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I have a really nice leather trench coat that I like to wear around. What do I wear with it to make it more fashionable?

I hate to break it to you, but leather trench coats are pretty much never fashionable, and they generally tend to look more “geeky Matrix fan” and/or “school shooter” than they do fashionable.

Trench coats are difficult items to wear. Even though Burberry continues to do really good things with traditional trench coats and overcoats, even Burberry trench coats can look kinda creepy and off-putting on the wrong person. The problem isn’t exactly the form factor as much as it is the association that most people have with the style — most people tend to think trench coats are for flashers and military nuts. This can be alleviated by wearing a shirt with a tie (and maybe a blazer) under the coat, but that doesn’t help all the time.

Leather is a really unfortunate material to make a trench coat in, mainly because (in my opinion) leather does not look good draped and cut. Leather is great for tight fitting jackets and coats where the leather seems to fit snug and have direction, but leather tends to look horrible where it bunches or hangs loosely. I won’t lie, leather trench coats probably hold up very well, but that doesn’t stop them from looking horrible.

So basically, you have a combination of an odd form factor and a really bad material to have it in — it’s generally just a bad idea all over. If you like trench coats, save up a lot of money and get something from Burberry or London Fog and wear it sparingly. If you like leather coats, get something classic from Schott or something more modern from an upscale retailer. Just don’t put “leather” and “trench coat” together.

Tags: Burberry, leather trench coat, trench coat