WELL, September is here already, and that means the end of the summer (not that we had one!) but it’s not all bad, because the start of autumn means the start of a brand new wardrobe. I’m a great lover of layering and wearing coats and jackets, so autumn/winter has got to be my favourite season!

Vintage and vintage-style coats are both beautiful and practical, especially those from or inspired by the 1940s.

1940s coats during the war years were restricted, you could not have a bi-swing back, could not have more than two pockets, and had a limitation on sleeve circumference that really only eliminated exaggerated sleeve types. Most coats were made from wool and rayon-wool blends, many re-purposed wool from used coats and wool blankets. Many 40s coats followed the same basic style with a few alternatives. They were below the knee, and were frequently made in herringbone, tan, grey, dark green, navy and deep red among other winter colours. They were generally without decoration and all had large square shoulder pads. The look was borrowed from men’s military coats.

One of the most iconic coat styles of the 40s and 50s was the polo coat or box coat. It was cut very straight and wide, in the shape of a box, and was oversized. They would either be worn open or closed with large chunky buttons, and would later evolve into the swing coat of the late 50s and 60s.

So now that you know a bit about 1940scoat styles you can pick one up in a vintage shop like My Vintage, but these are quality pieces that have lasted over 70 years so do carry a decent price tag. If you want to pay a little less you can be clever and pick up vintage coats from the 60s and the 80s that tick many of the boxes for a 1940s look.

The beauty of this is that you are still buying something completely unique but in some cases are paying less than £40 or £50. And there is no danger of it falling apart at the seams anytime soon, these vintage coats have already lasted for many decades.

You can shop vintage coats from the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s at My Vintage either on our website or in the shop.