THE PERFECT PUFFER

I once considered puffer jackets the exclusive domain of soccer mums and serious sailors, until I moved to London and realised there was only so long I could go ‘borrowing’ a ‘Patagucci’ without investing in the anti-chic yet v practical style.

Having said that, I managed to survive my first European winter (Paris, Brussels, Italian Dolomites ski season and Edinburgh included) without one, purely on the practical basis that a ‘good one’ (read: down filled) can be exxy, and European winters demand a ‘good one’ yet I never found one that truly caught my eye (well I did, but this was generally on the tube where any form of social interaction is very much forbidden).

Then I found my forever style crush (Christine Centenera, also proponent of the capsule wardrobe which I am yet to master), rocking a daggy dad North Face in not one but three colours (see below – style name: Women’s The North Face 1996 Retro Nuptse Jacket – if anyone would care to translate that for me I would be most appreciative) and was instantly sold:

More on the NorthFace phase here: https://fashionista.com/2018/02/nyfw-fall-2018-north-face-jacket-street-style-trend

https://www.whowhatwear.co.uk/london-coat-trends/slide17

Until, I saw a girl rocking a check puffer jacket on the tube, and ran home and frantically searched Pinterest, Google and ASOS for check puffer jackets.

Then two weeks later saw a friend styling this ba&sh jacket and knew it was the belted life for me:

Then two weeks down the track was walking to work and despite the first sign of coronavirus hitting the news stand, against all social etiquette I tapped a girl on the shoulder and asked her where she had gotten her jacket from (note, I had been walking behind her to work for about 2 weeks before I finally got the courage to ask her – and for those of you no doubt on the edge of your seats, it’s from Perfect Moment Sports ($$$)).

I have since also found the below (someone let me know if SAM NYC is a brand I have been missing out on all my life).

So whilst I am mostly sold on the above, I will note that despite once being the domain of the daggy dad and generally coming in a solid range of blacks and navies, these once-thought-horrific jackets are now all the rage (and thank god because they are actually damn warm and smell a lot better than a woollen coat when you’ve just trodden home in the rain on a miserable Wednesday evening) and are available in all colours and styles imaginable. Even better, if you are down on dosh (or you just live in Australia and are therefore really only wearing a puffer jacket because everyone else seems to be at the moment and not because you need the warmth) you can buy them sans down extremely reasonably. Like, Kmart reasonably.

Some options below (note brands like PrettyLittleThing, Boohoo and Missguided all have their own take on the trend in many different colours (khaki was one I was very keen on for a while), while Uniqlo also has down jackets at a reasonable price point).