the opposite end of the price spectrum, to be precise — but so nice. I love the shape, dark brown color, and lapels of this tweed herringbone coat that actually reminds me of a vintage one I picked up on the Lower East Side over a decade ago. It’s roomy with dropped shoulders and fits very nicely over a chunky knit, but the fabric, like that of the Buck Mason balmacaan, is more flexible as it’s made of an alpaca-wool blend. The silhouette is quite nice, but it’s a softer, more flowy coat. It’s also a little more masculine, which I appreciate. For $1,200, though, it’s too expensive, considering it’s made of a blended material.

100 percent wool; lined

I also tried on a men’s coat at Toast because I think the look that I’m after is, at the end of the day, inspired by menswear. This is made of a 100-percent-wool tweed, which felt a little more structured than the fabric of the herringbone coat above. I tried the men’s small because the extra small wasn’t available at the time, but it wasn’t as oversize as I was expecting. The sleeves were naturally a bit long on me, and the extra small might have worked better, but it’s a nice option for someone taller.

86 percent wool, 14 percent polyamide; lined

This was a very nice coat but, again, too expensive for something made of a wool blend. It’s roomy without being frumpy and could accommodate a thick sweater, it’s a not-too-long-on-me length, and it’s very soft to the touch but perhaps a little too plain to demand such a high price.

100 percent wool; lined

This is the coat that lured me into the store in the first place. It’s made from Italian woven wool in a golden multicolor houndstooth that reads a bit playful and fairy-tale thanks to its swingy A-line silhouette. It’s single-breasted with big patch pockets and a collar I can easily stand up. It most closely resembles my COS car coat in shape and spirit. The raglan sleeves are comfortable and easily accommodate bulky layers underneath. I tried on both the extra small and small and decided that the small was a better fit. The 100 percent wool has a nice structure to it and drapes well. If it weren’t for the over-$1,000 price tag, this would be one of my top choices.

78 percent virgin wool, 12 percent polyamide, 10 percent cashmere; lined

This might be cheating a little bit, but I already owned this coat when I set off on my hunt. I got it last January and wore it for two winters in a row, and it’s just so easy to wear. It’s the slouch coat from Aritzia’s Babaton line (confusingly, Aritzia’s general brandalso makes a slouch coatthat’s very similar). Mine is made in Romania from 100 percent wool from Italy that has a slight texture and could possibly be boiled wool. The coats on the site currently are made of a wool-cashmere blend, but all the other details are the same. It’s double-breasted and has a relaxed, cocoon-y shape with dolman sleeves. It’s the coat I throw on over chunky sweaters and other layers without having to think too much about what I am wearing or how it looks. It’s not the warmest coat — on the coldest days, I’ll opt for a giantpuffer— but because of its relaxed cut, I can layer up underneath and then finish off my outfit with a big mohair scarf. And I’m not precious about it at all. It’s a hardy coat.

55 percent recycled wool, 22 percent polyester, 20 percent recycled polyester, 3 percent other fibers; lined

This was the most surprising coat by far. All the other ones I tried were similar styles. This is the only wrap coat I tried, and I requested it because I got a PR email showing Sienna Miller wearing it out and about in London and I liked how cool such a relatively inexpensive coat looked on her. It’s made of a wool blend, but of all the wool-blend coats I tried, this fabric felt the thickest and heftiest. It’s also the heaviest by weight. I love the oversize lapel especially, and the cuff detail is a nice touch. The tie is secured by three thick loops to ensure that it doesn’t slip out. In other words, it’s a lot of coat for under $400. While it has standard sleeves, because it is a wrap coat and therefore more adjustable, it works well with layers. (I got it in a U.K. size six, which is equivalent to a U.S. size two, or about an extra small, according to the brand’s size chart.) I wore it with one of my thickest sweaters and was able to maneuver my arms comfortably. I wore it tied and untied, and I got a lot of up-and-down looks by passersby who I assume were checking out my outfit. It feels like a very luxurious bathrobe — but one you wear outside. For its price and the amount of coat that you get for it, it’s by far one of the best coats you can get for the money. It’s also thewarmestof all the ones I tested.