Style Challenge: Winter Coats

Brrr! Whether it is the Polar Vortex hitting or just normal winter weather in your town, there's no denying that winter can be a bit chilly! But that is no reason to let your style suffer, so for this month's style challenge we're sharing our favorite coats and ways to style them.

Kristian of Never Fully Dressed (Without a Style)

This navy blue coat is short but surprisingly warm thanks to it's silk lining. I like to dress up any winter wear look with accessories too, like gloves, hats and scarves. Suddenly, there are so many style choices to have! Perfect for those days I want to brave the cold and tramp about in nature.

Sammi of The Soubrette Brunette

Full disclosure: I am obsessed with coats.  If I could have a matching coat for every outfit I own, I would!  As it is, I already have a pretty substantial collection -- and my more "practical" coats (for these bitter Rochester winters) aren't even shown here!  Having to wear a grubby coat with a pretty dress is always kind of a bummer for me, so I've made it my mission to fill my closet with pretty-colored, fancier coats.  I really love styling them as part of a complete outfit to complement what's underneath, rather than covering it up.  I'm always on the hunt for unique coats (two of my favorite finds include a mint green trench raincoat and a faux fur collar $10 estate sale snag), and it's a good thing I live in a colder climate so I can wear and love them often!

Lisa of Lala Faux Bois

While the rest of the country has been Polar Vortex-ing this year, here in Phoenix we've had the warmest "winter" I can remember. But if it makes you feel any better, we'll be scorching our way through summer- and based on winter, I fear it will be worse than usual. I thrifted this green beaut a couple of years ago and it's still my favorite go-to coat. Granted, I don't get much time to get sick of it...

Marisa of The Shades of Monet Chronicles

I must admit, I have basically lived in denial of winter my whole life and would do anything in my power to get around wearing a coat.  I'm pretty sure it's always Carolina in my mind :-).  However after moving to the mountains of northeast PA, it's kind of hard to turn my back to the negative degree temps and frigid winter winds.  In saying that, these two coats have been my saving grace against turning into a human icicle.  Both the classic feel of the neutral and vintage feel of the bright yellow have given so many options when it comes to remixing colors and accessories with my many dresses.

 Katie of Butterfly Loves Snapdragons

Let's face it, as a South Dakota gal I am pretty much forced to love winter coats. If I don't I'll freeze into an icicle. Because of this I've had to work to find coats that are warm, yet encompass a style that I enjoy. Enter vintage wool! Many of my coats belonged to my grandmother (or grandfather!) and make them that much more special to wear. They are made of warm wool, lined impeccably, and are so colorful! I like to add a fur collar and a hat in a contrasting color to complete the look for winter.

Dus of Cuddly Cacti

Well, winter coat season is most definitely over in Phoenix, and since it's never that long to begin with, I'm a bit bummed about it. Not that I can complain at all about our weather right now, but I definitely am not ready for it to be 80 degrees already. Today I'm going on a 7am hike to beat the scorching sun and mid-day heat, and it wasn't even my idea. Crazy I know. But as Lisa said above, you all will be enjoying summer and we'll be near dead.

Jenna of Smitten

Hailing from the great expanse of Canada, more specifically in Alberta, it's essentially winter 6-7 months out of the year here so I have to invest in a lot of outer wear. It gets a little boring having only one warm coat to wear for that length of time. My newest and most favourite winter jacket is this blue number, I find I wear a lot of darks and neutrals all winter so it's nice to have a nice bright coat to pop on. And this long plaid one is so perfect for getting dressed up and going out with friends, it's got such a classic pattern and fit.

Elana of Room 334

Despite the fact that I've been living in coats every day for the past few months, it's not often that one shows up in an outfit post. Usually I just take my coat off and risk the chance of catching frost bite instead. You know, things normal people do. This style challenge did finally convince me to leave a coat on for an outfit post (which will be on my blog later this week), and I'm glad that I can finally share my trusted coat of almost four years with all of you. In case you were wondering, I'm a sucker for toggle coats. Of course, the zipper's broken on this one and might have been replaced with a safety pin, but that's besides the point.

Erica of Sweets and Hearts

Peacoats, trench coats, car coats--give me all of them. There's just something about a nice, tailored coat that can really pull an outfit together. Unfortunately, there's really only about 2-3 weeks in December when I can actually wear them. One of my favorites in my closet is this charcoal peacoat by Tulle, which I actually got in a trade from a Facebook swap group a couple of years ago. It has an oversized boyfriend fit and looks great with jeans and dresses. Peacoats are so classic and versatile. They're my go-to coat style because they go with just about anything. (Original outfit post)

Hannah of The Braided Bandit

Living in the Rocky Mountains, I am no stranger to winter coats! Though you can most often find me in my dark green long puffy down jacket on most winter days, I also have a few more fun coats in my closet and shop that I like to add to the mix once in a while!  These are two of my favorites, as I think adding color to an outfit is super important on the greyest of days!