Great style is all about making a statement and for the fall and winter season, the statement is all about outerwear.
Outerwear is arguably the reason we get so excited about bundling up and adding layers to our everyday looks during the colder seasons. But what's the apple of most of our aesthetic eyes? The statement winter coat.
From faux fur and fatigue to the classic black or khaki trench, donning a winter statement coat will have you owning the streets of your city like a model does a runway. As a native New Yorker, the winters can be brutal so investing in high quality, inexpensive coats that keep me warm is really important to me.
Read on to check out how I style some of my favorite winter statement coats.
1. A White Coat
White is one of those colors you can never go wrong with. White coats are one-part chic, one-part glam. With this wardrobe addition, you instantly add an air of sophistication to any look. I snagged this Mugler coat for an easy transition from a casual outing to a business meeting in style.
2. A Camo Jacket or Overcoat
A camo jacket or overcoat is perfect for adding a little edge and pattern to an every day look. Especially for my all-black everything lovers. You could layer with a stylish hoodie underneath or a bigger coat over it. It can also be worn alone during warmer days. Jackets with an oversize fit help make the coat a more versatile staple in your closet.
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3. A Pop Of Color
There's no better way to be a show-stopper than to wear a bold color. In a sea of neutrals, make a statement with some color. Blue, mustard, and red are all fixture statement colors during the winter season.
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4. A Textured Coat
I love to have at least one really textured coat in my closet to add spice and dimension to my outfits.
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5. A Wool Gray Coat
Gray is that neutral color that can be rocked with anything. To keep a classic winter color modern, keep the shape interesting with a dope neckline. Layering the coat with a similar colored cardigan is a great way to add texture.
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6. A Polyester Wool Blend Cream Coat
Upping the ante in your styling choices by going for a monochromatic look is not only on-trend, but when done well, is instantly luxe. I like to pair this H&M wool number with a similar color hat to add flare to any outfit.
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7. A Basic Black Wool Coat
It's called a classic for a reason. To add impact to the classic black winter coat look, opt for a well-tailored option that offers something different than the typical silhoutte, like I did with the fur collar pictured above.
8. A Wool Blend Camel Coat
Similar to the classic look and feel of the black winter coat, khaki/tan/beige - whatever you'd like to call the color - can be the same. It offers a great blank slate and can be perfect for layering other outwear underneath - i.e. a hoodie, a leather jacket, cardigan, etc. I wore two coats under mine for this very layered and stylish look.
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9. A Fur Coat
Cruella who? A fur coat is the epitome of glamour when it comes to cold weather style. Pro tip: If you're going to go fur, go vintage. This diva statement coat is bound to have you turning heads everywhere you go.
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What is your staple statement coat during the winter season?
Keep up with style director Alex Douby on Instagram: @androgynous_douby
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Skylar sees things differently. At the time, she was shooting content on her iPhone. Temi came into the picture with a new perspective, an understanding of tech, and, eventually, a camera. “He doesn't give himself enough credit,” Skylar says. “He wasn't just my tripod. He wasn't just standing behind the camera and going ‘click.’ He was giving advice. He was giving me insight to how I could look at things from a different perspective. And I was like, 'Oh, he’s an artist.' I think it was maybe a heartbeat of that kind of energy of like, ‘Baby, can you take this picture?’ And it turned so quickly into, we're partners. We can work together in a way where we're advancing each other's creative thinking.”
The pair often says they’re two sides of the same coin. Skylar is an Aquarius. She attended art school, paints, and loves poetry. She’s more than happy to let the couple’s management firm and agency, Kensington Grey, handle their admin work. And, she loves to sleep in. Temi, on the other hand, wakes up early. He’s a Virgo. He loves a to-do list and regularly checks in on the couple’s brand partnerships spreadsheet to make sure everything is on track.
Because his storytelling was steeped in his love of technology, he didn’t always think of himself as a creative person. “Where I [am] the dreamer who wants to pluck things out of the sky and spend all day with my head in the clouds, Temi [is] so good at grounding me and helping me figure out how to make things make sense on paper. We just work together in such a complimentary way,” Skylar says.
It’s been more than six years since Brooklyn-based couple Temi and Skylar started dating, and nearly four since they cemented their working relationship. On TikTok and Instagram, the couple’s travel, fashion, and home content regularly rack up hundreds of thousands of views. They’ve worked with brands such as Coach, Aesop, Away, and Liquid IV, bringing their vibrant perspectives to every campaign they execute. Still, nearly two years since both Temi and Skylar committed to full-time content creation and creative directing, the couple says their romantic connection remains their priority.
“We told each other we would much rather go back to full-time jobs and preserve our relationship than to be full-time freelancers, barely getting a night's rest [and] barely kissing each other because we're so busy shooting,” Skylar says.
Working from home can make it hard to separate work from personal life for any entrepreneur. It can be even more challenging when your business partner is also your lover. Temi and Skylar had already used couples therapy as a tool to help them effectively communicate with one another. When they ran into challenges while working together, their therapist helped them set physical boundaries to help combat the issues.
"We told each other we would much rather go back to full-time jobs and preserve our relationship than to be full-time freelancers, barely getting a night's rest [and] barely kissing each other because we're so busy shooting."
“It actually took us doing very specific physical things to create boundaries between work and play in our relationship,” Skylar says. “So, for instance, we will only have conversations about work when we're out of bed or we're at the table or in the office. Initially, when we started, we had to light a candle to say that, 'Okay, this is a space where we're connecting, we’re not talking about work.' We needed really hard boundaries at the top. And then it became a little bit more organic.”
The boundaries have been crucial to implement, especially because the couple began working together so naturally. When the pair first met, Skylar was NY-based a social strategist for BuzzFeed and was using content creation to drive business to her lingerie company. She was shooting her own content. Temi was working for Microsoft in D.C. He’d recently traded in his DJing equipment for a camera. “I've always loved taking pictures,” he says. “Even when I was a kid, my African mother would wake me up at 3:00 a.m. [during a] party, and be like, 'Come take the family picture.'”
Growing up, Temi says he watched his parents support each other and be the true definition of partners. He knew he wanted the same for his own relationship. But, the couple also wanted to make sure they were being financially responsible. The pair didn’t quit their traditional jobs until they’d saved up two years' worth of their cost of living. And, Temi received his Master of Business Administration from New York University with the knowledge that it could either help him advance in his corporate career or be applicable to his business with Skylar.
Temi and SkylarCj Hart @hartbreakToday, they say their working relationship is more of a “quiet dance.” They still implement some of the boundaries they learned in therapy, but they also lean into their natural strengths and deep love for one another. When we speak, Temi has planned a date for the couple to see Princess Mononoke in 4K IMAX and added it to their Notion so they can factor it into their busy schedules. “I fully plan to date for the rest of my life,” he says.
Skylar says the couple doesn’t just wait for date nights to check in with one another, though. This often happens in the mornings, after Temi has made her peppermint tea and poured himself a cup of coffee. When they ask each other how they slept, she says, it’s not just a “nicety.” It’s a genuine question meant to foster connection.
“A lot of it happens during the day in the midst of work. We'll stop and we'll hug. Or we’ll slow dance in the kitchen,” she says. “Sometimes it's hard to set a whole date night when you have 7,000 things going on. So, we must grasp these moments and check in when we can. And I think it's become so organic to us that I actually didn't even realize how often we do it. But all day long, we're like, 'Are you good? I felt like your energy shifted,' because we're best friends, we just know. We just feel it happen.”
What’s better than being in love? Building wealth while doing it. Watch Making Cents here for real stories of couples who make money moves together.
Featured image by Cj Hart @hartbreak