We at Cad & The Dandy consider overcoats to be a capital investment. For in addition to wear above tailoring, overcoats can easily mix into the rest of your wardrobe, sliding effortlessly over rollnecks or Shetland sweaters on the weekend.

 For the purpose of this guide, we’re going to take a brief survey of the bespoke overcoating options available to Cad & The Dandy customers, from the classic single breasted to the nautically inspired peacoat to what’s become something of a house signature, The Greatcoat. 

Single Breasted Overcoats

Close your eyes and imagine a group of commuters returning home from Manhattan or the City of London sometime in fall or winter. You’ve likely pictured them in a dark, single breasted coat with notched lapels and either flapped or side entry lower pockets.

This is the classic single breasted overcoat, a sober affair fitting for wear above a proper business suit when temperatures run cold. Its more formal nature makes it less likely than the other entries on this list to pair with denim on a weekend. For that same reason, its palette runs dark, with navy, charcoal or black being its typical colors, though some might also spring for camel. Wool or wool cashmere fabrics are typically utilized here, although some may also pull for 100% cashmere. 

Double Breasted Overcoats

While its button stance gets the name recognition, there’s more to the double breasted overcoat than that particular feature. In addition to its distinct button arrangement, double breasted overcoats tend to have peaked lapels, as well as other classic tailored details such as a half-belted back or turn back cuffs. While drawn from traditional tailoring, these extra features actually have the effect of making the overcoat more versatile, and amenable for wear with other garments beyond business attire.

Peacoats

The peacoat is one of many men’s garments to emerge from the naval services, and it is marked by a double-breasted stance, side entry pockets and a shorter length that makes it better-suited to wear in casual environments. 

Just don’t mistake its abbreviated (at least in comparison to the other entries on this list) length for a lack of insulation. Peacoats were intended to keep sailors warm in frigid, North Atlantic conditions, and were traditionally made from heavy woolen cloths. In keeping with its original purpose, Cad & The Dandy likes to steer clients to cloths that clock in anywhere from 20 to 30oz for a peacoat commission. 

Greatcoats 

“Greatcoat” is sometimes used as a catch-all term for any coat extending to the shins or below, but the model that Cad & The Dandy has put at the forefront of its Ready to Wear collection (but continues to offer bespoke, of course) has a more specific origin. Cad & The Dandy’s house model hearkens back to the age of Napoleon, when officers might be spotted in sweeping coats that fell to their calves if not the floor (the better to serve as a blanket if necessary) and were further distinguished by details including a half belted back, a rear center pleat, turnback cuffs, a double-breasted button stance and sweeping Ulster lapels. 

All of those features are incorporated into Cad & The Dandy’s greatcoat, an apologetically grand piece of statement outerwear that can nonetheless serve beside jeans and captoe boots as it can a three piece suit and oxfords. Perhaps because it draws so much attention to itself based on the design alone, it’s a great choice for a more understated fabric such as the undyed English wool that’s become a hallmark of Marling & Evans.

Read on...

Polo Coats

Like the previous entry, the polo coat originated in the field, albeit the field of sport rather than battle. More specifically, it was originally intended to warm English polo players between chukkas, hence its roomy, robe like fit. 

As it migrated from English polo fields to American college campuses, it took on more classical overcoat features including turnback cuffs, a double-breasted buttoning stance, peaked lapels and a belted back. But what separated it from similarly styled English overcoats was its roomy, even slouchy, cut, and a soft construction. Both distinctions endeared it first to American college students, and later Hollywood leading men, two seemingly disparate groups united in their pursuit of effortless yet elegant style. 

Classically made from camel hair, polo coats can also be tailored from navy woolens or wool cashmere blends for a more subtle and sober feel or made up in an exploded check or herringbone for maximal effect. 

Raincoats 

Admittedly in a slightly different category than the overcoat, raincoats are still a vital consideration when filling out the wardrobe. Unlike a waxed jacket or a waterproof slicker, tailored raincoats will be designed specifically to slider over the shoulders and sleeves of a suit jacket or sport coat allowing for greater comfort and a fuller range of motion. To deliver on raincoats, Cad & The Dandy has partnered with heritage English maker Mackintosh to gives its fully waterproof outerwear a bespoke fit.