WORDS BY AMELIA BELL
The trench coat is one of those fashion unicorns - a piece whose future is as illustrious as its past. From battlefield to runway, it’s been dressed up and down, for films noirs gangsters and sophisticated businessmen to some of the biggest movie stars. And still today it remains a wardrobe staple with new iterations popping up every season. So since the latest SS18 styles have just arrived on Farfetch, we can’t think of a better time (or excuse) to brush up on this long-loved style hero...
The History:
Like any good story, the trench coat’s history includes a feud. Because 2 English brands both claim to have invented this king among outerwear - Thomas Burberry’s eponymous label, and John Emary’s Mayfair clothier Aquascutum (literally Latin for water and shield).
The former actually set up his business after creating a kind of waterproof twill fabric that we know today as gabardine, and subsequently submitted a design for an Army officer's raincoat to Britain’s War Office in 1901. And Emary? He patented a water-repellent cloth back in 1853, eventually creating trench coats that featured removable, buttoned-in linings, that could be used by soldiers during combat.
And so the trench started its life as part of military uniform - hardly shocking given the name. Officers wore it in both WWI and WWII, with modifications like vents and flaps and shoulder straps being added as the battles went on. There’s even a rumour that the D rings you still find on trenches today were put there for the attachment of hand grenades!
So the trench coat initially served for practicality, with the first version costing just three pounds. Later, as it began proving popular with the landed gentry and fashionable sporty types, its style significance came into play. That’s the trench we know now - the perfect balance of form and function.
Shop the look: Burberry Classic Trench Coat, Kensington Long Trench Coat, Sandringham Trench Coat, Gabardine Trench Coat
The Icons
Brigitte Bardot. Humphrey Bogart. Audrey Hepburn. All sartorial legends who count the trench coat among their signature looks. The male population has spent decades wanting to be as cool as Rick Blaine in Casablanca. Who among us hasn’t wept at the kissing in the rain climax of Breakfast At Tiffany’s and then dashed out to buy a replica of Holly Golightly’s trench coat? Femme fatales, detectives, businessmen, bandits - the trench coat has managed to personify so many different people, and gives each one of them their own unique look.
Shop the look: Jean Paull Gaultier Vintage Trench Coat, Prada Vintage Trench Coat, Versace Vintage Trench Coat, Yves Saint Laurent Vintage Trench Coat
The Trench Coat Update:
SS18’s trench coat is all about the shiniest of textures - see-through plastic, high-shine vinyl, patent cotton. Our top styling tips for this new wardrobe hero? Smarten up sportswear separates with Ellery’s classic, structured trench; layer Calvin Klein’s playful plastic fantastic rendition over summer tailoring; and as for Helmut Lang? Those dominatrix vibes require an equally harsh shoe and leather skirt to match.
And as for Burberry… they’re still doing what they do best, serving up a side of their quintessential heritage check trench, this season in fuchsia pink. And as the British brand embarks on a new chapter with Riccardo Tisci, we can be quite certain the trench coat evolution is nowhere near finished.
For now, take your pick from these oh-so-now future classics...