Warm is the new black

What a great weekend!  Just one of those delicious food, big laughs, popcorn at the movies, crazy vintage deals kind of a weekend.  Oh, and I got a new winter parka.  Which can't be left out since it took up most of my Saturday afternoon.  It felt like I was Tommy Lee Jones and the role of the Fugitive was being played by The Parka.

The following marks the trials and tribulations of my hunt:

What:  A knee-length black parka with a fur trimmed hood.  Sounds easy, no?

Not:  shiny, lumpy, overly sporty, shapeless, noisy, overpriced for quality level, belongs in a rap video and/or mangy-looking fur.

1st stop:  Aritzia.  TNA makes a few parkas that essentially fit the description I gave, but I still found them pretty shapeless and overpriced considering none of them were 100% down, and the fur all looked pretty cheap.  Not to mention the store was a dee-saster when I got there....I think half of Ottawa was also parka shopping and I immediately became overwhelmed.  Average price = $300.

2nd stop:  Sports Experts.  Again, crazy hordes of parka shoppers.  There were a lot more brand options, including North Face, Lole, Sunice and a couple Canada Goose (geese?).  However, there were very limited sizes, and to be honest most of the styles seemed geared to an older customer.  Average price = $400.

3rd stop:  Norml.  The only kinds of parkas here were Canada Goose.  The good thing is that you know you're always getting the same price on CG and so you can just relax and try on the coats and if you like it, you don't have to keep going, trying to find a better price somewhere else.  At this point, the prices weren't really even shocking anymore and I tried on a couple styles, quickly determining that I wasn't into the coloured ones and really, truly just wanted a black one which they didn't have in my size.  Average price depending on style = $480

4th stop:  Roadtrip.  This was my favourite stop because I haven't actually shopped there before aside from peering in the windows and a few of my girlfriends have told me it is a hidden gem-literally-as it is located in the courtyard under condos and near Foundations and Social.  It carries a mix of brands at different price points and if you're looking for a dress for NYE or a holiday party, I highly suggest you check it out...specifically a gorgeous silver sequined number that I didn't even try on out of fear I would like it too much and have to put it back on the rack and walk away.  I needed to stay focused on what I came for.  I found two coats by Spiewak, which are apparently the same brand that makes the NYPD's and postal workers' outerwear.  They WERE pretty cute but to be honest they were really nothing special, as one style didn't even have fur on the hood and the one that did again had some super cheap-looking fuzz.  Although, because they were made from Thinsulate, they definitely weren't too puffy and they were definitely the most affordable at $250.  I decided to keep looking.

5th stop:  Expedition Shoppe.  Pretty much when I entered the store, one of the guys working there immediately offered to help me out, but assumed wrongly that I was looking for only Canada Goose...which they were almost sold out of.  When I said I wasn't in the market for any particular brand, he suggested a different parka made by Quartz, which is apparently made in Quebec.  The thing was a size small and was a freaking TENT...but very warm and comparable to a Goose if it had been a better size.  I actually think it was probably a Men's small or something, and honestly I didn't expect to find a lot there, I just wanted to check and make sure that I wasn't missing out on a different brand that I wasn't aware of, and the Quartz really was nice and had a REALLY nice fur trim and everything, so if you're looking for something like that then I suggest you check it out.  It was the only one I tried on because they were admittedly low in stock.  Price of Quartz parka = $450.

My new coat! 
Style:  Whistler Parka



6th (and final) stop:  Schad.  Sigh.  This was by far the hardest place to shop for me.  Not for lack of options.  Not for lack of sizing.  Not because it was busy or bad customer service.  In fact, the reason it was SO HARD was because they had SO many great parkas, an amazing sales team, and all possible styles and brands were in my size.  I told the girl working there what I was looking for and she immediately pulled out a perfect parka by Moose Knuckles...so cute, exactly what I described and who could hate that name?  Hahaha.  However, at $790, I just couldn't.  So, she showed me a few more by Rudsak, which I found to be ok but on the shinier side, and the hood was just oddly shaped with honestly kind of a crap fur trimmed hood.  The next coat was by Mackage and it had the softest-lined hood ever, which could be unzipped down the middle to lie flat if you weren't using it (sort of 70s-looking) and an asymmetrical front zipper.  I did like it, except again I found it too shiny.  Just not my thing, even though I did like the hood a lot.  So, finally, the very patient girl handed me a Canada Goose parka.  It was long-coming down to above my knees, slim fitting, with a belt, black, not shiny, and a big, awesome gorgeous fur trim.  It was perfect.  Mission accomplished.

I honestly hadn't set out to buy a Goose, and it was WAY out of my initial price range, but after shopping all afternoon I came to the conclusion that I just wasn't going to find anything under $400 that was even close to what I wanted or needed to survive the winter.  Sure, Canada Goose parkas are totally trendy, and often that can turn me off certain items (or in cases like UGGS I just never really liked them to begin with), but in this case I think this trend just might be right on target...because on this exTREMEly rare occasion, it's also fully functional and -dare I say the word- practical. 

In your FACE, Winter!

xo Amber

Helpful links:
http://mooseknucklescanada.com/
http://www.canada-goose.com/
http://www.quartz-nature.com/en/nouvelles.htm
http://www.rudsakstore.com/
http://www.mackage.com/
http://www.spiewak.com/
http://aritzia.com/