eBear

The wool-coat hunt is (probably) over

Wool coat saga, who wants updates?

Over the weekend, I dragged the 3-year-old (in stroller, the day thus far having been entirely 3-year-old-centric) to Stella Luna, the weekends-only epic used clothing store at the base of Roncesvalles on Queen. Coats there are more or less done for the season (did however get a spectacular Miss Flood silk scarf; the brand is literally “Vera”), and that shop had been my last-hurrah irl thought on the matter.

The Miss Flood section of my closet

But I hadn’t given up entirely! I was cycling back and forth between various possibilities: Aritzia (ideally sale or Poshmark) and make peace with the same thing everyone else has and whichever % acrylic? Engage in financial foolishness and get the higher-quality Sandro one that’s over $600 and final sale but had the advantage of I saw someone (much taller than me) wearing it in person and can attest it looks good? Hope something materializes on Poshmark that I would be willing to risk crossing the $100 barrier on a Poshmark thing?

New coats have the advantage of, not already worn out, and you look of your own era. Vintage ones: better materials, better cuts, unique, time-travel. I guess I had my answer. What I don’t have: time to aimlessly (well, not aimlessly) browse Toronto’s used clothing stores during daytime hours when these are open.

Then it happened: I found The Coat. On eBay. $44 USD (yes, a US seller), the exact brand/size/vintage of the two Miss Flood blazers I have from Poshmark and am obsessed with, but in the color/shape I was looking for coat-wise. (Black, all-wool, slouchy but not as dramatically so as the Aritzia “Slouch.”) This is both the silhouette I prefer and a better bet when buying something can’t be tried on.

I thought to look on eBay simply because Poshmark Canada is a more limited pool, and I had seen all of its wool coats. I didn’t want the big fish in small pond coat, I wanted The Coat. While shipping fees are high and some countries charge duty, I wanted to see the full of what was out there, not just what someone happened to be getting rid of nearby. With eBay I could simply scour the planet (or Canada plus the States, given what the fees turned out to be from the UK!) for 1980s-1990s all-wool Jaeger and see what popped up. This can be done on Etsy as well but for reasons I don’t understand everything there is now $200 more than seems plausible, a problem when you’re looking for things in the $50 range.

About the coat: It’s not quite as long as I’d been picturing (maybe, hard to say, but not dramatically ankle-sweeping, which is probably for the best), nor does it come with claims of warmth up to some implausible-for-wool temperature. But I’ll take Jaeger of the “made in England” years and all-wool over Thinsulate lining, whichever % polyamide shell, and the false promise of being able to wear a coat in January that cannot be worn in Toronto until March. (Though it seems oversize enough for layering?)

Was this perhaps too perfect? The too-good blazers but in coat shape and material? And with a high up enough closure so it wouldn’t be entirely useless as a coat? (Winter coats do not need decolletage.) Had I cracked some kind of code?

I checked with the seller that the lining isn’t ripped (you have to, or you have the walk of shame to the dry cleaner who knows you and is like you again with the crummy used clothes, maybe buy something new from a store, I can’t fix/tailor that), was reassured it is in good condition, and bought it. Even with currency exchange and assorted fees (but not the tariffs!! making use of the month-long reprieve) it barely cleared $100 CAD.

How does it look on, though? No idea. It should arrive by early March which, as established, is fine. It is near-guaranteed to fit and to be the thing I have been looking for, at a price I find acceptable.

Damn straight it sold!

The problem?