Get Noah's Just-Bold-Enough Hoodie Now, Before It Sells Out (Again)
SHOP $148, nordstrom.com
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I am, if you care to be generous in your naming of it, a "hoodie enthusiast." If you care to be ungenerous, you could say that I clearly have a problem, and you wouldn't necessarily be wrong. You would also, as it turns out, have the full support of many of my friends and family, who surely have some sort of interventional procedure—if not a full-fledged intervention—planned around this particular obsession.
To them I say: Pry 'em from my fingers; I'll live alone with my garms if I have to. To you, dear reader, I offer something else: Hope. Please, let my unhealthy fascination with this ostensibly simple but mystifyingly enticing item of clothing guide you on your quest to a great hoodie, sans the stumbling block of ostracizing the people who care about your wellbeing. Just get yourself Noah's tricolor hoodie—which is all but gone from Noah's digital shelves, but now available again, at least for the time being, thanks to the brand's latest drop with Nordstrom—and settle into its warm embrace while simultaneously basking in the love of kith and kin. They really do just want the best for you.
It's cleverly colorful.
The phrase "pop of color" has managed, over the last decade or so, to transform from something innocuous into something truly sinister. It conjures visions of neon-soled shoes (fun at first, now just tiring), or perfectly good shirts rendered unwearable by inexplicably—sometimes terrifyingly—bright contrast stitching. This hoodie may be the antidote to all those lingering bad feelings. The side panels, in mustard orange and burgundy, do indeed provide a little pop against the otherwise-black fabric. But it's not too loud, not too try-hard, and only really visible when you're moving around. A pleasant pop. A grown-up pop. A pop for the people.
SHOP $148, nordstrom.com
It's a nice counterpoint to logomania.
While I'm always down for a little minimalism, there's a part of me that will never stop appreciating a good logo on a hoodie. Maybe it's because I came of age in the '90s, when a properly placed "C" on your sweatshirt was like a pass into a club we all wanted to join. Maybe it's the way logos ranging from humble to high fashion have played such a big role in men's fashion over the last few years. Probably it's both, though the recent over-saturation is certainly a contributing factor in my appreciation for the logo on this particular hoodie, which is cool as hell and unmistakably visible, but doesn't take up more real estate than it needs to. Balance, people. It's all about balance.
It's built the right way.
If you're spending $148 on a hoodie, it better be a damn good hoodie. And, no surprises here: This is a damn good hoodie! The 12oz. brush-back fleece is sturdy but not too heavy, the kind of fabric that provides some heft and a bit of structure without weighing you down unnecessarily. The hand feel is comfy but a little crispy, meaning it's only going to get better as you wash it more and more over the months and years it'll be in your closet. And you can bet it lasting for years, by the way, since it's made in Canada with the kind of hard-wearing construction you'd expect from our neighbors to the north, who've developed a bit of a speciality when it comes to crafting high-end fleece.
This is all to be expected from a brand like Noah, which has focused on making things responsibly from the start. That means manufacturing in factories that treat their people well, using solid materials, and selling stuff that's meant to stick around for a while instead of being consigned to the donation bin (or, worse, the trash heap) once the season's over. Expected as it may be, though, it's still well appreciated when you get to see the fruits of all that labor. And when they take the form of a damn good hoodie? Well, all the better.
SHOP $148, nordstrom.com
Photography and prop styling by Allie Holloway
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