Real stories · Pretty outside, teddy-bear inside
Florals on the outside, a teddy-soft lining on the inside — the jacket that finally made warm and pretty the same thing
A jacket that's genuinely warm AND genuinely pretty — I'd started to accept you had to choose. I'm 67, and my warm layers have always been practical to the point of apology: sensible colours, sensible shapes, nothing you'd call lovely. The pretty things, meanwhile, are for looking at through a window in November.
What I wanted was one jacket that did the frosty dog walk without me looking like I'd dressed for a hike.
On the wardrobe door the day it arrived — florals outside, teddy inside.
Then I found the Melvan from Studio Nomi — a floral jacket, and the secret is what's inside it.
Open it up and the entire lining, hood included, is thick teddy-soft fleece — the kind you can't stop touching. That's where the warmth comes from, and it's real warmth: frost-on-the-grass, scarf-optional warmth.
But the outside is a soft cream covered in the loveliest botanical print, so from the other side of the street it reads as a pretty jacket, not a survival garment. Zip it to the chin, pull the hood up when the drizzle starts, and there are proper pockets for cold hands and dog treats.
First cold morning at the garden gate. Warm to the chin, tea in hand.
It has done every cold-morning walk with Winnie since it arrived, the frosty school run, and coffee with the girls straight afterwards without a change of outfit.
Two women at the café asked about it in one week — both of them touched the lining and made the same involuntary “ooh”.
It was £39.95 in the sale — I paused at nearly forty pounds until I realised it replaces both the warm-but-ugly jacket and the pretty-but-useless one.
The inside is the secret — thick, soft teddy fleece, hood included.
If your wardrobe also splits into “warm” and “pretty” with nothing in between, do treat yourself to a look.
The Melvan combines the cosy feel of a cold-weather layer with the sort of floral finish that still feels lovely enough to wear for lunch, errands or coffee afterwards.
Melvan Floral Fleece Jacket
£80.00 £39.95 · Save 50%
- Whole lining is teddy-soft fleece, hood included
- Pretty botanical print
- Cosy warmth for cold-weather walks
- Proper pockets for cold hands
- Comfortable everyday layering
Sale — while sizes last.