Friday, December 5, 2008

Product Review: Stadium-Cloth Shipley Coat

Stadium-Cloth Shipley Coat
Click here for product page
Item 99248
Regular: $350.00
Now: $199.99

I love this jacket, so much that I have it bookmarked! ;) The stadium-cloth fabric from J.Crew is one of the warmest materials for outerwear around. In my personal experience, the stadium cloth is *so* much better (in terms of warmth) than the Lady Day coats with Thinsulate (which I adore as well).

Luckily for us, Chiffon Cupcake shared with us her review (in this post) of the coat. :)

Stadium Cloth Shipley Coat
Color: Ivory
Size: 0

I have to say I am very happy with the coat. It fits well overall and is well tailored everywhere through the shoulder, chest to waist area. It also is empire waist cut which definitely elongates my legs and slims me down! I was wearing the velvet ecole jacket underneath today and the chest area got a little tight. I have a small chest so girls heavy on the top may want to order one size up or just wear a tee or something thin enough underneath. (note: if this may help on the sizing - i wear a size 0 velvet ecole jacket which is tight in the shoulder and body even with a chiffon shirt but fits very well in this coat). In terms of the length, I am 5"7 and it hits an inch longer than as shown on the model.


The fabric is medium weight and soft and a creamy color! For some reasons, I feel that the stadium cloth used in this coat is a little thinner and less bulky than the one used in the bridget coat, which I love!

At first I thought the style looks a little boring comparing to say the Lillie or Greta but it is so elegant and versatile! I can dress up and also down with it! It looks good with jeans and skirts.

It is overall a good investment. I mentioned I also purchased the bridget coat. I have already returned it! It makes me look short and bulky! I do not have the problems of having too much fabric from my waist down like some aficionadas brought up before though the waist area is quite generous. I believe the very big and wide collar and the double breasted style contribute to the widening effect. Again, the stadium cloth is quite heavy weight too. I feel heavy when I wear it. I do not feel heavy at all wearing the Shipley. The navy color is also very very very dark, close to black. For some reasons, I feel like an old lady wearing it!!! :(


"Thanks!" to Chiffon Cupcake for sharing her great review with us! :)

What are your thoughts of the Stadium-Cloth Shipley Coat (do you like/dislike the style, design, fabric)? Are you considering or already have purchased this coat? Have you tried this coat on in-person? If so, please share with us your reviews too! :)

26 comments:

  1. Hi Alexis, thank you for posting my review and also for such a wonderful blog! Love that we are all enthusiastically helping each other out here :)!

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  2. Interesting . . . I'm sorry, I just felt like saying something.

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  3. This post has me curious about JCrew coats in general. I always assumed that the Doublecloth Lady Day (with Thinsulate) was warmer than most of the other JCrew winter coats because it seems signicantly longer and it has thinsulate. Am I completely off base? (I don't actually have any JCrew coats, so I'm just basing these ideas off of the pictures in the catalog.) What coat would you say is the warmest? (with or without thinsulate?) And is the lady day the longest even if it isn't the warmest? Or is there a coat that's both long and warm?
    Thanks for the advice!

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  4. I don't like the collar on this coat but I agree that stadium cloth is VERY warm.

    I ordered THREE of the madeline coats with the great prices - even though I live in So Cal where it never gets that cold =P

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  5. Three, that's two too many. Toss one this way.

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  6. I have a similar question to Dava's. I don't really know what stadium cloth is. Is it warmer than a wool coat then? Looks like it's way more expensive!

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  7. I like my Shipley a lot as well. :) Great review, chiffon cupcake!

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  8. Fabulous review Chiffon Cupcake! Thank you! :)

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  9. I am enjoying the Lille heavy wool piqué coat. Where I live, I usually can get away with wearing a jacket all winter, but it's been so cold lately I needed something warmer. I love this coat! It is stylish and looks good with both jeans and skirts. I sized up so I could wear my jackets underneath and it is a little generous in the waist, but I actually like that look. I am usually running from the car to my house, so my time outside is pretty minimal, but it is keeping me warm.

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  10. Chiffon Cupcake: Thanks again for your great review! :)

    Jeff: Your comment of "Interesting . . . I'm sorry, I just felt like saying something." made me smile! :)

    Dava: I own a few Day lady coats with thinsulate and they do not compare (in terms of warmth) to my Stadium Cloth coat. I also live in CT, where the winters can get pretty cold. If I had to pick a coat on warmth, first the puffer jacket, then the stadium coats. I hope this helps. :)

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  11. Thanks for the review! I had no idea what the stadium cloth was and now I have a better idea on the warmth factor. :-)

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  12. I thought stadium-cloth is not any warmer than the double-cloth, at least this year's stadium-cloth looked really thin!

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  13. Dear Alexis,

    Thanks for the great post! I am also eyeing on the Shipley coat. It is such an elegant looking classic item.

    I know you must be very busy, but I would like to ask you a question regarding the stadium-cloth coat you own... is it from this year? or some previous years? And is it any noticeably thicker than the double-cloth ones?

    I am asking this because I saw a stadium-cloth (Bridget) for the first time this winter, and it didn't seem any thicker than my double-cloth (without thinsulate) from last year. I was wondering the stadium-cloth feels warmer nontheless somehow, even though the material is not any more substantial than the double-cloth? Or could it be that this year's products use thinner material as far as stadium-cloth?

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  14. Thanks for the great review, but now I'm torn - I am about to buy an Emily coat (w/ Thinsulate) from last year but am now leaning toward this one...
    Which is warmer? Which is cuter? Aaarrgghhh!

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  15. I have the sybil coat with thinsulate from last year and I love it--I feel like it is very similar to the shipley coat in style. I ordered the Shipley when it was $300 but I returned because I didn’t feel like it was worth the price. Now that it is $199 plus additional off with promotion--I think it would be worth it. I agree with others when they say that the stadiums of this season do not appear to be as warm as previous seasons.

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  16. I'm on the verge of ordering the wool-cashmere Dana coat, but have yet to hear the verdict on that fabric & warmth. I live in Boston so it gets pretty cold but as a lifelong New Englander, I've mastered the art of layering. :)

    I've seen the double-cloth in the stores and it looks way too thin for a cold winter (thinsulate or not) and I agree that the stadium cloth would be awesome, but I don't love any of the stadium cloth silhouettes so I'm left with the wool-cashmere...how is it on warmth? TIA!

    Betsey

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  17. I've actually got pretty much the same question as Betsey about the warmth of the wool-cashmere coats, but I'm curious about the plaza coat. How long is it? And what do you think of the silhouette?

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  18. Anon at 11:57 AM: I am sorry I did not reply to your question sooner. I got my stadium cloth coat two years ago. I have seen the stadium cloth this year and it seems (e.g. in terms of feel) like the same fabric (although a bit thinner- but I don't remember for sure).

    The day lady coats I have all felt the same thickness as my stadium cloth coat, but the stadium cloth coat is just much better about keeping me warm. I don't know what about the material makes it that way- but it is fantastic! I hope this helps. :)

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  19. I'm in the same boat - looking for feedback on the wool-cashmere. I am toying with ordering either the Wool-cashmere Carrie Coat or the Stadium Cloth Shipley or Lucinda. I'm looking for WARMTH. Any advice?

    Also does anyone know whether these coats are currently going for the same price in store as online?

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  20. In my opinion, if warmth is what you're looking for, I don't think that this year's JC coats will cut it. Last year's stadium cloth was THICK (like an actual blanket) - this year's version's look and feel thinner with the exception of the Lucinda, that looks closest to last year's stadium-cloth offerings. The wool-cashmere is nice looking but not incredibly warm unless you layer. I think last year's wool-cashmere coats were thicker and looked softer than this year's, which have a tendency to look somewhat ratty (especially if they have shop-wear from being tried on all the time). If you're looking for a truly warm winter coat, I would recommend Lands' End down coats - they have one that is like wearing a sleeping bag! You can't beat them for warmth, quality, and price. Plus, their stuff is all guaranteed for like, I think. Don't get me wrong, I love the style of the JC coats, but from living in one of the Northeast blizzard belts, I wouldn't trust them to keep me warm on a day where the temperature doesn't climb out of the teens.

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  21. Ha, I meant "guaranteed for life". More thoughts - I have a double-cloth lady day coat from 2006 that is very thick (and this is a non-Thinsulate version), I tried a Madeline and found the double-cloth to be quite thin in comparison. The Shipley coat I saw in the B&M looked similar in thickness (read: not very). The quality of their coats seems to be going down while the price is going up. That being said, if I had to pick a warm coat on what I've seen/tried on, I'd have to say the Lucinda.

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  22. Dear Alexis,

    Thank you so much for you input regarding the stadium cloth! I thought you might not find out my question here, considering how incredibly crowded this blog became : ) I can only imagine how busy you might be being a graduate student as well as maintaining such an extremely popular blog. Thank you a bunch again~~!

    - Anon@11:57 AM (of Dec 5)

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  23. Dear Silver_lining,

    Oh my goodness, your description is so detailed and informative! After a little bit disappointed by Bridget recently, (both in terms of the fit and the fabric), I was a bit reluctant to order any other coat from JCrew. But hearing from you about Lucinda is really awesome, because I actually do love how Lucinda looks! You are so enabling me : ) I understand JCrew coats are not meant to be the coldest days of NY winter, but still, I will be very satisfied if my new purchase will be at least warmer than my Double-cloth coat from last year.

    - Anon@11:57 AM (of Dec 5)

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  24. Anon@11:57 AM (of Dec 5): Thanks for the thanks! It was very nice of you! :)

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  25. I am sooooo happy with this coat, and its amazing price! I snagged one in cream when it was $100 and the 20% off sale was happening, and it is gorgeous... after it arrived, I immediately wanted another (the collar actually looks really great on, although I hadn't been sure about it). I thought, "surely no other colors are left now that its 30% sale.."

    i was wrong! there was a red shipley left for $70!!!! it came yesterday and i am over the moon; i like it even better than the cream. it looked elegant in cream; the red looks a bit mod. the fabric and finishing is tdf.

    i am totally set on coats for next year : )

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  26. Thank you to all the ladies for the excellent advice. I never knew other people shared my "passion" (obsession, really) for JCrew coats. With the bulk of coats priced under $100, went a little crazy. I ordered 2 lady days (black & chocolate), 2 Madelines (majestic purple & black), 2 classic peacoats (plum & ivory), 2 Shipleys (poppy & black) and 2 Carries (black & acorn). Wow!!! Four blacks are way too many- so my 2 best friends will be getting new coats too!

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