Why don't they make 3/4 length coats any more?

It gets really cold sometimes in Bordeaux in the winter. In fact the weather reminds me of Cardiff but with a wonky thermostat. It gets much colder than Cardiff, and it can also be much warmer than Cardiff, but it is just as humid and it rains a lot. Anyway…

Because of the cold weather I have felt the urge to wear a 3/4 length coat - halfway down your thighs. (Actually one of those big Russian greatcoats that come down to your shoes would come in handy sometimes!)

I have a number of fleeces, ranging from a grey one I bought in Cardiff in about 1989 (Marks and Sparks - I'll leave it to Gwilym in my will) through to a thick Blacks one I got in a sale in Leicester (Banner of Truth Conference).

But apart from Dad's old Gannex raincoat (lots of wear left in it - I'll probably leave that to Gwilym, too) and my thin Inspector Clouseau mac I have nothing that comes lower than my … derrière.

Now French megamarkets are amazing for clothes. Our local Géant have some coats for 12€ ! That's about £8.50. And they're OK. Not Marks and Sparks, but adequate. After all, you do get a bit fed up of a fleece after nearly 20 years…

So I dragged the longsuffering family into the megamarket to gauge how far down the coats went. I must have tried on 7 or eight different types. None came lower than my basement. Well - except one rather fine "preacher's coat" (you know the type) but that was too smart and too expensive. Just not right at all.

The hunt goes on. Some time Catrin has to go to C&A to hunt for trousers. Maybe they'll have something there.

Comments

Alan said…
Hey - I just popped up to the nearest supermarket to get a pizza to cook for lunch (there's only so much "mezzo di pasta" I can take) and a girl there was popping sale stickers on a whole row of 3/4 length coats ready for the sales which begin on Wednesday.

Don't tell anyone!!!

p.s. The sales begin on Wednesday because l'Etat (the state) says they will. This is what it means to live in a pays bien-reglé (well-organised country).

When do the sales start in Britain, and why that date, huh?
2:09 pm
Alan said…
Nipped in to the sales and got a lovely swanky corduroy coat - nice and long - 1/2 price! Black, too! I thought about a leather one because they were half price, but they're heavy and perhaps just a bit too thick...
9:49 am
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