The Curated Classic Camel Coat Review

I’ve practically been inundated with questions since sharing a peek of my latest coat addition, so I thought it might be worthwhile to share a full review breaking down my thoughts now that I’ve had the chance to wear it a bit. The coat in question is the classic camel coat from The Curated; a robe-style coat with a tailored lapel, exposed pockets, and a belt at the waist.

Wearing Everlane mock neck sweater (old but crew neck version here), Levi’s skinny jeans, The Curated Classic Camel Coat, Charles & Keith red mules, Isabel Marant belt (also here), Mon Purse double pouch bag

A great camel coat is the epitome of timeless, elegant style; the kind of wardrobe classic you could imagine a style icon like Audrey Hepburn wearing. I also find it’s a great piece to soften up a winter wardrobe, particularly if you’re drawn to mostly all-black outfits. The richness of the camel hue adds vibrancy and warmth to the outfit, while and effortless pairs with black. I also love the way it looks worn with neutrals, mid-blue wash denim, and red.

QUICK FACTS

Price: $350 USD
Available in six colours: camel, black, light grey, moss, navy, and bone
Made in: Inner Mongolia, China
Fabric: Organic cashmere wool blend | 30% cashmere, 70% wool
Care: Dry Clean Only

SIZING & FIT

Picking out the right size is always the trickiest part of buying from an online retailer. The best piece of advice that I can possibly give on the subject is to check with customer service if you’re not sure. But I thought I’d share my two cents on sizing, which I hope will be of some use if you’ve been considering purchasing this coat.

For reference, I’m 172cm tall and wear an XS/S or AU6-8 and a size 25 in most brands.

I’m wearing the coat here in the size medium, which was what was suggested to me due to my height. The cut is quite forgiving; it’s streamlined and there isn’t much excess fabric, but there’s enough room to wear a big oversized sweater underneath. A bonus if that’s part of your style uniform during the winter.

Despite having narrow shoulders, this doesn’t feel too broad. It’s a soft double-faced cashmere/wool fabric, so though it will hold its shape, it also naturally drapes over the contours of your body. Though I find the element of the dropped shoulders is what helps to stop this feeling too big.

The one part of the coat that does feel oversized on me are the sleeves. With the extra room, I could probably fit my arm in there two or three more times over. This feels pretty well balanced out by my height and I don’t mind the oversized look, but it might be something to think about if you are on the petite end of the spectrum. The sleeves are also meant to be slightly cropped. On me these finish at the narrowest part of my wrist.

EDITED TO ADD: I’ve since received the same coat in the size S, as the style has had some adjustments to it. My advice? Stick with your usual size.

QUALITY

A good winter coat is one of those things that you ultimately only want to have to re-purchase once every few years (if that). Over the years I’ve own coats that have ranged from under the $100 mark, to designer outerwear that retails for thousands, so I know how to spot a good quality coat when I see one.

The classic camel coat from The Curated is made from double faced organic cashmere (30%) blended with Australian wool (70%). So despite being rather lightweight, it’s still pretty warm.

And you can definitely see the intention in the quality of the piece. The 100% natural fibres give it a nice, woolen hand feel, and the stitches (which in some places are visible – all part of the design) are tight and even.

If you have sensitive skin – which I put myself in that camp – then you may find it feels a touch itchy at first if worn against bare skin (ie. over a t-shirt rather than a long-sleeved shirt or sweater). This is common with natural fibre products, and they will soften over time. The yarn used is bleach chemical free, and dyed using eco-friendly solutions which helps to products the fibres.

If I had to compare it to a coat I already own, I’d say that the hand feel is practically on par with this coat I own from Mute by JL, but is marginally less thick.

DESIGN

The thing I liked most about the coat was the design. It’s so simple, and that’s what I’ve placed an emphasis on for 2019.

For a loose robe-style coat, it’s cut relatively slim through the body. It hangs straight without any bunching of excess fabric. While it doesn’t have any hard or ’stiff’ seams, the stitched drop shoulder drapes effortlessly down the arms.

The key detail are the large patch pockets located at the hips. These add an interesting visual element (other than a few stitched/raised seams) and are what really elevate the coat in my opinion.

Being a wrap or robe-style coat, it does also come with a matching belt. The original design didn’t have any belt loops – the reason being that your natural waist will sit at a different point depending on your height. It’s also what helps to keep the coat looking seamless. Taking on customer feedback, each coat now comes with belt loops that you can have professionally attached (or sew them on yourself).

Ultimately if you prefer the clean look, then you can choose to leave the coat without belt loops. Though I do think it makes choosing to belt it a little awkward. Storing the belt in the pockets feels too bulky and distracts from the clean lines of the design. But in my bag isn’t ideal either – the fabric might get dirty. For now, I’ve left mine without belt loops as I find most days I prefer to wear my coat open.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Living in Sydney, our winters are milder than most. We don’t get snow, and it rarely dips below 11 deg C during the colder months. For me and my lifestyle, the classic camel coat from The Curated is a great option, as I’ve got enough room to layer up underneath, but it also works well on slightly warmer winter days too. If you live in an ultra-cold climate (think 5 deg C or colder), this may not be heavyweight enough for you. I would say that this is a good light to mid-weight coat option.

Being of Greek descent, my skin tone is olive-based so has a slight yellow-green tinge to it. So richer tones can sometimes be a little tricky to pull over. But, the colour of the coat is the perfect shade of camel; it’s warm-toned, it doesn’t pull too warm.

The design is elegant and classic. It’s the kind of coat that will never date, and would still work twenty years fro now. Robe-style coats might be on trend, but the design doesn’t feel trendy. It feels considered, and is free of any bells and whistles.

It’s great to see a brand that takes customer feedback on board, not only during the design process but also when making tweaks to their final product. The fact that you have a choice of where and whether to add let loops adds a personal touch. While it might feel like a little more work on the consumer end, I think that it’s nice to see customisation in a garment where you normally don’t get that experience. For now, I’ve taken to popping the belt within my handbag if I feel I’m going to need it, or I’ll go the simple route and just wear the coat open.

Going back to sizing, I would say that it fits true to size, but if you aren’t sure, take the time to reach out to customer service. They’re very active on Instagram too if you need a quick response. As I mentioned earlier, the sleeves are very oversized, which could be a deal breaker if you don’t like this look. This design detail resonates with the scandi-chic vibe of the coat, but if you’re petite, it may feel a touch overwhelming on your frame if you aren’t after that oversized aesthetic.

There is a bit of a premium price tag attached; $350 USD. A pretty penny for most, and depending on where you live, you’ll need to factor in any applicable taxes and duties too. Cashmere is a luxury fabric, so it does tend to be more expensive. You’d be hard-pressed to find an ethically made cashmere sweater for less than $100. Considering how similar the quality is to my Mute by JL coat (which costs a couple hundred more), I do think this is reasonable.

Part of what helps to keep the cost down is the founder’s emphasis on what she calls honest pricing. You can find a break down of the costs of creating one of these coats (and the net profit) on their website HERE. There’s a big focus on considerate consumption; spending time mulling over the decision before pulling the trigger to buy – something that gels a lot with my own shopping ethos. You can also see that the mark up is much lower than your typical fashion retailer, passing on those savings to the consumer. As such, The Curated don’t offer free returns, though you can exchange it free of charge if you’re based in Australia.

The final thing to note is care. This is a dry clean only piece; it may seem high maintenance but this is actually something I’d recommend doing for all winter coats. It may arrive a little creased, so I’d say resist the urge to iron it. Putting a super hot heat on the wool/cashmere fibres can damage or even burn them. If you have a steamer on hand, use that, or your local dry cleaner can steam the creases out for you. At a pinch, you can use the steam function on your iron (keeping the metal base at least a centimetre away from the fabric) but do this with caution.

Overall, I think it’s a gorgeous piece and a coat you’ll see me wearing on heavy rotation this winter. I find it’s a lot easier to throw on that my other camel coat (which I do still love), which makes it a practical choice if I want something I’ll feel really comfortable in.

If you have any other questions about the style, fit or quality let me know down in the comments section below and I’ll do my best to answer them for you.