The Wool Walker – Permanent Style

Our new coat this winter is a wool/cashmere version of the popular Wax Walker. It’s a versatile coat that I think is the perfect year-round piece for the city, but also great with a knit and jeans at the weekend. We’re calling it, perhaps predictably, the Wool Walker. 

It has all the subtle style of its precursor but is smarter, has luxury elements like black suede and, importantly, has a so-called drop liner that makes the interior waterproof. 

We played around with a few different ways to make the coat more weatherproof – to make it something a reader could throw on any time – but it was hard to do without fundamentally changing the nice look and feel. So while we also applied a normal water-resistant treatment to the outside, we decided a drop liner would be a good solution – it adds nothing to the weight of the coat, is breathable, and stops any water getting through. Even in heavy rain, the coat might get wet but you won’t. 

Practical points like this were important because we’d had a few readers ask about a really versatile hip-length coat. It might be for cycling to the office – where a normal overcoat would be too long – or for commuting or driving, but they wanted something that was good for the office yet also adaptable for different places and situations. 

Worn with tailored trousers and smart shoes the coat would be elegant in any office, whether with a knit, a gilet, or a full suit underneath. In the images above I’m wearing it with grey-flannel trousers, brown-suede loafers and a V-neck – an outfit that felt very at home walking through London’s financial district. 

But unlike a double-breasted overcoat, it’s also a very easy piece to wear with jeans and a crewneck. In the image below, those two are a navy PS crewneck and my old 501s, which could be an outfit for a more casual office or nice weekend attire. 

The bottom half could equally be chinos, in beige, olive or dark brown. And a battered cap (see image further below) is a nice addition to dress it down.

The Wool Walker retains all the nice design elements from the waxed version. My personal favourite is the way the hand-warmer pockets are hidden within the seam running down the chest: much cleaner than most designs but sacrificing none of the practicality. 

The back panel runs seamlessly over the top of the shoulders, removing that weak point when it comes to rain, and the back has real, working pleats on either side that are connected to a panel of jersey underneath. This creates a flattering shape on the back, as well as creating huge freedom of movement. 

Elsewhere, there’s a two-way zip that enables you to just have the top zipped up (useful for cycling) and a mobile pocket inside the front panel, meaning you can access a phone without having to unfasten everything and let in the cold. (Seen below, just to the right of the main zip.)

It’s nice running through these elements actually – it reminds me how thoroughly engineered the Wax Walker was.

The outer material is a 20oz fabric we developed with Marling & Evans, a 90/10 split of wool and cashmere. It has a nice soft handle but also real substance and density. 

In terms of seasons, I’d wear this with a shirt or lightweight knit into early autumn, and then through into winter with a cashmere jacket or chunky rollneck. Obviously it depends where you’re from and, in the UK, sheer unpredictability of the seasons, but I think it’s likely a lot of readers could wear this in somewhere like London to commute all the way through the winter. 

The drop liner also adds a nice touch of wind-resistance, while the waist cinches in to add either warmth or shape, depending on the thickness of the layers underneath.

A nice luxury element is the black suede used on the undercollar and on the ends of the sleeves. This was partly inspired by my bespoke overcoat from Ettore de Cesare here – I really liked the touch of style the suede gave, and on both that coat and this one it also adds strength to the collar. 

Although, one thing I have noticed in wearing this coat over the past few months is how good its collar looks down. As readers will be aware I love a popped collar, but it’s great to look good with the collar down too, because it’s your style or just because it’s a subtler option. You can see what I mean in the image above. 

The coat has been beautifully made by Private White VC in Manchester, and we’ve kept just a couple of references to the copper hardware – the rivets on the back, the pullers inside, but elsewhere the fastenings are black with a copper logo or text, in keeping with the suede elements. 

The coat is available now on the PS Shop, in the normal full range of sizes for the outerwear, XS to XXL. I hope you like it. In the same way as one of our blue oxfords or grey rugbys, I think this will prove to be a really useful as well as enjoyable piece for lots of readers. 

The sizing is essentially the same as the Wax Walker, so anyone that has ever tried that coat should know what size they are. For everyone else, see below. 

Sizing

• The Wool Walker fits true to size, and is cut straight rather than slim (the waist cinch enables it to be slimmer if you wish)
• In the images I am wearing a size 4 (medium) and am 6 foot tall, with a 39-inch chest. For information on my proportions and other sizing, see dedicated article here
• We highly recommend comparing the measurements below to a coat you already own, however, rather than going off body measurements
• All measurements are with the jacket laid flat. Chest is straight across, from 2.5cm under the armpit; waist is taken 47cm down the jacket; length is from the bottom of the collar to the hem

And here’s the normal rundown for the details on the coat – the materials, care, and alterations. Any other questions, please do ask in the comments below. 

Coat details:

• Wool/cashmere blend coat with waterproof liner and suede details
• Outer material 90% wool and 10% cashmere, 20z, woven in England
• Coat made in England by Private White VC
• Five external pockets: two flapped on the hip, two on the chest, one phone pocket inside the placket
• Three internal pockets: two buttoned chest pockets, one larger buttoned hip pocket
• Upper external pockets lined with cashmere
• Cuffs have snaps and straps, to tighten against the cold or change the fit when not wearing a jacket underneath
• Two small vents on the back help movement, but can also be snapped shut

Drop liner details:

• Drop liner sits between the outer material and the lining, making the coat waterproof
• Has perforations, making it breathable but not allowing moisture in
• Made of a mix of polyester and polyurethane
• Adds no weight, but also adds wind-resistance
• Coat also has a water-resistant treatment on the outside

Suede details:

• Lamb’s suede used on the undercollar and cuff ends
• Coat can still be cleaned by a regular dry cleaner – if in doubt ask them not to press the collar (pressing the danger rather than cleaning, and much less so on suede than leather, as suede won’t dry out)

Alterations:

• Sleeves and sleeve linings have been made to allow them to be lengthened by up to 3cm. Shortening is also possible, the wrist strap can easily be removed if required
• Body can be taken in, but not let out. Body can be shortened, the small vents just have to shortened too, but cannot be lengthened. 

Available on the PS Shop site here