How to choose a down jacket?

We have discussed the issue of cold and heat many times. For example, I don't feel cold at all when I go out wearing a pair of jeans + a turtleneck + a shirt + a leather quilted jacket. So, okay~ I admit that I am not afraid of cold... Because there are quite a few girls on the street who wear Down Jackets and go out, some are rustic and some are fashionable~

In fact, it is nonsense to say that down jackets are fashion insulators. For example, our "down jacket goddess" Rihanna wears it every year, and she wears long and short down jackets, even indoor concerts. It can be seen that Rihanna loves down jackets.

In recent fashion shows and street shots, down jackets are the favorite of all kinds of people. There are many down jackets in the autumn and winter shows of 2016 and 2015~

From left to right: Marques Almeida 2016, Issey Miyake 2016, Chanel 2016

These people almost all have one, and it feels like a sin not to have one, okay? What's more, with down jackets, mothers no longer have to worry about their baby daughters being frozen in the cold wind and storm... And we should thank those who invented down jackets with their brains~

1 Talk about history

But, there are really many theories about the birth of down jackets:

In our great China, there are records of using feathers of birds and beasts to make feather clothes in the Zhou Dynasty, also known as fur clothes. In the Han Dynasty, yak hair was used as clothing wadding, and in the Tang Dynasty, goose down was used as clothing wadding.

In 889 AD, Liu Xun, a Tang Dynasty man, worked in Guangzhou and recorded the local customs. In his book "Lingbiao Luyi", there is also a record that "the chieftains in the south often choose fine goose feathers, sandwich them with cloth, and make quilts, and then wrap them vertically and horizontally. Their softness is no less than that of cotton wool." It is also recorded that in the eyes of people at that time, goose down quilts not only keep warm, but also have the miraculous effect of preventing children from epilepsy.

Down Clothes

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In fact, people all over the world believe that down is a good thermal insulation material: Norwegians have long attached great importance to a kind of down produced locally. It comes from Icelandic geese and ducks. When this bird builds a nest, it will lay a layer of its own down in the nest. This Icelandic goose and duck is amazing. The quilt made from it is called the most expensive quilt in the world, with a price of more than RMB 200,000, and it is still in short supply~

Although there are many different opinions on the origin of down jackets, the person who really got the patent is Eddie Bauer.

It is said that in 1812, when Napoleon attacked Russia, Bauer's uncle followed him to fight. He couldn't stand the cold weather in Russia, so he plucked some chicken feathers and stuffed them into his clothes. Finally, he returned to France warmly, and the "Feather Jacket" was born.

Bauer heard his uncle's "boasting" after he returned, and thought it was a good idea: in order to be lighter and warmer, he tried to change feathers into down; but down sewn into clothes was easy to accumulate, so Bauer used quilting techniques to make modern down jackets.

Bauer's quilting technique and down production were patented in 1940, but in fact, "Lingbiao Luyi" also recorded that we had already "re-vertically and horizontally accepted it"... Of course, no matter who invented it first, we don't need to spend too much time and space, you just need to know that the ultimate purpose of down jackets is undoubtedly to keep warm.

2 What is filled in down jackets?

You must be curious about what the lining of down jackets contains? The filling of down jackets is generally composed of down and feathers of waterfowl animals in different proportions.

Down (also known as down, down) is the hair from the neck to the chest and abdomen of these waterfowl without feather stalks. It has superb warmth and cold resistance. In addition, the down in this part has no feather stalks, is very soft, has long fibers and high fluffiness, and is small in volume, so it is the best material for making down jackets.

Feather pieces are the hair on other parts of the body except the down mentioned above. They are generally in the form of sheets with feather stalks in the middle. The warmth is not as good as down, but it has a good rebound effect.

3 The warmth-keeping principle of down jackets

How does down jackets achieve the warmth-keeping effect by filling down?

Unlike the warmth-keeping form of fur, wool and cashmere, down is the most direct insulation layer between the human body and the air. The most economical insulation material is air. Down jackets store air and reduce the circulation of cold air around the human body to achieve the effect of keeping warm.

Therefore, the good elasticity of down makes The Down Jacket itself a large space for storing air. The larger this space is, the slower the air circulation is, and the warmer it is. So, the more down there is, the better the elasticity of the down, the larger the space is, the more air can be contained, and the warmer the clothes are. This also determines that down jackets are often swollen and fat~

4 How to choose the type of filling down?

To achieve the warmth effect of making "air bags", the filling in the down jacket is very important~

The most common are goose down and duck down. The down jackets on the market are ranked by price as follows: white goose down>grey goose down>white duck down>grey duck down. The reason: the goose down is larger and lighter (but the difference is not so obvious when worn on the body), and the smell of goose down is often lighter than duck down because they are herbivorous. Therefore, people who are particularly sensitive to smell, such as Bing, can choose goose down.

It is also worth mentioning that there is not much difference between the color and warmth of down. White down looks better than gray, and the fiber structure of white down is relatively fine, soft and long. The long fiber makes it fluffier, so it is often more expensive.

5 Consideration criteria

But even though Bing has said so much about down, it is not visible as an inner liner. Moreover, the warmth of down jackets is not directly proportional to the price. Don't blindly think that the quality is necessarily good if the price is high. Therefore, we generally choose reliable brands and merchants, and refer to the three dimensions of filling amount, down content and fluffiness through the washing mark on the clothes and product labels such as tags:

The down content is the percentage of the down filled in the clothes in all the fillings, which is the key factor in warmth. The down content is above 70% to be truly cold-resistant outdoors, and 50% is the minimum standard stipulated by the state for down clothing.

Fluffiness is an important indicator for measuring the warmth of down internationally. It refers to the value of the volume cubic inches occupied by one ounce (30 grams) of down under certain conditions. For example, if the space occupied by one ounce of down is 600 cubic inches, the fluffiness of the down is called 600. Generally speaking, plump and mature birds have high fluffiness of down, while small birds have low fluffiness.

One ounce of down has different volumes at different fluffiness

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Generally, the fluffiness of down jackets for daily wear is about 450-500, and 600-900 is very warm, which can reach the level of outdoor sports.

The filling volume is the weight of the actual feathers and down filled in, which is related to the size, length, style and other factors of the clothes.

Reminder: So you have to consider the warmth of a piece of clothing? Often, the three data must be considered comprehensively~

6 Fabric selection

In addition to the above, the warmth of down is also related to the fabric:

Down will lose its warmth performance completely after being wetted by rain or sweating inside, no matter how thick or high-end it is. Therefore, fabrics with waterproof treatment are better~

In addition, down will not keep warm if it runs away~ so the anti-running down lining with delicate pinholes is also a must.

This kind of single item that you buy and wear for many years must of course withstand the tossing, so the fabric must also be wear-resistant.

7 How to choose

In summary, we have popularized the relevant knowledge about down jackets, so the question is, how can we simply and effectively choose high-quality down jackets?

Five key points: look, press, touch, rub, and smell

Look: Check whether the basic information is complete, including the down content, filling amount, down type, basic information of the manufacturer, and information on fluffiness. You can directly consult the shopping guide.

Note: For down jackets with the same filling volume, the larger the volume (i.e. the fluffier the down jacket), the better the quality. The faster the rebound time, the better the quality (indicating high fluffiness).

3. Touch: Touch the down through the inner layer. If you feel prickly, it means that the feather content in this jacket is high. If it does not prick your hand, the down content of the jacket is relatively high and the warmth retention is good.

4. Knead: Pat it hard to observe whether there is fluff or dust. It is judged that the fabric has poor anti-down property or the stitching needle hole is too large. Such down jackets will become thinner and thinner, and the waterproofness and breathability will not be too good.

5. Smell: Smell the smell of the down jacket. If it is pungent or has a strange smell, it means that the process is not up to standard and it is an unqualified product.

For online shopping, especially overseas shopping, the most important thing is to look at the various relevant parameters of the down jacket and the word-of-mouth evaluation of other users.

8 Styles and Matching

Okay, we finally talked about styles and matching. The most basic regular down jacket design really comes from Eddie Bauer. Girls can buy it from all kinds of regular down jacket brands. And its slimming card is the waist design~

This kind of down jacket, even KK with super aura and long legs looks like a "programmer" academic master, so don't expect too much from its "fashion sense", it's good enough to be decent. After all, it is used for warmth~

Among various lengths, the medium-length one that ends at the middle of the thigh is the best choice in terms of practicality, warmth and beauty. It can be worn with a belt to make you look taller~

And the purchase options for this type of down jacket:

The cheapest and most cost-effective choice Uniqlo is sold out every year. It is filled with white duck down and is characterized by lightness and thinness;

The well-known Moncler with white goose down filling and a filling volume of more than 85% is luxurious;

Add Down, which is known for being the lightest, thinnest and most fashionable down jacket, is priced at 3~4K, and is also worth buying when it is discounted;

Duvetica, founded by a designer who jumped from M, can also fill up to 90% of white duck down, and the price is much lower;

In addition, the common domestic brands Bosideng, Yalu... can be selected according to the selection method written in the cake~

For outdoor sports, the requirements for fabrics and down are higher. Waterproof, windproof, breathable and light are a must, and sufficient warmth is also required. Down jackets mainly for outdoor use are usually neutral military-style designs. This type is also the most worn by Hollywood movie stars. After all, "handsome" is more popular with fashion icons, and this type of functional down jacket is famous for warmth~

Among them, the most representative one is Canada Googse, which is made of wolf hair and filled with duck down, but is called goose. Of course, the fluffiness of its duck down can reach 750, so it is said to be able to withstand the severe cold of minus 30°, which is the warmest choice (one of the best), especially the expedition series;

In addition, some outdoor brands: THE NORTH FACE (the Korean version is more fashionable) and Columbia will launch similar models.

Of course, down jackets have been very popular in the past two years, and there must be many big brands and designer brands vying to occupy the pit of this practical single product. If you want to be fashionable and unique, you must be able to keep warm and look good:

A handsome and stylish short jacket. This type of down jacket can be paired with a tight-fitting item to look good anytime and anywhere. It is so handsome that it is boyfriend-like~ Represented by PARAJUMPERS Gobi, STELLA McCARTNEY, Coach, Kenzo, and domestic JNBY are also available. Basically, it is not picky~

The Japanese style design represented by 3.1 phillip lim and Christian Wijnants has a kind of floating fairy bone, which is suitable for thin and artistic young women to look good~

Street shots show this effect~ Domestic JNBY and Changzuo Dongliang have also cooperated with designers to create a wave of this type of style. This type is not limited to young girls, mature mothers can also wear it well~

And the design that maximizes the expansion of the item to oversized is the most prominent among many fashionable down jackets, such as the bread coat that girls can easily buy, which can be worn with tight items inside to look fashionable. Small girls can try it, wearing it will stimulate the desire to protect ~ Moncler sells it, and Korean brands are more keen on this type.

And the "big quilt" down jacket, it looks super big and is not easy to control? In fact, girls with a well-proportioned figure can easily wear a fashionable look by choosing the right color and style~ It is also suitable for matching with tight items. For example, the designer brand The FAKE Su Wukou that can be bought on TB~

Finally, for the matching of down jackets, you can't go wrong if you master the basic principle of "loose and tight matching"! Only by contrasting the wide and large down jacket with skinny bottoms can you create a thin and tall effect. Those street shots with both upper and lower garments drooping, unless you have your own aura, as an ordinary girl who aims to be decent in daily life, you can't control it! (Due to the length of the article, we put the matching in the second article today.)

So do you know how to choose a down jacket?