Equine Couture Ladies Raleigh Show Coat 16 Black

Everyone at the barn wants one now. A hair short if you are closer to needing a Tall but great fit, very stretchy and comfortable. Soft, dirt comes right off with wet towel if you don't have time to wash it and dries fast. Not heavy/hot. Awesome coat that is so much more comfortable than the old school wool ones. I highly recommend! Fits true to size but it is a hair short compared to what most traditional style coats are.

I bought this coat 1 year ago (see prior review) and have shown in it 6-7 times since. I have both the black and navy and LOVE them! After wearing my ($300) traditional Ariat coat for hunter classes, putting on my Equine Couture soft shell in black for the Derby or navy for Eq is a relief. This coat is NOTICABLY lighter, cooler, more breathable, and stretchier (and my Ariat coat does have some stretch). Perfect for hot Texas horse shows, but not too cool for the winter shows. I have not tried machine washing as a prior reviewer had an issue with how the collar looked afterwards. No problems with dry cleaning and I'm confident that to wear the coat for multiple days in a row one could just dust off/spot clean, spray with Febreze and let it sit on a hanger overnight. Trainers at my barn have some of the more expensive softs shells and I cannot tell the difference between theirs and mine when on a horse. I primarily show locally due to work/family time restraints, but (as my hubby and barn friends can confirm) I'm skilled at equine shopping and picky about gear/grooming/appearances - I would not hesitate to wear this coat at an A/AA show. I was worried that the lack of structure to the coat would end up looking sloppy or put me at a disadvantage for Equitation, but it hasn't been a problem at all. I would highly recommend sizing DOWN on this hunt coat as it goes by dress size. I know trying to figure out sizing in different brands while online shopping is a challenge (thank goodness for SmartPak's return/shipping policies!), so for reference...I am 5'7", 120lbs, 32" chest, busty, slender frame but with broad shoulders and hips and I wear a 10 in Ariat coats, 4-6 dress size, and ended up fitting the size 4 in the Equine Couture coat after multiple exchanges to SmartPak (including one after I wrote my first review). With the stretch in this coat don't be afraid to try the next size smaller than you think will fit, it actually looks better/more structured if there isn't any extra fabric to wrinkle.