Mumsnet Talk

Dd2 is 8. To be perfectly clear we are complete townies and the nearest she comes to country is our annual trip to the farm park.

I've taken an awful notion that she would look lovely in a wee Barbour jacket but I'm not sure if it's a bit chavvy, for lack of a better word.

Opinions?

Might not be back to collect them till tomorrow but I'm not ignoring you.

I like them, but they're pricey. Which kind are you after, the paddy/quilty kind or the waxy ones?

Depends what look you're after. They are warm, waterproof and very hard wearing but your DD will look like she's she mislaid her pony if she has one of the waxy ones. They are also very expensive for what they are: you can get coats that do the same job for much less outlay.

The only people who wear them in my town are the 'chavs' who've bought them from a catalogue and are paying £2 a week for the next 10 years.

And I'm from a rural town

My DD had a navy waxed jacket (from John Lewis) when at primary. Bought it big enough to turn the cuffs up for the first year and it lasted her for 2 winters. It was smart and never looked chavvy. It was worth it because of how long it lasted. Kept her much drier than other children's waterproofs.

I had a wax one when I was little, it was then my brothers (10 year age gap) and will be my DS's when it fits (my mum looked after it well!). We lived in very rural Wales though, so it looked quite normal. I don't like the quilted ones, but the wax are very hard wearing and completely waterproof. Rather pricey though.

Barbour is naff IMO, unless you are genuinely horsey/rural.

We are a horsey, country family and laugh our socks off at townies in hunters, barbours and tweedy shooting style jackets.

I live in my wellies, but Hunters just wouldn't last five minutes anymore and barbours are just too trendy (and expensive).

Probably best not!

Just get a wax jacket, it'll last years ( bloody stink tho )

Another person bought up in rural Wales who thinks barbours are an odd fashion item.

The better off of my proper farm and rough Welsh pony showing friends had two. One for mucking out ponys and wrangling sheep, with mud indexed in it's wax and a clean and tidy one they dared to wear in town or when showing said animals.

Given how much it rains in Wales and given this is pre breathable waterproofs they made sense.

Country girl meself, despite years of living in town. Went to university in Aberystwyth, wax jacket very necessary there! Personally I think you can't fault the wax ones, the padded ones are the ones that people associate with either riding or chavs depending on context. Course, your ds is 8 s not likely to get massive amount of wear out of it, they grow so fast at that age you can practically see them growing.

Sorry!! NAK, it's dd isn't it. in which case she won't want a wax one, they smell.

If you like it and not bothered about spending a lot on a coat that she will grow out of quickly then get it.

I'm too polite to say .

Am not keen on them unless you actually do live in the country and drive a Land Rover for that reason. The whole Hunter wellies and padded Barbour-look in town is naff, imo.

I love the smell of my wax barbour - it's a pleasing mixture of wet dog, fusty library and boot of the car.

It was far too expensive really, but I wear it everyday from September to May so in terms of costs per wear it will end up good value. The huge pockets are practical and the cord muffler around the neck is cosy.

Mine's only 4 years old so I'm a bit of an arriviste, and it has a lovely Liberty print lining which I am sure is not the done thing at all. But I love it.

My only regret is that I can't fit my big pregnant bump into it at the moment so I'm reduced to wearing my mother's Jaeger swing coat which makes me look like a big grape.

I was thinking of one for my DS aged 8. He is a total townie too, other than for trips to see Grandad in Yorkshire. I may wait until next year, or for a sale...I saw some in the Barbour shop recently, and wasn't too sure. I have got the short version, and it is great for walking around south London commons in the rain!

If you want warm and waterproof you'd do much better buying her a ski type jacket, or tracking down your nearest tack shop and seeing what they sell in the country wear/horse riding line. Modern waterproof fabrics are much more hard wearing and pleasant than waxed material. Waxed smells, is sticky, wears off and needs reproofing, and if it gets hot the wax goes really smelly.

If you buy a new barbour, you have to drive over it with muddy wheels and give it to the dogs as a bed for a few nights, before you are allowed to wear it. Even then it's a bit iffy. Clean new barbours are not acceptable.

But that's in the sticks - might be different in town.

whats a barbour jacker?is it one of those quilted things?

Nooooo, don't do it.

We were a horsey family and never wore Barbour or anything like that. My mum wore hunter wellies but regular green ones did the job for us!

Waxed jackets aren't the most comfortable or suitable coats for active children, in my opinion. The Barbour non-waxed, water-proof breathable ones with quilted lining and a belt are lovely, mid weight, comfortable Spring coats though and my daughter has one.

I'm not sure of the qualifications needed to contribute to this post (apart possibly from a touch of snobbery)- we are rural and own a farm and I have always owned horses and Barbours, but live overseas and in London at present. This coat does just fine, is hard-wearing and my daughter likes it. I would recommend it. It doesn't have a hood though which might be a negative.

I bought a quilted one for DD (21 months). In my defence, it was only £10 from the factory store <smug emoticon>

We are complete townies too, but I have been wearing quilted coats for years because they are lightweight, warm and practical.