Barn Demonium: My Ongoing Love Affair with Utility Glam
‍Barn-ready, brunch-approved. Utility, but make it inheritance chic.
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I’ve never met a barn jacket I didn’t like, and my love affair started with Prada’s canvas utility jacket.
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I swooned when I first saw her—
her leather collar, her lived-in denim, her golden aura.
But at nearly $5,000, she was batting way out of my league.
And still…she haunted me.
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That leather trim? Perfection.
‍The denim, buttery and broken-in? I craved her.
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And so what did I do?
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I hunted down her doppelgänger, and though I loved her from her inception, when she was almost too elusive to track, designer after designer, too, felt the stirrings of her siren song.
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And now?
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She has summoned shelves filled with objects stitched in her likeness.
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And the original Prada? I still covet her, and long to add her to the lineup. But these days, I placate myself with Henderson, with Lauren, with Toteme…and I wait for her. I know she’ll find me. The good ones always come home.
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Rùadh Henderson Jacket
I saw her first on Moda— trunk show, of course.
I was obsessed, but was she just a passing fancy?
The warm glow of her butter-yellow denim? It spoke to me.
The smooth leather collar. The funnel neck. Her swanky crop.
I hemmed. I hawed. I let her go.
But you know what they say? If it’s meant to be, she’ll come back to you.
And she did.
And Henderson? I’m making her my personality this fall.
Sunglasses optional.
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Ralph Lauren Utility Jacket
Before there was Henderson, there was Lauren—as in Ralph Lauren.
She was my first foray into barn jackets.
I worried that she was a little too yellow—that her collar was corduroy, not leather.
But her bold brass buttons twinkled.
Her pockets? They beckoned.
Her gathered back? It cinched it—she called my name.
And so I bit. And I’m glad I did.
She’s a beauty and a beast—the workhorse I didn’t know I was missing.
She finishes off a boyfriend jean and holds her own with a legging.
She’s the first jacket I reach for as the weather quickens.
I’ve truly fallen in love with Lauren, because when does Ralph ever miss?
He doesn’t.
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Toteme Country Jacket
Ah, another one I found at Moda.
Trunk show? But of course—oh, how those trunk shows get me in trouble. Moda, behave.
‍And again, I held.
But I didn’t last long.
She had me at waxed cotton.
Intentional. Slouchy in all the right places.
It was love at first sight.
And that forest green with chocolate? Florence Water incarnate—IYKYK.
If you don’t, track her down under Curations.
You’re welcome.
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Ralph Lauren Cotton Utility Jacket
Leave it to Ralph to create magic in a bottle, not once but twice.
And I have my eye on her.
Black cotton, brass buttons, and a chocolate-brown leather collar?
Perfection.
Slightly sassy, she’s cropped and relaxed in all the right places.
Good with denim or a kick flare.
Toss on a pair of ballet slippers and don’t let the barn door hit you on the ass.
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Sandro Workwear Jacket
Sandro? She has me green with envy.
That leather collar? Tell me it doesn’t evoke Prada. I dare you. You can’t.
The emerald-green denim? An unexpected pop of color. Delicious.
And me?
Yup. I want her—you knew that, of course.
But how many barn jackets does one girl need?
I’m thinking four, right??
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The Great Barn Jacket
The Great? Well, they just do everything great—name, well earned.
This jacket is no exception—pared-down, practical elegance.
And isn’t that great?
Of course, it is.
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Prada Cropped Canvas Jacket
And here she is—the belle of the ball, the one I long to try on for a spin around the dance floor.
I could wax poetic about her for days.
One day she’ll be mine.
But in the meantime, I dream.
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The Accomplices
A barn jacket?
Once you have her, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without her.
She’s elegance with ease—the best kind, of course.
She multitasks: denim or dress, sneaker or stiletto.
Throw her over a J.Crew roll-neck with Hunters, and you’re mucking through the English countryside in style.
Add a pair of YSL sunnies?
You’ve just bridled horsepower and haute couture.
‍Carry on.