Here we are again, banging on about our favourite subject – big coats. One of the only positives to the weather getting a bit crap is gawping at clothing that can protect you from it. In theory, you should probably be spending a bit less money because you’re not leaving the house as much as you do in the warmer months, but again that’s just in theory, not in practice. If you do find yourself with some leftover cash though, maybe consider one of these down-filled-niceties that we’re observing below.
So here you go, a bumper package of a dozen of the best down jackets, expect massive hood appendage, loads of pockets, adjustable cuffs, lovely sounding zips, big buttons and of course, lots of feathers that have been plucked from a duck, in an ethical way.
Frizmworks – Smock Puffer Down Parka
It wasn’t going to take long until Frizmworks appeared on this list. There’s something about big white coats that make you look the nuts, buying an item with a huge white surface area shows you’ve got a bit of bottle. Are you going to ruin a very expensive piece of clothing? Yes. Are you going to look good doing it? Also yes.
Nanga – Aurora Down Jacket
Couldn’t go the whole list without including an all-black number could, we? So we thought we’d get it out of the way quickly. The person writing this has actually owned one of these and they’re pretty boss. Fully waterproof, lots of lovely zips and it smelt really nice as well.
ROA – Smooth Down Jacket
You’re sure to be looking as smooth as the fabric itself donning this jacket, we’re a big fan of the translucent appearance ROA has gone for here and the colour is spot on.
Manastash – M-Rip Down Jacket
Sometimes in the winter months, you need a proverbial ray of sunshine to cheer you up – enter the Manastash M-Rip Down Jacket. Just looking at this is substantially raising our serotonin levels, imagine wearing it!
Battenwear – Batten-Down Parka V2
We’d say this is the quintessential down jacket silhouette – big baffles, press stud closure, and two wham handwarmer pockets. This one from Battenwear comes in a lovely forest green colour- you’d have to try really hard to go wrong in this.
Gramicci x and wander – Down Jacket
On the slightly flashier end of the spectrum, in terms of branding and also quite literally with the reflective detailing, this Gramicci and and wander collab jacket is large. Orange is the best colour for big coats and this one will have you looking like a big puffy tangerine with a penchant for bouldering (a good thing).
Stan Ray – Ultralight Parka
Stan Ray doing ultralight gear should be like when your dad tries his hand at deleting apps from his phone – a car crash. But surprisingly, it isn’t, it’s actually very very good. This Ultralight Parka looks fantastic, it reminds us of when the military get brands to produce their equipment, kind of like Arc’teryx LEAF or Patagonia MARS.
Frizmworks – Karakoram Down Parka Jacket
It wasn’t going to take long until Frizmworks appeared on this list again. This might just be ‘The Jacket.’ The one to end all jackets. Personally, I’ve been tiptoeing around purchasing one of these for about four years, and I’m pretty sure it would fix everything in my life if I just pulled the trigger. If you’re not sold on one of the most iconic down jackets ever, maybe reading our write-up about the Karakoram will fix that.
Goldwin – GORE-TEX Windstopper Down Parka
Waterproof down jackets aren’t as common as you might think, it takes skilled engineers to combine a waterproof membrane with heaps of feathers, but luckily at Goldwin those skilled engineers are ten a penny. We’re a big fan of the forest green colour combined with a black internal lining and of course, that you can brag about your jacket being GORE-TEX to your mates.
Palace x BEAMS PLUS – Expedition Down Jacket
We raved about this jacket the other day, and that was no flash in the pan. This coat is flipping mega, it ticks pretty much every box there is. That shiny fabric is one of the best pieces of material to construct a big puffy behemoth from. Yeah they’re quite expensive, but things as good as this don’t come around all that often.
Crescent Down Works – Down Sweater
You’d hope that a down jacket would be good coming from a company that claims they work with down in their name, and as you can see, it is. The only thing we don’t like about this coat is calling it a down sweater, what’s that about? Talk about underselling yourself.
Rab – Expedition 8000 Jacket
This jacket was designed to stop people from dying in very cold places and for some reason that serves to boost its cool factor significantly. Something about owning an item that is very much overkill appeals to the inner child in us. Pair this with some shorts and you’re sure to be looking like a scouse taxi driver final boss.