Mai-Gidah Red Pullover Coat

A pullover coat is a rare object and the reason is simple: a coat is the garment you put on last and take off first, so a front that opens all the way is not a design decision, it is a convenience everyone has agreed to. This one declines it. The coat goes on over the head, and the only fastening is a single button at the top, which means the front of the garment is one uninterrupted piece of red wool from the shoulder to the hem with no placket, no button line, and no break. That is what it buys, and on a color this strong it buys a great deal. The pocket is the other decision. There is one of them, cut large, and it sits on one side only, so the coat is asymmetrical without any of the usual signals of asymmetry. Ninety percent wool with ten percent polyester, which is the ratio at which the wool still sets the hand and the weight while the polyester keeps a large panel of cloth from losing its shape under its own weight. Mid length. Made in the Netherlands.

Why we selected it

Outerwear is where most houses stop taking risks, because a coat has to work in the rain and in the office and nobody wants to argue with it. This one takes the risk at the front and solves everything else conventionally, which is the right order to do it in.

Mai-Gidah keeps removing the closure and asking the pattern to do the work, and a coat that is pulled on is the furthest it takes that.

Materials and construction

Ninety percent wool and ten percent polyester. Mid length, pullover construction with a single button closure at the top, and one large pocket to one side. Color: red. Made in the Netherlands.

Fit notes

It goes on over the head, so it needs enough room at the shoulder and the neck to pass, and it is therefore cut wider through the top than a coat that opens would be. That width is what lets it go over a jumper. Mid length means it finishes below the hip. Because it does not open, it is not a coat to keep taking on and off across a day, and it is not cut to pretend otherwise.

Styling

Over the Textured Knitted Jumper, which is the layer it was made to clear. Over the Extra Classic Trousers. It is the loudest piece in this house’s work and everything under it should be quiet.

Care

A wool coat is a dry-clean garment and this one is a strong color, so the first cleaning is the one that matters: take it to a cleaner rather than testing anything at home, because a red wool that has been mishandled once will show it in daylight forever. Brush it and air it in between. Our care guidance covers the rest.

Related pieces

The Black Wrap Coat is the house’s other mid-length coat, wrapped rather than pulled on, and the Drawstring Knitted Trousers are a wool trouser knitted rather than woven. Everything we carry from Mai-Gidah is listed together.