UNCOVERING RAINCOATS

Living in London, the weather is not only an ongoing topic for it’s citizens, it is also an essential topic to discuss if you want to survive your commute.

Most commonly the local climate is described as cloudy, and precipitation itself has many different drizzling names. In an effort to reduce my CO2 emissions, I made a bet with myself to bike to work. I’m grateful to be able to cycle through Hyde Park on my way and it has become a rather blissful habit, a great way of starting the day compared to my previous underground battles on the tube’s infamous rush hour. This was until winter decided to take another hold onto London and the rain continued to pour down, to bucket down and ‘you name it’ down. In an attempt not too loose my honourable bet to myself I had to realise that my adorable but white and fluffy winter coat needed an urgent upgrade to something more waterproof. This is how I came to uncover the ambiguous category known as raincoats.

Thinking about raincoats, somehow that scene with George Clooney from The Perfect Storm springs to mind and evidently the fisherman’s coat, with matching boots and if we go all in; the matching rain hat. Before I got too overwhelmed by the vision of me biking in this, I realised that even though the weather can be tempestuous we are in a city and not far out on the ocean I conclude there must be something more city-like out there.

Heading for inspiration I went online, hello Net-A-Porter, my go to favourite to discover new yet stylish selected things. Whilst searching for ‘Rain Coats’, I discovered there is a brand named Rains. Genius! A Danish brand that is devoted in making raincoats and jackets that look as good as they function. I agree that their sleek designs are perfect and very practical but somehow they just weren't fabulous enough for me. The image of the fisherman cloak springs to mind and I start looking into the Vogue Runway archives for some more fashionable inspirations. There I came across the Miu Miu Fall/Winter 2014-15 collection, a fabulous yet totally functional coat was repeatedly thrown down the runway in fun colours with a see-through-chicness that had it all. Sadly this was way too old and not available anywhere.. (I see a great business opportunity here @anyone? - reproduce any previous runway looks on demand?!) however this gave me the inspiration I needed.

Comfort and beauty has somehow never really gotten hand in hand in the fashion world. Think comfortable shoes.. Sorry Ecco! You know what I mean! It appeared to be the same for raincoats. Either they where too practical, too bulky, too anything but fabulous or too fashionable and very unwearable. Inspired by the english weather none can avoid to be inspired by the english countryside style, however looking like the Dutchess in her effortless Barbor-all-in-country style wasn’t the look I was aiming for either. Spurred by the lack of stylish raincoats, I continued the search. There must be something fashionable yet wearable out there!

Browsing through I came across Courreges, a heritage french fashion brand that rose to fame for their very short vinyl skirts and had lately started to make some noise with its reinvention by their new Artistic Director Nicolas Di Felice. There I found my perfect match, the company has remade its classic vinyl fabric to one made in a far more environmentally minded manner, with 70 percent of the urethane derived from vegetables compared to the usual made with Polyvinyl chloride which is the world's third-most widely produced synthetic polymer of plastic.

I discovered that their Vinyl Iconic trench coat was the perfect marriage of both style and hard-wearing without making me look like a biking tent with it’s chic emphasised waistline. Despite some of my Vogue colleagues advocating I’ve embraced a somewhat Matrix flair rather than biking style, I uncovered my perfect splashing outfit.