My two best purchases of the year turned out to be two coats, the first new coats I had bought in several years. As NAS began I had just returned from a wonderful summer vacation to France and Spain where my travel capsule felt boring and too casual. I did not want to think about fall/winter clothes, and had no plans for NAS, no shopping list and was in a bit of a wardrobe funk. Then the infectious and fun NAS frenzy on YLF convinced me to participate “a little”, at least by watching the finds go by.

I did have a dressy fall coat on my general wish list, and had wanted a camel coat for years. I ended up finding BOTH, much to my surprise! I would not have noticed either coat if I had only shopped NAS online, because what captured my attention was the color and texture of these coats IRL. The coats have many similarities: slightly flared straight shapes (like A-line) with just two fasteners in the front, knee length, unlined “double face” wool, sleeves a bit too long. available in petite sizes, and warm tones that work well with the rest of my wardrobe and my coloring. They both make me feel a bit more sophisticated than normal, which has been a difficult-to-achieve wardrobe aspiration for me.

The first one is a nutmeg color, with knit sleeves, in a mid-weight suitable for fall in my climate. I spotted it on a rack of regular sizes at Nordstrom. After trying it on I determined that a petite size would be better. During NAS I watched for the petite sizes to be restocked and with the stalking help of Suz and KL was able to order the right size. (can't thank you two enough!) Only after I bought it did I notice that it was a top pick This coat is a gorgeous color and I have started adding other pieces to my wardrobe in this color. October was unusually warm this year so I started wearing it in November, and by December it was too cold to wear it any more. It feels odd to have a coat that I can only wear for one month of the year, but next year could be different, and it’s a fairly classic style so it will be good for several years. Maybe I can find ways to wear it in spring, but in my mind it’s really a fall color. It’s just a bit too long to work as an indoor topper on me. I folded back the too-long sleeves and that’s fine, I don’t plan to think about alterations. I have gotten several compliments on it even with just a few wears. It really adds a lot of polish to a basic outfit of jeans, sweater, ankle boots.

The camel one is a heavier weight, suitable for "regular" winter in my climate, with a shearling collar. This coat was sitting by itself on a mixed rack. It was probably a return from a NAS online order, since my local Nordstrom stores almost never carry petite coats. I saw it on my 2nd store visit during NAS, tried it on, it was the right size, and that was that. It’s definitely a winter coat but not for super cold days. It feels very luxurious, and the collar feels warm around my face even though it does not literally touch my face. There is plenty of room to layer a jacket or warmer sweater underneath. I have winter accessories that work with this in cream and light blue and am looking for the just the right scarf and hat in either burgundy or navy. I folded the sleeves back on this too and like the cuffed effect although I might get them shortened at some point. I’m looking forward to wearing this coat more this winter when we return to normal temperatures. (We're in a deep freeze right now) I’ve gotten compliments on his one too!

There are two morals to this story:

• Do visit stores if you can during NAS, even if shopping online, and do it more than once!
• It's been a long time since I described any clothing as "feeling luxurious" , and I really like that feeling. Something to keep in mind.

Photos of the nutmeg coat here:

https://youlookfab.com/welookf.....-hairstyle

one photo below of the camel coat. The proportions are off and I look way shorter than I really am, even though I am very short!