Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Lifestyle
Jess Cartner-Morley

Jess Cartner-Morley on fashion: the number-one rule for coats this winter – make it long

A young woman with a blond bob wearing pale blue jeans with a belt, brown loafers, a pale top with a tie neck, and a long bold check coat
Styling: Melanie Wilkinson. Photograph: David Newby/The Guardian

I shouldn’t tell you this, because I’m effectively doing myself out of a job, but there’s really only one thing you need to know about fashion this season. I mean, there are a thousand and one ways to tie a scarf or curate your necklaces or layer your knitwear – and I fully intend to bend your ear about all of them over the coming months – but at a pinch you could follow this single dictum, ignore absolutely all of the rest of it and be good to go.

Your coat needs to be long. That’s it, that’s the big news. If your coat reaches almost to your ankles, you will look as if you know your stuff style-wise. Like your hairstyle or the width of your jeans, the length of your coat is one of those details that is a fashion tell. It does not lie. It gives you away, for better or for worse. Someone walking towards you will register it, and it will place you on the style spectrum before they are close enough to see your face.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.