Bought this jacket for my wife for Christmas. She loves it, and can't think of anything bad about the coat. Well made, great quality as we expect from LL Bean.
I live in Singapore - hot, humid and... hot. I was concerned about the cold for my winter hols in Europe, and wanted something that would keep me warm without too much layering and this coat was it. I'm busty, 5'4 and after getting the LLBean Customer Service recommendation, I got the Large. Great fit!
It's travelled with me through Munich and much of Bavaria, Salzburg, Venice and Barcelona through most of December 2014and January 2015. I was able to get by with just a warm thermal long-sleeve t-shirt (or just a thin lambswool sweater T), a large thick wool infinity scarf that I draped across my chest, leggings or jeans, boots, socks, leather gloves and knitted hat. And this coat. And I was fine!!! There were a couple of days when I had to throw on a thick sweater, and this coat had plenty of room still.
At one point in Salzburg, we got caught in the rain. Now this coat is NOT waterproof and only somewhat water resistant. I just shook out the excess water and drapped it near the heater and voila! by the morning, it was warm and DRY! By the way, I did not get any feathers poking through.
I love the 2 internal pockets and 2 external pockets - they allowed me to go bag-free (hate carrying a bag and being wary about pickpockets etc), just keeping a small wallet in one, iPhone in another and tissues in the third. Perfect!
It packs easily, squishing down to a small pack in a space-saver bag. A great investment and will last me a long time and on many more trips.
I've just returned from a few weeks in the North East, where the daytime and early evening temps dipped into the low '20s (lower with windchill), and although I reviewed this coat for fit, construction, and appearance earlier in the season, I wanted to add comments about warmth. As someone who does NOT do well in the cold, I'm so impressed by the fact that while wearing this coat (and a light or medium-weight sweater), I was completely comfortable in what, to me, was severe weather. My sister, who had purchased the same coat in the longer length, had the same reaction. What a great coat! And whereas, in my earlier review, I did complain a bit about how closely the velcro fastens around the neck, I would now say it was essential to keeping out the cold and wind. The only negative comments I could make would be about the fur trim on the hood, which looks awfully tacky, and the fact that the small buttons tethering the hood to the coat pop off too easily. [I've now lost one, but caught the other just in time as it feel off.] All in all, though, I'm very happy to have made the purchase.
I had high hopes for this coat since it has an adequate amount of insulation, and I like the fact that the fur trim can be removed. Unfortunately, it's too big for me. I'm 4'11", 95 lbs, and a petite XS was huge! Plus, the coat is unflattering since there's too much room at the waist, making me look like a big balloon (if the coat did fit). I hope LLBean offers petite XXS or petite P soon, and perhaps add some curves at the waist. Otherwise, the coat is warm. I like the design at the collar. If the coat did fit, I probably won't need a scarf.
