Winter Essentials: Coats

Coats are an obvious essential for winter, yet finding the perfect one is feat in itself. There are so many shapes and lengths that is a defeating task. But, once you find the one you love--the one that offers the perfect amount of warmth and stylishness--you must shift to styling.
I prefer a long coat--there's just something about a coat that skims your knees that I find alluring. I especially love when a skirt or the skirt of a dress peeks out below, it's such a cute look.  Below I styled some coats to inspire you to make your coat an accessory to your outfit, and not simply just a coat.

I love this coat because it doesn't have any closure, so you can see a peek of the outfit. It's a heavy wool/polyester blend sweater with a hood, so you'll be extra warm and cuddly in the winter months.

This coat is a classic--the collar is pointed and the sleeves are a perfect length. And, the color is gorgeous. I paired it with a plaid shift dress that has coordinating red stripes running though it.

I have a sweet spot for trench coats, especially ultra feminine ones. Since the coast screams babe, I paired it with a black lace dress, and black heeled booties.

Smart coats are a great way to look professional and preppy. I love the look of an open coat with a blouse/sweater combo. It's a nice put together look that is effortless.

Printed coats are gorgeous in the winter months. In a see of black coats in, houndstooth really stands out. I like mixing color with houndstooth, so I paired the coat with a very basic black skater dress and red tights and a red scarf.

With a coat with no collar, it can almost underwhelm an outfit. So, to compensate for the lack of a collar, I chose to style it with a collared blouse.