How to Buy a $700 to $900 Coat Online: 8 Checks Before You Order

Before you order a $700 to $900 coat online, check 8 things on the product page: the fiber, the weight, the lining, the construction, the length, the returns, the maker and the answers. Our black Nicole wrap coat at $825 shows all 8 on one page, starting with 100% long fiber wool at 480 grams per square meter.

Most women buy a coat at this price without touching the cloth. So the product page has to do the work your hands would do in a shop. Each check below says what to look for and what our own coat pages say.

At a glance

• The fiber is given as a percentage, such as 100% long fiber wool.
• The weight is given in grams per square meter, such as 480 gsm.
• The lining is named by its fiber, such as Bemberg cupro.
• The page says how the front is built, for example with horsehair canvas.
• The length is given in inches, with the size that was measured.
• The return policy gives a number of days in plain words.
• The page names where the coat is made and who makes it.
• The page answers fit questions, and a person answers the rest.

Check 1: Does the page give the fiber as a percentage?

Look for a number next to every fiber. A label that only says wool blend leaves you guessing. The Lucy coat in black, $910, is 100% long fiber wool. The Clara navy trench, $910, is 87% long fiber wool and 13% nylon. The red Selina coat, $825, is 70% wool and 30% polyester. Its page says so in the first lines.

A blend can be the right cloth for a particular job. The page just has to give you the numbers. Our guide on how to read a fabric label goes through a care label line by line. For the fiber question in more depth, read what 100% wool means on a coat.

Check 2: Does the page give the weight in grams?

Weight is the second number to find. It is usually written as grams per square meter, or gsm. With it you can compare 2 coats you have never held. Both Nicole coats are 480 gsm wool, and so is the Selina wool cape, $770. Both Lucy coats are 460 gsm. The Clara trench is 420 gsm. The Rea jacquard trench, $770, is a 340 gsm woven jacquard for spring and fall.

When a page leaves the weight out, ask for it before you order. Our guide to wool coat warmth by temperature matches each weight to the weather.

Check 3: Does the page name the lining?

Your blouse touches the lining all day. The page should name its fiber and say whether it is full. The 5 coats lined in 100% Bemberg cupro are listed at the end of this guide. A full Bemberg lining is also inside the Clara, the Paula with faux fur collar and cuffs, $770, and the Linea belted midi coat in ivory, $770.

If a page shows the lining only in a photo, write and ask what it is made of. A seller who knows the coat can answer in a single line.

Check 4: What holds the front and the lapel in shape?

You cannot see from the outside what sits inside a tailored lapel. Look for the word canvas on the page. Both Nicole coats have hand finished horsehair canvas in the lapel. They also have double stitched shoulders, and each page says so in the fabric section. The herringbone Nicole, $825, closes with 6 buttons and a tie belt. The first photo shows both.

Not every good coat is built around a lapel. The Lucy has a detachable faux fur collar on concealed snaps. Below it, princess seams shape the waist, and the skirt flares to the knee. The Selina cape is built on a single back seam, finished by hand. Either way, the page should tell you how the coat is made.

Check 5: Does the page give a measured length, and on what size?

A photo only shows where a coat ends on the model. Our model is 5 foot 9 and wears a size 2. So we print every coat length in inches. We measure from the back of the neck to the hem on a size 2.

Ask someone to measure you the same way, down to where you want the hem. Compare that number with ours. These are the figures on our coat pages.

• The Iris short coat in black, $770, is 36 inches. It ends 3 to 4 inches above the knee.
• The beige Iris, $770, and the brown Iris with its jacquard hem, $770, are also 36 inches.
• Both Lucy coats and the Rea trench are 40 inches and end at the knee.
• The Paula is 42 inches.
• The Emma light coat is 42 inches, in teal floral at $880 and in silver floral at $880.
• The red Selina coat is 43 inches. It falls to the knee or a little below.
• The black Nicole is 45 inches, and the herringbone Nicole is 46. Both reach mid calf.
• The Linea is 48 inches, a midi length.
• The Clara is 50 inches and ends at the lower mid calf.
• The Isidora long coat in mocha, $680, is 51 inches.

Our guide to which coat length flatters you walks through the measuring. For hems over a midi or a gown, read the coat over the dress.

Check 6: What does the return policy say, in plain words?

Read the policy before the coat goes in your bag. Look for the number of days. Look for who starts the return, and whether you have to give a reason. Ours is 30 days with no questions asked, and you start the return yourself. Shipping inside the US is free and takes 2 to 5 days from California.

A clear policy changes how you try a coat at home. Put it on over the dress you plan to wear. Check the hem against your own measurement, and decide in your own mirror.

Check 7: Where is the coat made, and who makes it?

Look for a named place of making and a named maker. Be wary of a page that only says where a coat was designed. Every Luna coat is made in our own atelier in Serbia. Biljana Jovanovic founded Luna Fashion House there in 1990. The house has made occasion wear and tailoring ever since. In the US, Amaretta LLC of Newport Beach, California, runs the site, and your coat ships from California.

Knowing the maker also tells you who to ask. That leads to the last check.

Check 8: How does the seller answer questions?

A good product page answers most questions before you think to write them. Each of our coat pages has a section called What to wear it over. It measures the coat against named dresses from our own collection, in inches. The Clara page, for example, says the coat runs 4 inches past 2 of our midi dresses. Each page also lists the questions buyers ask about that coat, with answers.

For anything a page does not cover, write to connect@lunafashionhouse.com or call +1 949-601-2846. Ask for the exact measurement you need. Our sizing guide lists the body measurements for each size.

Will the coat fit over a blazer or a sweater?

Settle the layers question before you choose a size. The page should speak to it plainly. The Clara, the Lucy and the Linea each have a shoulder cut to sit over a tailored blazer. On each of them the sleeve clears a blazer cuff by 1/2 inch. The Lucy page adds a practical step. Check the size against the heaviest piece you plan to wear under it.

Between sizes, both Nicole pages say to take the smaller. The Clara page gives you the choice. Take the smaller for a closer tailored line, or the larger for more room to layer. The Paula runs slightly generous, so most women take their usual size. The Selina cape has arm openings at the shoulder. They take the sleeve of a blazer or a long sleeve dress.

How do I know the fabric is what the page says?

Read the fabric section and the care section, and check that they agree. On the Nicole page, the care section repeats the fabric line. It names long fiber wool at 480 grams per square meter, a Bemberg lining and hand finished horsehair canvas. Every one of our coats is dry clean only. Our guide on caring for a wool coat covers brushing, hanging and storage.

Look closely at the photo as well. A herringbone should show its weave at the collar and the belt. A jacquard should show a pattern woven into the cloth. The Rea page says its pattern is woven at the loom rather than printed. Its first photo shows a cream jacquard with a tonal floral weave. Our story on the wrap coat in black and herringbone shows both Nicole weaves.

Can I trust a smaller fashion house with a $900 coat?

A smaller house earns trust the way a large one does. It gives you facts you can check and a policy you can use. Our coat pages give you the fiber, the grams, the lining, the length and the maker. The 30 day return covers what no page can, which is how the coat feels on you. If a figure from this list is missing on any page, ours included, write and ask before you order.

For what a coat at this price should give you over the years, read one good coat or 3 cheap ones.

Which Luna coats pass all 8 checks?

Of our coats, 5 give you every figure on the list. Each is 100% long fiber wool with a weight in grams and a 100% Bemberg cupro lining. The figures for each one follow.

• The black Nicole wrap coat, $825, is 480 gsm wool with horsehair canvas in the lapel. It has a buckle belt and a 45 inch length.
• The herringbone gray Nicole, $825, is 480 gsm wool herringbone with horsehair canvas. It has 6 buttons, a tie belt and a 46 inch length.
• The black Lucy coat, $910, is 460 gsm wool with a detachable faux fur collar and pompom ties. It flares to the knee at 40 inches.
• The red Lucy coat, $910, has the same build in red, with a tonal red collar.
• The Selina wool cape, $770, is 480 gsm wool with a black faux fur collar and a self tie belt. Its single back seam is finished by hand.

The cape is the only exception on length. It is worn open with a tie belt, and any skirt below keeps its full shape. So the page describes what it covers instead of giving a hem figure. For the cape over a gown, read the black wool cape and the woman who wears it.

Which coats are built for other jobs?

The rest of our coats use blends and technical cloths on purpose. Each page gives the percentages, the length, the atelier and the same returns. These are coats for travel, for spring and fall, and for evening arrivals.

• The Clara navy trench, $910, comes closest to the first list. It is 87% wool and 13% nylon at 420 gsm, with a full Bemberg lining.
• The red Selina coat, $825, is 70% wool and 30% polyester. Its removable red faux fur collar takes it from evening to the boardroom.
• The Paula, $770, is a textured botanical viscose with faux fur at the collar and cuffs. It is made for holiday parties and the opera.
• The Linea in ivory, $770, is a textured technical polyester chosen so it does not crush. It is our travel coat.
• The Isidora in mocha, $680, is 55% polyester, 35% cotton and 10% elastane, with a woven jacquard texture. It suits cool weather between seasons.
• The 3 Iris coats, at $770 each, are 81% cotton, 14% polyamide and 5% elastane with a satin finish. They are short coats for spring and fall.
• The 2 Emma light coats, at $880 each, are a jacquard of 90% polyester and 10% metalized fibers. They are for the theater and the weeks when wool feels too heavy.
• The Rea jacquard trench, $770, is a 340 gsm woven jacquard with storm flaps and a tie belt. It is a spring and fall coat.

Our guide to light coats for 50 to 70 degrees matches these coats to the weather. For shape, length and color by decade, read the elegant winter coat for women over 50 and over 60.

What should I do next?

Pick 2 coats and measure yourself from the back of the neck. Compare your number with the inches on each page before you compare the photos. Every wool coat is in our winter coats, and the lighter cloths are in our light coats. The coats for black tie and galas are in our gala outerwear.

More by age: the winter coat for women in their 30s, the winter coat for women in their 40s and the elegant winter coat for women over 50 and over 60.