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ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS LODEN COAT!
In "Himalayan" cloth, made for Loden-Plankl of Vienna.
In "Himalayan" cloth, made for Loden-Plankl of Vienna.
This is certainly the most beautiful and luxurious loden coat that I've ever seen--and since WaterhollowTweed is based right by Princeton I've had plenty of opportunity to admire the gorgeous Lodens that are offered by Landau of Princeton, one of the few US stockists of genuine Loden coats. And this is better than any I have seen there!
But that's not surprising, because this coat was made for Loden Plankl of Vienna. Loden-Prankl has been in the Prankl family since it was founded in 1870--indeed, it's been at the same location Michaelplatz 6, right in the heart of old Vienna, since it was founded in 1870! Since its founding it has specialized in the very finest Austrian clothing for both men and women--as its name LODEN-Prankl suggests. This specialization has paid dividends--Loden-Prankl is now widely regarded as being the very BEST place in the world to buy loden and other traditional Austrian clothing. And while I can't attest personally to this comparative claim, I can attest to how wonderful Loden-Prankl is; on my recent trip to Vienna I spent quite some time admiring both the window displays, and then the wares inside. It really is a stunning store, and well worth a visit.....
Although since the prices reflect both the quality of its wares and the august name of Loden-Prankl I suggest leaving your credit card at home, unless you really want to take out a second mortgage!
Since this was made for Loden-Prankl you know immediately that this is no run of the mill loden coat--not that there is such a thing, since garments made from loden cloth start at "excellent" in quality and rise from there!
This coat is made from the legendary "Himalaya" blend of 75% loden wool and 25% alpaca.
Loden cloth originated in the Austrian Tyrol, where it quickly became a favourite with hunters, shepherds, and others who spent a lot of time outdoors, owing to its water-resistant properties and the high degree of warmth that it gives relative to its weight. The fabric is produced from the coarse wool of Alpine mountain sheep which has a natural short pile; this is woven into a loose cloth which is then repeated dunked in cold mountain water, dried, then dunked again to shrink it and produce a lovely tight, warm, yet lightweight cloth that's extremely durable, supple, and windproof.
Alpaca, taken from the South American camelid the alpaca (obviously!) is a soft, durable, silky fibre that's extremely warm and durable. In Incan times it was reserved for royalty, and used to make "The Cloth of the Gods". The blend of loden and alpaca yields a stunningly soft, durable, luxurious cloth with a wonderful hand and drape--cloth that's worthy of a coat sold at Loden-Frankl.
The cost itself lives up to its cloth. Made by Salko, the premier makers of Loden coats (O'Connell's and Landau both carry Salko coats) and utterly traditional--Loden-Prankl make Langrock look dangerously fashionable and quite inexpensive!--this is a full-length classic loden coat. It fastens with four large leather-covered buttons in rich chestnut, perfectly complementing the classic loden green of the coat. The buttons have the utterly traditional and now extremely rare doubled leather shanks. The coat has two deep handwarmer pockets, and two ornamental chevron straps on the cuffs; these are secured with functyional buttonholes and, again, the classic leather covered and leather shanked buttons. The coat has the traditional Austrian collar, which can be secured upwards against wind with a functional throat latch.
The coat features the traditional almost full-length pleat at the back for ease of movement. It also features--and this makes it very rare and desirable indeed--Alpine sleeves. These area sleeves that are perfectly normal tubular sleeves BUT they have been designed so that there is a space under each arm where the sleeve does not attach to the body of the coat. This is intentional; it allows someone wearing this coat while climbing in the Alps the maximum amount of movement possible. If the sleeves were attached as normal this would restrict movement; this would never be a problem in normal life, but if you're climbing it could be. This also ensures perfect ventilation--ideal if you're exerting yourself climbing. To compensate for the absence of attachment under the arm the sleeves are attached with double seams at the top. The shoulders of this coat are roped, as is traditional and correct with lodenwear.
AND this coat has another rare feature--it has a button-in liner, quilted in the shoulder area for comfort and warmth, which allows this coat to be worn in a wide range of temperatures. The interior shell of the coat also has a zippered security pocket.
Oh yes--it carries a full range of traditional Austrian labels, attesting to its provenance as an Austrian made Himalaya coat, sold by Loden-Prankl of Vienna.
This coat is in absolutely excellent condition--it might have never been worn. Given that the original cost of this coat would have been well into four figures--O'Connell's carries a more inexpensive version of this coat (with lower alpaca content and absent the desirability of Loden-Plankl provenance) at $1,200--it's a bargain at just $195, OR OFFER, boxed, shipped, and insured in the USA. International inquiries are very welcome, with reduced cost shipping available!
Measurements:
Chest: 23
Sleeve; 25 1/2 (+1 1/4)
Shoulder: 19 1/2
Length: 45
