The Field Coat Is the Season’s Hardest-Working Coat
Waxed, corded or loden, the field coat now sits over tailoring as comfortably as over a fisherman’s sweater.
If one coat defines this autumn, it is not the overcoat but the field coat in its various forms: the waxed jacket, the barn coat, the cord-collared chore coat. Gear Patrol’s list of the year’s best new jackets, updated on October 2, is full of them, with waxed cotton and corduroy collars recurring from J.Crew to Quaker Marine Supply, and several takes on Barbour’s Bedale.
Barbour itself has reworked its family dress tartan for autumn/winter into a camel-and-navy sett called Birchwood, positioning the range as everyday staples. Drake’s autumn collection includes a double-breasted corduroy chore coat. Higher up, Loro Piana has revived its archive Roadster coat, and Zegna showed loden-inspired coats with broken box pleats, a nod to the traditional coats of northern Italy.
## Why it works
A field coat is cut to go over things, which makes it more versatile than a tailored topcoat. It sits over a sport coat on a weekday and a heavy knit on a Saturday, and it does not mind rain. Simon Crompton of Permanent Style is opening his autumn in a vintage wool Filson jacket with a grey crewneck and jeans.
## Choosing one
- Go roomy. Opumo’s autumn report favors a relaxed wax jacket with big patch pockets, and you need space for a jacket underneath.
- Olive, dark brown and navy are the classic colors; black looks more urban.
- A corduroy collar softens it against tailoring.
- Re-wax a waxed coat about once a year and let it dry at room temperature, never on a radiator.
For something more Italian, outerwear specialists such as Herno and Aspesi offer lighter, neater alternatives in technical and wool cloths. Whatever the label, buy one that fits over your thickest jacket. It will be worn more than any other coat you own.
