# Contemporary Barbour



## gardener (Feb 2, 2009)

I'm about to order a new Barbour jacket for the spring, though I'm concerned about the sizing. I know that the _Heritage _range is quite generous in size, in fact a whole size larger than "normal" for me. Though, I would like to know how the _Contemporary _range is in sizing. More specifically, I'm into buying the new _Contemporary Leightweight Liddesdale _jacket, and I'm not sure what size to choose. Since I'm 5'10 and rather thin built, thinner than the average, I usually go for size Small (or 34-36) normally when purchasing coats, but X-Small (30-32) in Barbour classic (like the Beaufort jacket). Also, as the youngster I am, I prefer fitted style garments.

Do you have any recommendation for me? Thanks.


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## cravat (Feb 8, 2009)

Not sure what your arm length is, but I would be very wary of going too small on any Barbour, as the arms are already pretty short even if you buy the correct size.


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## Earl of Ormonde (Sep 5, 2008)

I second what Cravat says. My Bedale which is a chest size larger than I need to allow for heavy jumpers,fleeces is already short in the sleeves even when worn w/o a jumper directly on top of a shirt. That is true of my other Barbour jacket as well.
Barbour sleeves are cut short.
The only one that has long sleeves is my riding coat.


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## gardener (Feb 2, 2009)

Thank you very much gentlemen, my concern is not much of a concern anymore. :icon_smile:


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## budrichard (Apr 3, 2008)

I take a Barbour 46. The new Large is too small and the Extra-Large is too big. So no new Barbour sized garments for me.-Dick


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## gardener (Feb 2, 2009)

I might as well ask for advice on colour. What colour do you gentlemen believe fit the Barbour Liddesdale best, navy or black? I live in the city, work in the city (management), and have no intention of acquire the look of the English gentleman in the countryside. :icon_smile_wink:


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## Thom Browne's Schooldays (Jul 29, 2007)

I checked out a Barbour store a couple months ago and they had many coats in a "slim fit" option, might be worth checking out.

Earl, a Barbour riding coat?
The Burgley?
Where do you wear it?


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## Delmarco (Jun 1, 2008)

By all means try to get the older style Barbour Wax Jackets (pre 2004). I find the new ones to be most synthetic in both appearance and feel.


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## Richard5418 (Feb 9, 2009)

*Try at Orvis*

I have tried my Barbour at an Orvis shop - they have a good selection.


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## JibranK (May 28, 2007)

gardener said:


> I might as well ask for advice on colour. What colour do you gentlemen believe fit the Barbour Liddesdale best, navy or black? I live in the city, work in the city (management), and have no intention of acquire the look of the English gentleman in the countryside. :icon_smile_wink:


Bright orange.


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## VincentC (May 23, 2008)

gardener said:


> I might as well ask for advice on colour. What colour do you gentlemen believe fit the Barbour Liddesdale best, navy or black? I live in the city, work in the city (management), and have no intention of acquire the look of the English gentleman in the countryside. :icon_smile_wink:


What about rustic? But i think i would prefer navy to black
Barbour sizes are quite generous. A small jacket always fits me ok. That is chest size 34-36. I normally take a 36-38 inch chest suit


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## gardener (Feb 2, 2009)

Well, I spend my most of my life in the city, work and pleasure. I like the Liddesdale as it works well for a casual day at the office, even with a suit. It also works perfect for drinks and going out, according to me. Still, I have a hard time deciding if I will go for navy or black. I think navy is more classic, but black works better with a suit. On the other hand, I think black is to dominating in business nowadays, especially when it comes to coats.


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## gardener (Feb 2, 2009)

To visualize my topic with two images.

https://imageshack.us
_Liddesdale in black._

https://imageshack.us
_Liddesdale in navy._

What do you gentlemen think would fit a 26 year old manager best?


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## Atomic (Feb 24, 2009)

I have the Liddesdale in black and will probably also buy a Liddesdale in blue. I think that the blue is more casual but that also depends on the other colours that you wear. In the UK they are quite popular in the City of London. I have an XL. The sleeve length is approximate to that of a 48R OTR suit jacket, about an inch too long for me.


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## VincentC (May 23, 2008)

Ive got a rustic one which looks pretty good. Im thinking of getting the green looking one as well, or do they calll it olive.
I saw a man wearing a red one the other day and a teenager wearing a blue one, which looked ok.


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## Delmarco (Jun 1, 2008)

I used to own a few of the Liddesdale jackets over the years. But I find that they wear out quickly.

The picture below is me in my most recent one. I believe it is the Olive color right before Barbour started calling it Apple.









Then I sold that one on eBay after a year of wearing it and got into a Black color Eksdale from www.orvis.com. The Eksdale is a more durable, warmer, waterproof and sleeker quilt. And it costed about $40 more than the Liddesdale. (In 2004 Orvis sold the Liddesdale was $109 and the Eskdale was $149 today I think the Liddesdale is like $159 and the Eskdale is about $199)

I owned my first Eksdale in a Size Medium which turned out to be way too big for my 5'8" 140 (size 38 /Medium frame). The Barbour Quilts are cut overly big and are very roomy as you can see in the picture below. I loved that jacket, but could only wear it out when it was really cold since it would only fit me with tons of layers underneath it.So I eventually sold it off on eBay and set out to buy one in the smaller size.









Today I now wear a Small size in the Olive Color Eksdale and it is the best Barbour Quilt I've ever owned. I've been wearing this one since 2006 and it still looks and fits new.
After upgrading to the Eksdale I don't think I will ever wear a Liddesdale again. The Eskdale is more plush and rugged whereas the Liddesdale slick nylon surface and wisper thin thickness are more for the Upper East Side Spring/Summer crowd(Grandma shopping on Madison Ave-or-Grandad walking the dogs in Central Park types). I suggest trying out the Eskdale before buy the Liddesdale. You'll get a lot more jacket for your money in an Eskdale.


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## VincentC (May 23, 2008)

Delmarco said:


> I used to own a few of the Liddesdale jackets over the years. But I find that they wear out quickly.
> 
> The picture below is me in my most recent one. I believe it is the Olive color right before Barbour started calling it Apple.
> 
> ...


Is that last picture of you wearing a eksdale or liddesdale, and what size is that last picture coat?


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## Earl of Ormonde (Sep 5, 2008)

Thom Browne's Schooldays said:


> Earl, a Barbour riding coat?
> The Burgley?
> Where do you wear it?


An answer over a year later. You can't see much of it here. I wear it in Sweden in heavy rain with that Barbour waxed hat, also in photo, it's very good for that, ankle length. very old fashioned looking. No it's not the Burghley.


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## VincentC (May 23, 2008)

Earl of Ormonde said:


> An answer over a year later. You can't see much of it here. I wear it in Sweden in heavy rain with that Barbour waxed hat, also in photo, it's very good for that, ankle length. very old fashioned looking. No it's not the Burghley.


Earl of ormonde is this pic of you. Its how i imagined youd look like.

But what annoys me with all the barbour shops ive been in, is there are never any changing rooms. Also the items i want to try out are never in stock. And they never stock size small, everything is XL. And considering there sizings are too large, i wondered if they only cater for obese buyers?

Why dont they stock small sizes for average 5ft9 inch, 11stone men?


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## The Dandy (Feb 7, 2010)

cravat said:


> Not sure what your arm length is, but I would be very wary of going too small on any Barbour, as the arms are already pretty short even if you buy the correct size.


 Are you joking? I own a Size S Barbour Jacket which is exactly right for me, appart from the fact that the sleeves are 6cm too long...


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## GBR (Aug 10, 2005)

gardener said:


> I'm about to order a new Barbour jacket for the spring, though I'm concerned about the sizing. I know that the _Heritage _range is quite generous in size, in fact a whole size larger than "normal" for me. Though, I would like to know how the _Contemporary _range is in sizing. More specifically, I'm into buying the new _Contemporary Leightweight Liddesdale _jacket, and I'm not sure what size to choose. Since I'm 5'10 and rather thin built, thinner than the average, I usually go for size Small (or 34-36) normally when purchasing coats, but X-Small (30-32) in Barbour classic (like the Beaufort jacket). Also, as the youngster I am, I prefer fitted style garments.
> 
> Do you have any recommendation for me? Thanks.


Try one one and see what fits. hoping to save the last dollar by using the internet does not always work.


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## VincentC (May 23, 2008)

@Delmarco,
You said this "The Eksdale is a more durable, warmer, waterproof and sleeker quilt than the liddesdale"

I actually spoke to barbou online by emailing them, and they said the eskdale and Liddesdale were the same warm. They also never mentioned it being waterproof or more durable.
They just said the outer nylon material on the liddesdale was smoother.

Im interested in getting it in Navy, but i think it has a blue coudroy collar. I wish it was brown. Im sure i have seen people wearing this quilt with a brown courdroy collar. But apparently it is blue.


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## Delmarco (Jun 1, 2008)

VincentC said:


> Is that last picture of you wearing a eksdale or liddesdale, and what size is that last picture coat?


It is the older style Eskdale. I am 5'9" 150 lbs (38R suit size, 15" neck and 33.5" sleeves). For some reason I wear a size SMALL in all Barbour Quilts due to the generous cut that those jackets are designed with.


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## Marcellionheart (Mar 10, 2010)

VincentC said:


> Earl of ormonde is this pic of you. Its how i imagined youd look like.
> 
> But what annoys me with all the barbour shops ive been in, is there are never any changing rooms. Also the items i want to try out are never in stock. And they never stock size small, everything is XL. And considering there sizings are too large, i wondered if they only cater for obese buyers?
> 
> Why dont they stock small sizes for average 5ft9 inch, 11stone men?


The answer is Harrod's. They have every size and every colour. I sized up quite a bit, though, because I want to wear a tweed jacket and full lining in mine, so I went two sizes up since it was the only size that would work on me with the short raglan sleeves. Fortunately, Barbours are boxy anyway, so it doesn't look that big on me anyway.


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## Delmarco (Jun 1, 2008)

VincentC said:


> @Delmarco,
> You said this &quot;The Eksdale is a more durable, warmer, waterproof and sleeker quilt than the liddesdale&quot;
> 
> I actually spoke to barbou online by emailing them, and they said the eskdale and Liddesdale were the same warm. They also never mentioned it being waterproof or more durable.
> ...


Interesting that they now tell people that. Back in the days (pre-2004) the reason I bought the Eskdale, or rather the reason people paid more money to get the Eskdale over the cheaper Liddesdsale, was because, like a Barbour rep told _me_, the outer fabric of the Eskdale is treated with a DWR-type coating to make the Eskdale 100% water resistant and to some extent water/rain/shower proof. In all my years of wearing various pre-2004 Eskdales I found this to be true. There is indeed an outer treatment that makes the Eskdale more weatherproof and showerproof than the Liddesdale.

The Liddesdale, on the other hand, has a bare untreated Polyester-Nylon fabric which is more silky smooth but the nylon wears MUCH quicker than the Eskdale and if you do any country sports the Liddesdale will snag every thorn or hard bush you walk past. Futhermore, the nylon shell of the Liddesdale is not shower proof and rain water WILL soak thru.

Also the Liddesdale is a lighter jacket than the Eskdale and whiles the Liddesdale on its own is a warm jacket it is not warmer than the obvious heavier beefier more expensive Eskdale.

That said, my Liddesdale and Eskdale jackets are from the previous Barbour ownership regime (pre-2004 I think) and since then these jackets have been morphed into totally different things. There are now several versions of the Liddesdale (Lightweight, Summer weight, Preppy, and regular as well as the Polar quilt variations) and the Eskdale which used to be sold in both the Classic-tartan lined (Classic Eskdale) and normal version (just called Eskdale) seems to now be only sold in the Classic-tartan lined version but under the regular Eskdale name.

Several pictures of my old *Barbour Liddesdale Jacket Olive D348*

And several pictures of my *Barbour Eskdale Jacket Black* *D373 *to compare...


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## Delmarco (Jun 1, 2008)

VincentC said:


> @Delmarco,
> You said this "The Eksdale is a more durable, warmer, waterproof and sleeker quilt than the liddesdale"
> 
> I actually spoke to barbou online by emailing them, and they said the eskdale and Liddesdale were the same warm. They also never mentioned it being waterproof or more durable.
> ...


OMG! There is also now a Leather Liddesdale! Maybe this is what the rep had in mind when he told you the Liddesdale was more durable than the Eskdale...


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## pdstahl (Aug 18, 2008)

i actually went with bright orange, any thoughts?


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## fashionboy (Jun 21, 2010)

*Great but a bit Tired*

Love Barbour, but it's become so "in" the past three years isn't it beginning to feel a bit tired? In other words it feels like jumping on a trend. Maybe? And therefore not that cool. Maybe?


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## pdstahl (Aug 18, 2008)

jumping on a trend is a matter of opinion and delivery. just because everyone else is doing one look you can still be an individual. Wear it in a unique way.


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