Iceland Fashion Report - YouLookFab Forum

We're back and we had a fabulous time - it was hard to come home! We would go again in a heartbeat. I took 300 photos but will only share the fashion-related ones with YLF.

Fashion in Iceland is all about practicality. The weather isn't as cold as you might think, hovering around freezing, and they don't get as much snow as we get here in Boston. However, the weather changes constantly. One minute it will be pelting rain, then comes hail, then snow, then back to rain again. And there is often a high wind.

Therefore, practical outerwear - preferably something that is rain repellant - is a necessity in Iceland. Hats that cover the ears are a must. A scarf comes in handy. Warm gloves. And flat, warm, dry boots that have good traction on the ice.

Underneath all that practical gear, the women dress very nice. Lots of black and gray (it's practical!), but I saw woolen skirts, tights and interesting patterned socks worn with boots. If your coat is warm enough, you don't need a heavy sweater because inside the stores, restaurants and houses are kept quite toasty warm by geothermal heating. This mode of heating keeps things warm enough that it is common to leave a few windows open.

On with the photos!

I brought only two coats on this trip. This is coat number 1; it hits at my thigh. The hood was perfect in the high winds, and this puffer was just the right weight for the "milder" (i.e, rainy) days. Unfortunately, the third day into the trip, the zipper got stuck, DH tried to help me, and the zipper broke. I will have to figure out how to get it fixed!!

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The rest of the time, I lived in this coat, my $60 down bargain from Bloomies:

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I don't care any longer whether I look like the marshmallow man in this coat - it is very, very warm!! I can wear this on the coldest of days and be quite toasty. I got away with wearing light layers underneath with no problem.

As for the fox fur collar (which is removeable)... yes, I know some may object to the real fur, but after being in Iceland, you learn just how practical real fur is. Fake fur just can't perform as well. I don't begrudge anyone living in that climate for wearing real fur.

Here I am keeping toasty warm inside an ice bar:
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These black boots were warm enough for walking around town, but completely impractical for our adventures outside of town, exploring the Golden Circle and other natural wonders. That's where the Uggs came in handy! You can say what you want about Uggs, but they perform fabulous in the snow and probably saved me from gangrene - when our car got stuck in 3 feet of snow in a mountain ravine ...

I don't have a photo of that part of our adventure, but I will say that I did learn the impracticality of a white puffer: the people who finally rescued us drove us out of the mountain ravine in the back of a rusty old truck that probably usually carted around fish. The man was very apologetic, worrying my white coat would get smudged. At that point, I couldn't care less about the coat! LOL! But, my coat somehow came through relatively unscathed.

After that adventure, we invested in some 66 North clothing. You can buy this brand over the internet, and even in a shop near where we live, but we checked and the prices were MUCH cheaper in Iceland. I bought a top and pants and wore my Uggs whenever we ventured out in the car, so we'd be ready for anything:

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These high-tech "sweats" were just the ticket to climb into after a relaxing day at the Blue Lagoon:

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... where the only thing one wears is a bathing suit and a loopy grin:

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I said earlier hats are very practical. DH really wanted to buy this rams' head wool hat for me - I declined!

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He also wanted to buy me a seal-skin, fox-fur hat with ear flaps... I did try a few on, but ultimately declined. But, I would invest in one of these - infinetly practical!! - if I lived in Iceland or somewhere other than the US, where wearing of fur is frowned upon.

Here is DH in his own fur hat with ear flaps. His is vintage. He's had it for eons. It smells like moth balls, but it kept him warm:

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Now on to the teasing... hee hee... we visited a few second-hand shops and the flea market, and tried on more fur! Just for fun!

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Eek.... this last one is NOT for the faint of heart!!!
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Underneath my coats I wore mostly the same clothes I wore on the thanksgiving trip. Except for this new BR sweater, which proved nice and toasty:

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My mother gave us xmas money with the intent that we spend it on icelandic wool sweaters for the family. So we tried on lots of wool sweaters..... and wool coats:

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You are supposed to wear these sweaters as outerwear, so they are supposed to be large and loose.

The shopping was very good, with many tempting items, and prices have dropped quite low. We did some xmas shopping. We bought the 66 North apparel, 4 wool sweaters (one for each of us), charms for the girls, wool leg warmers for the girls, fish skin bracelets for the girls, and a fish skin clutch purse. I don't have a photo, but it's very pretty and delicate, with shades of blue. Will take a photo when I get a chance. I see this as being a special occasion purse only.

17 years ago

Alecia

Veteran

Shiny, it's good to have you back! I'm so glad you had a great time. Your pictures certainly reflect that, especially the one from the baths. So great. I can't wait to see the clutch. It sounds so interesting. Thank you for sharing your trip with us.

judy

Shiny, what adventures you had! I love the ice bar pic...adorable!

Anonymous

I loved living vicariously through your report and photos!

Amazing pictures. Thanks for sharing. This is nothing like I expected Iceland to be like.

Lena

Active Member

Thank you for sharing these, Shiny. I'm glad you had a good time and didn't get wet and cold. I have a friend who was in Iceland several weeks ago and she got wet when a rogue wave sneaked up on her at the beach. Yikes.

Hee, love the ram's head hat!

Did your daughters go with you?

Sihaya

Sounds like a wonderful trip. I'd love to go - but will probably try the summer months since I don't like freezing temperatures too much.

Patience

Shiny, thank you for sharing the pictures and stories. I really enjoyed it. It's definitely interesting to see all of the fur since it's not common here. I kind of like the ram's head hat too. You do not at all look like a marshmallow-- you look very stylishly warm.

Violet

Thanks for sharing. Great pictures! Sorry to hear about getting stuck in the snow, but otherwise, sounds like you had a great trip!

anne

Shiny, welcome back. I missed you. Sounds like you had a wonderful time. thanks for showing us your pics

Tanya

Welcome back Shiny, I have missed you too! It sounds like you had a wonderful time. Thank you for the report, I enjoyed your pics. I really like your new puffer! I hope you can have the zipper fixed.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Welcome back, Shiny! I’m glad you enjoyed Iceland. (Knew you would!) It’s super that you and hubby had a chance to get away. Sorry it ended too soon.

Thanks for the wonderful pictures and super report. I felt I was there too. I’m going to have a bone to pick with anyone who claims you can’t look fab in a puffer. Look at how amazingly Shiny pulls off the puffer look!!!

Amanda

Thanks for the description of fashion in Iceland -- sounds like a fun trip! Having spent time in the far north, I do know that wool and fur really are what it takes to keep warm.

bella

Your trip sounds wonderful and you looked fashionable despite the cold!

Antje

Wonderful, thanks for sharing. My faves were the shots where we got to get a peek of the landscape (fascinating!) and the one in the ice bar, how cool, and you look very chic and dramatic

Kyle

You HAVE been missed! I think you look very pretty in the cream puffer and cream hat, especially in the photo with the picturesque icy background.

shiny

Thanks all!

I am regretting not allowing DH to buy me the rams' head hat - I have had several people (not just here) comment that it is pretty cool. Oh well - next trip... we would most definetly like to go back again someday. We count this among our top 3 trips ever. It was really spectacular.

I went because it was DH's long-time dream to go... and I ended up loving it just as much as he did! That surprised me. I'm really not a winter-loving type person; I'm usually inclined towards warm sunny beaches this time of year!! But, I loved every minute of it... especially the way the light hit just so in the 4 hours of daylight each day. Like 4 hours of sunrise and sunset.

Lena, no my kids didn't go along on this one; they were with their dad, and we can't pull them out of school whenever we get the whim to travel. We took them to Paris this summer, so this particular trip was just for us. We called our hotel (a suite with kitchenette) our "icelandic love nest." If anyone wants a referral, let me know - I heartily recommend this hotel. Would be good for romantic getaway - or one with children (apparently they had larger suites too). It was in an excellent location, relatively spacious, clean, quiet, beautiful view, etc.

Thanks Angie for the puffer validation.

The puffer, on closer inspection, does need a good washing afterall (mostly the cuffs), but it'll have to wait, as we had a flood in the basement early this morning (ice storm - maybe the reason I haven't seen Nicole on the group today?? It was worse out her way) and all the unpacking has to wait while we dry everything out. Argh.

Tanya, I'm afraid the zipper on the brown coat may have to be replaced completely! Ugh. I wonder how much that will cost? I do like the coat, so maybe it is worth it. I just fret because the coat is only one year old. Coats should be made sturdier than that, don't you think? What a shame! It's one of those zippers that can be zipped all the way up, then the bottom can be zipped up too. What are they called?

Antje, I have many more pics of the landscape - it WAS fascinating! - but I only chose the fashion-related photos to stay on topic. As for the ice bar, it was one of those touristy things to do, but once you do it, you never have to do it again.

However, Rontur was awesome! We stayed out Saturday night dancing until 4 AM. I didn't post those pics, but I got to dance my heart out ... in my boots... should've brought my heels in my purse, but I was jetlagged and forgot!

yublocka

Shiny I'm glad you had an awesome time! And also glad that you're back. Your piccies are great - as always you can tell how much fun you are having!!!

I like the puffer whose zip busted as well. I think its what Angie called a 2-way zip. They are very handy indeed. Hope it can be replaced at a decent price.

Becky

Love the pics, Shiny! Thanks for sharing, and it's good to have you back!

Laura

Shiny, what a great travelogue! Thanks for the little taste of Iceland. Too bad about the broken zipper, but that cream puffer looks incredible, and you look very chic and cozy in the ice bar.

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