Trench Coat Rocks!

This summer sees the welcome return to fashion for something of a timeless classic: the trench coat.  The trench coat is welcome not just as a practical addition to the wardrobe when faced with the challenging personality of the British summer.

The trench coat speaks of classic 20th Century poise and style, Audrey Hepburn-in-Paris glamour.  The trench coat has a strange sex appeal for a garment that covers most up most of a woman’s body, and perhaps this is due to the air of mystery resulting from this cloaking effect.

The trench has come a long way from the origins belied by the name of this coat.  There are competing claims for the invention of this design, one of which is from the British luxury clothing company Aquascutum, dating back to the 1850’s.  Later, one Thomas Burberry was to submit a design to the War Office in the U.K. for an army officer’s raincoat in 1901.  When the First World War broke out, both British and French soldiers were equipped with heavy greatcoats as a matter of course.  The trench coat was adopted as a lightweight alternative to the cumbersome greatcoat, but perhaps unsurprisingly for those who have studied British military history, the use of the superior trench coat was limited to officers and warrant officers – lower ranks were forbidden from wearing them.

After the First World War, de-mobilised officers continued to wear trench coats, and it was from this point on that the garment entered the lexicon of fashion.  Never really out of fashion, the trench coat has been re-invented time and again – for men, and particularly for women.  This summer, it is the mini-trench that is the must have summer coat for women.  An above the knee hemline and rolled up sleeves is the casual, more relaxed look to go for, wearing the trench coat open rather than belted.  Have a look online for the new twist on the trench and you’ll find plenty of suppliers such as New Look providing the coats in some fashion friendly lightweight materials that are perhaps more flexible than the traditional heavy gabardine material of the classic trench.

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