I was at Athleta with a client on Friday, and they have EXTREMELY good puffers at the moment! That's my suggestion

You've gotten great advice here. I would just add: make sure you have *wool* socks to wear in those boots. You can also add toe warmers if needed for Chicago - if you place a hand warmer on the top of your foot, it warms the blood heading to the toes. Fleece/sherling insoles can also elevate a non-insulated boot in a major way. And perhaps you could order a puffer when you're stateside - as others have mentioned, Lands End, Eddie Bauer, and Athleta are all good options.

I was in Uniqlo yesterday and they had a nice thick puffer: https://www.uniqlo.com/us/en/p.....5&

Also this is what I wear when I visit Portland and it's great (note it runs small so size up): https://www.amazon.com/gp/prod.....1&

Thanks all! I have a good collection of wool socks.

I will actually be packing two or three weeks early for the trip due to our summer vacation. And of course aside from underwear it is an entirely different collection of clothing due to it being mid summer here. Another option is borrowing my husbands Uniqlo puffer which fits me well. It’s not a packable one but it is nice.

I hesitate to buy a longer puffer online. The hip fit is hard on me and often to fit my hips I size up and then it can be too large on top. I will either buy out of season here, borrow from family, or go shopping in person in Portland on day one of the trip.

Thanks all for your suggestions.  I was incredibly lucky to miss the coldest and wettest weather and had one hour of snow in Chicago and one day of rain in Portland.  I had a lot of clear skies and my travel plans went smoothly!

I was happy with my wardrobe and clothing for the trip - I took in the end

• Two pairs of boots
• Four pants of pants - one jeans and three other pants
• one wool coat
• one warm coat - purchased on the trip
• one puffer vest
• five sweaters - two being turtleneck
• two warm scarves
• two beanies

On top of this I took

• one raincoat and one rain pants
• two leggings
• two gear tops
• one tee shirt
• one pair of sneakers
• one pair of hiking shoes
• pyjamas socks and underwear including two merino tanks

Thanks for the advice re socks and layers - I felt well prepared.  I felt well dressed when I needed to be and my feet held up to the long walking days when they had to.

It was a successful trip and the work was challenging but rewarding.  I had some great food and craft beer.  The food scene is fantastic in Portland and I had Italian, Mexican, Japanese and Indian plus some awesome US sandwiches and cookies.  Coffee is more of a mixed bag but I am a coffee snob.  In Illinois I also found good food both in the smaller town and Chicago.  

I spent two hours looking at shops in Portland and two hours in Chicago.  I purchased the Columbia jacket on consignment and bought the Patagonia sweatshirt new.  I did some shopping for my sons and DH.  

I did look at the following US retailers that were interesting to check out

- Madewell
- Free People
- Aritzia
- Anthropologie
 - Athleta
- Lululemon
- Alo

January is probably not the best month for shopping and I was not tempted although I did like a striped sweatshirt in Free People.  But it had dropped shoulders and I was determined to get raglan sleeves (which the Patagonia one had).   Aritzia had some nice wool coats that I would have considered if I needed one.  Madewell and Anthropologie had some okay pieces but the exchange rate is not good for us right now so I was happy to pass.

Alo was a let down, Athleta is lovely and the most tempting to me but the colours are a bit too muted at the moment.  Lululemon is similar to NZ now which was good to know.

Many years ago,for those of us living in NZ, shopping internationally was very exciting, and the range and pricing was often really attractive.  That is not really the case any more - there will be exceptions of course.

Thanks for the advice and support!!

Thanks for the fun update! It's interesting to hear your perspective on the US stores you visited. And it's so great that your trip went really smoothly.

Thanks for the update, Sally! It sounds like a great trip and you really did pack well and got lucky with the weather, too!

For what activities do you think you'll be wearing your new consigned warm coat?

Shopping internationally… wow, I remember the first trip I had out of NZ ever. I was 23 years old, 1984, doing my final year medical student “elective” in the Solomon Islands. My trip went Fiji/Solomon Islands/Australia. My mother had never left NZ (and never did, in her entire life eventually) and my father not since returning from England in 1949.
Wow, was shopping in Sydney exciting! And cheaper I think than at home. I finally had a bit of money and bought shoes, skirt, top…
Maybe not quite so exciting now and not so cheap either.

Thanks Suz! I expect I will wear for sports viewing, cold winter walks and travel. I can wear both the puffer liner or the shell too which might work better for our climate.

Jenni - I remember going to Target in Australia in the 1980s -so exciting!! And then Gap in the USA in the 1990s was also very cool. Both affordable and more trendy than what we could buy locally.

JAileen - I had hoped to travel in October but it was rescheduled to January. Patagonia is a brand I really like both for their morals and for their designs. It is pricey but I can see why.

So glad you had a good trip! I’d really like to visit Portland but haven’t so far.

Thanks for the update, Sal! Welcome back, and great you had a fab trip! You missed the polar vortex by a few days. PHEW!!!!

Fun you saw some US stores too - although a shambles I bet. January is not a good time to shop unless you score items on sale - as you noted

Well done for packing the right items! Fab you had some good food too. Yes, the PNW (Seattle and Portland are in the Pacific North West of the US for those who don't know - in Washington and Oregon state respectively), has VERY good food - especially Asian and seafood. Fun to have you in my neck of the woods for a while. I was waving!!!

Thanks Angie! Yes Portland had great options for food - although I had good recommendations in Illinois as well so we did well in both Oregon and Illinois - and briefly had coffee in Wisconsin as well.

Glad you had a good trip, were well prepared, and lucked out with the weather.
I remember being so excited to go to Bloomingdale’s in New York. It was so cool then. Now it’s in more places and has the same clothing as other stores. Even shopping in other US states used to be exciting.

I'm glad you enjoyed my lovely home city (Portland) and our food culture! I think we are blessed. The food is interesting, excellent, and affordable.

As a fellow coffee lover, I feel your pain about bad coffee. Getting bad coffee in Portland is like getting a bad meal in Paris--it just feels so wrong. I hope you had a chance to try Spella, my longtime favorite roaster/brewer. Very classically prepared Italian coffee. There are so many local roasters and brewers, though, it can be had to find the best ones.

Thanks Barbara Diane! I was really lucky with weather. And I think internet shopping has changed the scene in terms of shopping in large cities or internationally. And for us here with the NZD being worth about 57c to our $1 I have to almost double the price.

Hi K Period! Eating out was great. My family live in the Beaumont Qtr, near Fremont Street so we went to two walkable places, also Alberta and then one Japanese place downtown.

I had great coffee in the cafe within Powells, and also in a town up the Columbia Gorge and also at home with the machine. In NZ we mostly have espresso style coffee, often a Flat White, which is a less foamy cappuccino, double shot, small cup. I don't think I got to Spella. NZ and most of Australia are obsessed with good coffee.....