The tight weave of the fleece does block wind, and water to some extent, however the sleeves are exceedingly short. Any activity and half of my lower arms are exposed. The fit is otherwise great.
I am so disappointed. I found the perfect jacket. Windproof to make the walk to work much easier, hooded and a great Capri blue color. Too bad the arms, like so many others have said, are at least 2" too short!! So much for feeling warm when that part of your arms are out. I even ordered the XL but the 1/4" extra did nothing to help. The shoulders also felt tight, and it falls just slightly too short before my hip. I only had on a long sleeve t-shirt. I'm 5'11" but all my height is in my legs so I normally wear "average" size shirts / jackets. Not with this one.
Jacket was warm and smooth to touch. I would have also liked a bottom-up zipper as well for when I'm driving.
When you re-do this jacket, please let me know. Also, why can't the ladies get talls like the men do? We are willing to pay!!
I wore this jacket in Iceland, which has a brisk wind and periodic drizzle in addition to near-freezing temperatures. It blocked the wind, kept out the rain, and fit over two and three light layers. I find it's a little warm for Raleigh, NC in fall, but I'm sure it will work great as a winter jacket here. Other reviewers said it was stiff. It was, but it did not wear that way at all.
I got this jacket for the wind protection feature. I wanted it to go out nordic walking, but turns out not ideal for that (too bulky at arms and sides so arms cannot freely move from front to back). Because others wrote about the size being too tight, I got the 3X instead of 2X and it is very baggy. Too loose for exercising in the cold. it is good though as a jacket for cooler days. I have to confirm the difficulty getting into the arms. The material is sticking to the clothes too much and there is no way to slip in smoothly. Have to push into the sleeve quite hard. 3X is too bulky for me, but I can wear something underneath at least.
