Feel warm, look cool this winter

There is no tougher season to sartorially tackle than an Irish winter in full flow

I FEEL NOTHING but disdain when I see New Yorkers dressed badly in the snow; similarly, a badly dressed Spanish person in the height of summer is surely to be sneered at. You see, there is no season so difficult to dress for as, well, the Irish season.

Living in constant fear of torrential rain – a flood of wind and water may hit at any moment – wreaks havoc with our skills of sartorial decision-making. We may want to wear those ballet flats but what of the precarious puddles between work and the bus? We may own several beautiful jackets but, time and again, they are passed over in favour of waterproof coats that wouldn’t look out of place in granny’s wartime wardrobe.

There is no fine line between practical dressing and bad dressing – the two, so often, seem to blur into one.

This week’s challenge was to attempt to find clothing that was warm, wouldn’t soak through in a monsoon and would look in some way stylish, while keeping us safe from the elements.

A waterproof jacket was a no-brainer, but this American Apparel number (€126) gets extra points for its cheery check lining and drawstring waist, which adds shape to an otherwise sack-like garment. Pairing it with Zara’s check scarf (€39.95) seemed something of a fashionable game of Go Fish. Underneath, it was all sweetness and light, with Penneys’ bunny jumper (€16), while Peter O’Brien for Arnotts provided the skirt, a heavy dirndl shape in Magee tweed (€305).

That ubiquitous fashion term, a “pop of colour”, was found in the shape of River Island’s pom pom hat (€20).

Of course, the piece de resistance is almost always found on the feet, and while wearing wellies with couture seems oh so Americaine, these Hunters (€249 at Fitzpatricks Shoes) are given fashion nous with a cool ankle buckle and fancy leather upper.