Vintage Dupes for *That* Totême Coat
And other things to wear during fool's spring.
Hello and welcome to Gumshoe’s inaugural dispatch. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to take up a bit of precious space in your inbox and will do my utmost to use it wisely.
Since the tulips outside my apartment building are mere weeks away from blooming but I still find myself reaching for a beanie before I walk out the door, I’ve naturally got fool’s spring style on the mind. Below are some shopping links, outfit ideas, and keyword rabbit holes in line with that train of thought.
There are some really good vintage dupes for the Totême scarf coat you’ve probably seen on Instagram…
You know the one I’m talking about, right? Grey with patch pockets and a connected matching scarf? Costs about $1,000? Quite a titillating concept, I’ll be the first to admit — and one with vintage alternatives worth considering if you want to get the look without looking like everyone else (and for less money at that!).
Of relevant note: it’s the kind of coat that makes you excited about wearing a coat, which is important for morale when it’s 38 degrees in almost-April.
Keywords used: “vintage scarf coat”; “vintage coat with attached scarf”; “vintage scarf jacket”
“The Pant”…
My sister sent me this TikTok video the other day that chronicles the poster’s exasperated search for what she calls “The Pant.” Below are her criteria for these elusive trousers.
Not jeans
Not leggings
Not as put together as a tailored pant
Not as casual as a slouchy cargo pant
Not linen because it’s not always the time for linen
Loose and without a weird belt
For me the answer is the Paula Pant from Modern Citizen, a brand based in San Francisco. I have them in both black and white and wear them year-round. They’re 100% cotton and double lined, making them the perfect weight for spring (and summer and early fall). When it’s colder I add Heattech leggings underneath. I reached out to the brand to ask when they’ll be restocked and they told me “probably April 15th” in black, so I would recommend joining the waitlist in the meantime if you think you might be interested. They tend to sell out quickly.
Reliable outfit templates for transitional weather…
A very dorky but genuinely useful thing I do is maintain folders in my photo app for categorizing outfits I wear and like by season or occasion (i.e. “Fall” outfits, “Kind of Chilly” outfits “Depths of Winter” outfits, “Spring” outfits,” “Travel” outfits, etc.) Whenever I wear an outfit I like, I try to remember to add a quick snap of it to the appropriate folder — that way I have easy sources of inspiration handy for the inevitable days when I’m stumped and in need of a foolproof, fully vetted assemblage of pieces I know I already own. I dove into the “Kind of Chilly” and “Spring” folders recently, specifically in search of outfits suitable for this weird period of the season where it’s often warm and cool at varying points over the course of a single day, and mentally bookmarked these:
Even if you don’t own the exact items pictured above, the templates are basic enough that their building blocks are likely to exist in some form across many wardrobes:
High-waist pants + cropped shirt + blazer
Silky printed pants + sweater or striped shirt + blazer
White skirt + black sweater + black shoes
The exception being silky printed pants, which trend slightly niche as far as wardrobe staples go, but I find myself reaching for them all the time. The ones I have are from Chloe, purchased on super sale from YOOX awhile back on the heels of a diligent hunt. They also routinely show up on The RealReal and Vestiaire Collective (here they are for an absolute steal at $126). Any pair of patterned pants would do as a substitute though, or even a classic pair of straight-leg blue jeans if you’re not a statement-y pants kind of person.
I’m wearing the same black silk blazer — one of my best and most-worn secondhand scores — in the first three outfits, which brings me to my next point:
There’s nothing quite like a 100% silk blazer this time of year…
The way it hangs! The ever-so-slight sheen! The ease of layering over or under something else! It really can’t be beat. I wear mine at least a few times a week.
Keywords used: “vintage silk blazer”; “vintage 100% silk blazer”
Last but not least, J.Crew has started releasing capsules of vintage J.Crew pieces…
Which I think is genius for a brand that innately packs so much nostalgia punch. The first, a limited edition capsule of their classic 90s cotton rollneck sweaters, sold out almost immediately, prompting me to go in search of more on eBay.
As someone with sensitive skin I have a thing for 100% cotton sweaters, and these were an untapped classic of the genre for me. I debated between popsicle red and navy, but ended up buying one of the latter since my husband and I are constantly fighting over his similarly colored cashmere crewneck. It’s currently en route to me from Philadelphia.
Keywords used: “vintage j.crew rollneck sweater”; “vintage j.crew oarsman sweater”
That’s all for today! Go sniff some pollen this weekend.
xo Harling
Love the inclusion of keywords to search for. Enlightenment!
Great inaugural newsletter! I can tell it's definitely going to be one of my faves. Love the inclusion of the keyword search - really helpful!