February 3, 2009

Reader Question: What To Do About A Missing Trench Belt?

Yesterday's post on trench coats spawned a question from a dear reader:

TBS,
Do you have any suggestions for what to do when you lose the belt to a trench? I had this cotton olive trench from NYCO that was like my linus coat...you know cuz I kept it with me all the time like Linus and his blanket. Well I lost the belt while shopping on black friday. I used to keep it pinned but the pin stuck me one day and just took it out. Can I wear it without the belt or is life over for this coat? I tried to stick a scarf through the loops and it didn't 'look right. I haven't found one similar that I like nearly as much.

Anonymous

Dear Anonymous,
First of all, thanks for stopping by! What a quagmire you have. I appreciate your affinity for this trench and hope that we can salvage this piece in the name of fashion and wardrobe staples.

There are a couple of approaches that I recommend:

1. Check eBay for the same coat (search by NY & CO, color and size). Continue to check periodically. You'll likely find it for less than you originally paid.

2. Visit your local tailor or seamstress for belt replacement ideas. They will be able to recommend the type of fabric and weight necessary. This should be fairly inexpensive.

3. Though it should be your last ditch effort, shop for a new trench coat. Sorry. Belts are important to most all trenches. You should not risk a polished look because you have chosen to hang on to a portion of a jacket.

Anyone else have suggestions for this fab reader? What would you do?

5 comments:

  1. I had a similar problem - I got a fab trench from BCBG, but it had no loops for the belt. I went to a few fabric stores and found a fabric that was about a 99% match. My seamstress sewed new loops on the coat and now all is well :) It cost about $2 for the fabric, and $3 for the sewing. Basically, go with TBS's second idea. A good seamstress should be able to make a decent belt, and a cobbler can always put those metal things on the belt holes for you, if your seamstress can't.

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  2. Thank you Anonymous Commenter! I so hope your advice is helpful to the reader.

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  3. You could shorten the hem on the coat and create a belt from the removed fabric. More realistically, ask a tailor to do it.

    There are also tons of fabulous belts out there right now. I've seen contrasting belts with trenches that have looked nice.

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  4. REALLY good suggestion, aroundthewaygirl! Thanks for sharing!

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  5. I have actually REMOVED the belt from trenches and replaced it with a lovely wide ribbon. It's way fun for a pop of color and makes me giggle thinking about a ribbon belt on something as stuffy as a trench can be. ROFL!

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