outerwear men

A.P.C., founded in Paris by Jean Touitou in 1987, begins the winter with two men's coats in Italian wool, the Gaston and the Auster mac. Around them, the collection moves through longer and shorter lengths, with heavier layers for the coldest months and lighter jackets for spring and autumn.

Men's coats for the first cold weeks

The Gaston is the men's coat to reach for when the temperature drops, in a thick, warm Italian wool with raglan sleeves and a slightly loose fit. A.P.C. lines it in viscose, and the fit leaves room beneath for a jacket or a heavier jumper. As a winter coat for men, it comes in a dark navy, and a cashmere scarf folded at the neck adds a layer of warmth.

The Auster mac, in felted Italian wool, falls to mid-thigh and has a topstitched classic collar and a single vent. Five buttons close the front, four of them hidden, for a clean line over a suit jacket. A.P.C. offers it in heather charcoal grey, and the same shape comes in heather brown. Kept on a hanger as wide as the shoulders, both coats hold their shape, as the brand's ready-to-wear care guide explains.

The men's long coat, cut to the knee

A men's long coat keeps more of the body covered on a winter commute, and the Gaston reaches the knee. Its raglan sleeves leave the shoulders free, and A.P.C. gives it enough ease to go over the brand's knitwear for men, the cashmere cable knits included. When a shorter length is more practical, on a bicycle for instance, the Auster, which stops at mid-thigh, is the easier choice of the two.

Men's long coats look balanced over trousers with some fullness in the leg, and the Gaston falls well over loose pleated trousers in black or taupe. A narrower trouser pairs better with the shorter Auster, which shows more of the leg under the hem. In denim, A.P.C. offers wide-leg jeans whose fuller line carries the length of the coat down to the shoe, a proportion that suits leather boots or trainers.

When the men's overcoat comes out

A men's overcoat is the outermost layer in deep winter, over a jumper and even over the Victor jacket in navy moleskin. A.P.C. designs a unisex overcoat in heavyweight coated canvas, chalk grey with flap pockets, and a double-breasted pea coat in thick recycled wool, navy blue and generously cut. Of these two men's overcoats, the pea coat makes the warmer winter coat for men, with a buttoned flap that closes the collar.

Parkas take over on wet, windy days. Where the Gaston and the Auster rely on wool, the men's navy parka relies on a waterproof waxed fabric, long and loose. A.P.C. adds a charcoal grey parka in woollen cloth with a hood, and a khaki nylon parka with a removable hooded collar. Over a men's navy parka, a men's messenger bag worn across the body keeps both hands free on the way to work.

What a men's mac brings to autumn

A men's mac covers the weeks either side of winter, when a wool coat is too heavy and a jacket not quite enough. A.P.C. cuts one in beige organic cotton gabardine that stops just above the knee and closes with hidden faux horn buttons. Left open over a striped shirt, it suits a mild spring morning, while the Auster remains the warmer of the men's macs once autumn turns cold.

Between the mac and the wool coats, two jackets bridge the seasons. A.P.C. makes the Kerlouan jacket in indigo Japanese denim, a workwear shape with A.P.C. embroidered tone-on-tone at the bottom of the left pocket, and the men's denim jackets include a selvedge version. The Victor jacket is in navy moleskin with a velvety look. Together with the Gaston and the Auster, these two jackets cover the whole year between them.