The frock coat was a long jacket worn for formal occasions during the Victorian and Edwardian periods. Men don’t wear frock coats anymore. Heck, it’s hard enough to get guys to wear a suit or blazer now. So why did I recently buy this frock coat from Topman?

Here in Southern California, it does get cold in the fall and winter (anything below 60 degrees is considered freezing here), and I like to wear an overcoat when it’s cold. But most men’s overcoats are really boring. They are typically navy, grey or camel, and that’s all the choices there are. I’m a plaid-ophile, so I had been on the lookout for a plaid overcoat, to no avail. Until I found this frock coat on topman.com. Technically, it’s not an overcoat, but it’s a long coat, so no one would really know the difference. Paired with the matching pants, it’s a pretty cool look.

The best part? It was a steal. The jacket was on sale for $55, and the pants were on sale for $35. Plus, I got a 20% off discount on top of that, so the coat and pants were $71 total – no tax or shipping. For that price, I had to say, “why the frock not.”