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This Aritzia Parka Will Make You Feel Like the Queen of the North

Zoe Weiner

January 28, 2019

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Photo: Well and Good Creative

As far as “fun things to shop for” go, I’d place "winter coats" somewhere near the very, very bottom of the list—slightly below "nude bra” and just a hair above “tampons." They’re expensive, all kinds of make-you-feel-like-the-Michelin-Man, and a clear indicator that winter is not only coming, but that it is here and we have to deal with it.

But this weekend, just as New York City temperatures dipped below 10 degrees, the universe somehow answered my prayers (or, erm, whines and moans) and I found one that completely changed my mind about the entire category of clothing without costing me upwards of $1,000: The Babaton St. Moritz Parka.

For $365 (marked down from $398!), this parka has everything you could possibly want when its so cold outside it feels like your eyeballs might freeze inside your head. It’s waterproof, windproof, and packed with goose down to keep you warm when it gets down to -22 degrees. The faux-fur hood makes me feel like my childhood teddy bear is giving me a cozy hug around my ears. It’s slightly cinched at the waist, which makes me feel more runway model than marshmallow. Extending all the way down past my knees, it also kind of makes me feel like I’m wearing the streetwear version of a sleeping bag. To test its warmth factor, I walked 45 blocks in 14-degree weather yesterday, and felt snug as a bug in a rug.

On Monday morning, when the elevator doors opened and stepped into the office ready to show off my amazing new parka, I was shocked to discover that not one but two of my colleagues had also treated themselves to the coat over the weekend. I’m calling it now: This is the downtown version of the Upper East Side’s infamous Amazon coat with a lot more faux fur involved.

"Not only does the fur hood make me feel extra posh, but overall the jacket keeps me SO warm,” says audience development assistant Amanda Gaines. "Being a Florida transplant, I was on the hunt for a stylish coat that didn’t skimp on the extra padding. In a sea of Canada Goose coats, this coat is the ultimate eye-catcher. I once even got asked if it was designer!"

Well+Good's director of product Kendall Bryant agrees. "You know when you zip something up and you have that moment of, 'Oh! This is what it must be like to have all your clothes perfectly tailored!' That's this coat," she says. "Which is extra amazing because its down-filled, and typically I feel like I'm wearing a sumo wrestler costume when in a puffy coat. The fact that its absurdly warm, goes to my knees, and its waterproof checks all the practical boxes, and makes me love the impractical fur collar/hood even more."

Isn't it so cute?! At press time, it's still on sale on Aritzia's website, but I have a feeling that once the rest of the Internet finds out (and discovers that this coat makes you fee like you came straight out of Winterfell), it won't be around for long.

If my love letter to the Babaton St. Moritz parka has you longer for one of your own, here's how to donate your old coat. And considering it will make you feel like the queen of the north, be sure to give it the royal treatment by washing it properly.