Real stories · The warm coat that weighs nothing

My wool coat felt like carrying a rucksack all day — this teddy coat is just as warm and weighs nothing

The warm coat that weighs nothing — that's what this one turned out to be. I'm 67, and my faithful old wool coat has developed a flaw nobody warns you about: weight. By the end of a morning out it feels like carrying a small rucksack across your shoulders, and there's the scarf palaver on top — wrapping it, losing it, leaving it in cafés across North Yorkshire.

What I wanted was proper warmth that didn't hang off my shoulders like luggage.

Then I found the Lorivelle from a British label called York Boutique — a soft teddy coat with a stand collar, and I chose the cream, which looks wonderfully expensive against winter grey.

The whole coat is one clever swap: plush instead of heavy. The soft teddy fabric holds warmth the way a duvet does — in the pile, not in the weight — which is why it keeps out a cold morning while feeling like you're wearing almost nothing. Then there's the stand-up collar, which sits exactly where a scarf would go: it zips right up under the chin, the draught stops, and the scarf stays home for once. The zip makes it quick on and off, the relaxed fit takes a jumper underneath without straining, and there are pockets for cold hands.

The plush teddy fabric holds the warmth without any of the weight, and the stand-up collar sits exactly where a scarf would go — so my shoulders stopped aching and my scarf stopped going missing, in one purchase.

I'll be honest: at this price I hovered for a full day. Then I thought about the ten winters I'd carried the wool coat, checked I could send this one back if it looked cheap in real life — you can, within a fortnight, and the delivery's free — and ordered it. It does not look cheap. My neighbour stroked my arm at the postbox like I was a well-behaved dog.

It has since done frosty school runs, a long café morning and every dog walk Winnie could negotiate, and Malcolm has stopped asking 'are you not taking a scarf?' because the answer is now obvious. It was £64.95 in the sale, half the usual £130.

If your winter coat also feels like luggage by lunchtime, do treat yourself to a look. The Lorivelle is rated 4.7 out of 5 by more than 290 women, it comes in cream, beige and khaki — but only in sizes S to XL, and at half price the middle sizes genuinely do go first.