Customer Reviews L.L.Bean Petite Lambswool Duffle Coat

I wanted to love this coat, I needed a replacement and didn't want black, blue or oatmeal color, and the Hickory shade of this duffle is beautiful and perfect. The construction is excellent and it is the exact level of warmth for the intended use. The cons, however, diminish the love by tight arm circumference and hood construction. I literally despise the current trend in women's clothing for skimping on arm fabric. Most of us do not have skinny arms like models. I am normal size, complete with boobs and arms and I need clothing that accommodates this which has always been found at Bean. Not so this coat, which is wearable, but not with sweaters beneath and still squeeze my arms into the openings. The hood, which was a main selling point for my purchase, flies off my head with the slightest movement unless held in place, nor is there enough fabric above the face to keep the snow or rain off my glasses when I hold it on my head. Not lining the hood in the same slick lining fabric of the coat would solve the fly-off problem, and a bit more fabric for sleeve construction and hood coverage would solve the others. The fit otherwise is perfect and I truly love the color.

The coat is beautifully made and of fine material. However, I am a grandmother and finding the coats today are not made for women who have no waistlines. I am not obese, just 75-years-old. An A-line fit would have done the trick. I tried a 10-P; could not zip it. I bumped up to 14-P; way too big in shoulders. Sigh. I really liked the coat but had to return it.

Love this coat-fits perfectly, nice fabric but the zipper doesn't work! Could only get it to zip by laying coat flat on a table! Others have complained of the same, so I haven't decided if I will try to return for one that might have a working zipper.

I was hoping for a replacement toggle coat as I made the mistake of giving away my basic LLBean toggle coat that I had for years. So I ordered this in Petite XL to fit over another layer if needed. Sorry to say, fitted doesn't work. The sleeves were too narrow to boot. IMO, this coat should be basic straight cut as it is a classic style to last for years, not a limiting fashion cut. So disappointing. Returned.

A really nice coat but I returned one because the zipper didn't work and the same with this one. The coat was a gift so I'll wear it as is but they need to upgrade the zipper

Got this for Xmas. Quality is not what I expected - thin easily wrinkled wool. Coat size was way too small and it draped crooked. Returned it today for a gift card; I'll buy different coat. I really liked this coat too but I cannot overlook the lack of quality.

I ordered this coat in the size I usually get, it came and it was too small. I returned and ordered the next size bigger, it also was a bit snug. I ended up returning that one as well. The quality was good, just ran a bit on the small size- it was disappointing.

I loved the feel of the soft textured thickness of the lambswool and so very disappointed that the width was too snug and the shoulders were a bit wide such that if I ordered a larger size in order to be able to wear a light-weight sweater under the coat, the shoulders would be too wide. I very much wanted this coat to work out. It was too tight even when I tried it on over a cashmere sweater. I felt like the Michelin man in this coat....I couldn't move comfortably.

I liked the camel color and the material! The problem is with the fit! Shoulders that were huge and stuck upward. The size was completely off. I wear a size 4 and this size 4 ran very small. I was surprised because I have other LL Bean clothes and they run true to size. I was very disappointed!

I like the fit, feel and look of this coat BUT I can't get the zipper to work reliably. It's a big deal since it's the primary way I close the coat to keep the cold out.

My dry cleaner is going to order new toggles and closures and try to put them on. She'll have to take the coat apart to do it. Otherwise it's a wonderful coat.

appears well made so small I could not get my arm in the sleeve and I had to reorder because the first size was extremely small so I went up two sizes

This coat is beautiful! The wool is soft and the fit is perfect. However, I am unable to get the zipper started on it. If I lay the coat on the bed, it zips easily, but if I have it on, I cannot get it lined up properly and it jams. I plan to return it. Disappointed.

This coat is definitely warm and the color was gorgeous. Unfortunately, the fit is awkward and the zipper is difficult to use. The sleeves were a little short, but wide and the body of the coat did not have any shape. Big in the shoulders, fitted at the bust, and big the rest of the way down. Not very flattering, and the pockets definitely need to be redesigned. I was really hoping to find a fashionable, yet warm coat with a hood from LL Bean, but I will be returning this coat.

I am returning this coat for the second time today. The zippers are too difficult to use especially when it is cold and snowing. The first coat I purchased I could not get the zipper up at all, so I returned it with a note saying to check the replacement's zipper before shipping it to me. Second coat's zipper, while a bit better, is still not usable. I found that I avoided using the coat because of this, hence the return today. Color is absolutely lovely though. The hood is a bit too deep for comfort.

The coat was stylish and fit well, but the double zipper was terrible. The zipper does not seat well so it is nearly impossible to get the zipper started. And for a coat, this is a critical component that one will use everyday. This coat would be very nice if it had a single, simple, reliable zipper. I thought of taking the coat to have the zipper replaced, but for a zipper of such a length and the thick wool fabric of the coat, the cost would be prohibitive. So I opted to return the coat instead and I will buy one from another store.

Coat is very good quality but the zipper doesn't work. I returned the first thinking it was a fluke but the second coat had the same problem. Very disappointing.

The coat construction is not quality compared to the same style of coat from the 90' to early 00's. One can tell the wool fabric is thin because it creases very easily, compared to wool coats made a couple of decades ago. I have other good construction wool coats that are better made, than what is currently being sold in the stores.The coat material was very thin wool fabric, plastic fake leather embellishments button loops and plastic button toggles.I guess better quality products were made in the past compared to this overpriced mediocre substitute for a classic design. I was so looking forward to adding this style of coat to my collection, should have bought one in the 90's when clothing manufacturing was better quality than what is currently available on the market.

These duffel coats are nice to look at, but the zippers need to be changed. I don't know where they got these zippers, but they are incapable of successfully being used on thicker fabric such as coats or jackets. They keep advertising them because a great many people have noted the poor quality of the zippers. CHANGE THE ZIPPERS AND YOU WON'T HAVE TO KEEP ADVERTISING THESE GARMENTS SO MUCH AS THEY WOULD ALL BE SOLD. THE COMPANY HAS BEEN TOO CHEAP WITH THE QUALITY OF THE ZIPPERS BEING USED. SWITCHING TO A NEW COAT STYLE IS NOT THE ANSWER. ADMIT THIS AS A FAILURE OR LOSS FOR THE COMPANY AND GET BACK TO OLD TIME LL BEAN QUALITY.! THESE ZIPPERS DO NOT BELONG ON COATS OR MAYBE ANYTHING.

I was really looking forward to getting this coat and horribly disappointed once it arrived. How could you put cheep plastic toggle buttons on a beautiful wool coat? What happened to leather? I returned the coat for that reason and will shop elsewhere.

I had one of these from the old style for about 15 years and for some tupid reason I donated it. this version is so poor compared to the older version it is so disappointing - less sturdy even flimsy fabric, poor closures, non-removable hood, length shorter. So very disappointling.

Size ran small. I'm a 14, and it was WAY small. I felt I maybe should have ordered an 18, but decided to just return it. Sleeves were short, too, which I find is common with LL Bean clothing. But I did love the crimson color.

The coat is stylish and felt would be nice and warm. I purchased according to size measurements in a 10. This was small around bust and hips but shoulders fit well and sleeve length was good. I returned the size 10 coat and had ordered the same in a 12. The 12 fit worse than the 10. Could just close around the body and no extra room for a heavier sweater. The shoulders/under the arms were tight. I really liked this coat as to color, weight and style. Unfortunately the proportions in size were disappointing. I did not feel going to a size 14 would be much different to chance spending another return fee.

I bought this coat earlier this year, late January/early February (2021), and when I pulled out my coat this year (now November 2021) I noticed that it was already worn out in places from my bag and one place already has a hole in it. Of course half a year later I don't have the receipt. I'm so disappointed as this coat isn't cheap and didn't even last a year. I thought LL Bean was suppose to have great quality? I strongly recommend everyone to not buy and invest your money in a better coat.

I love duffel coats, have purchased many from LL Bean over the years. As nice as the fabric was this season; the sizing, buttons, and zipper were disappointing to say the least. I purchased 3 different sizes in hopes of finding one that would work for me. (1 smaller because they were usually boxy and a review indicated it was too large, then same size as normal, lastly one size larger) All 3 coats were returned due to the numerous defects. I commented to the sales associate as well provided written reasons for my returns on the packing slips hoping to help the marketing department. Maybe the back office can see the trend and improve the duffel coats for next year? My suggestion is to fix the zippers, use real wood toggle buttons, and either leather/rope/hemp loops for the closure on an improved design for the next merchandising season. Maybe the old fashion duffle coat sized S/M/L/XL would be better, since it was universally sized and I purchased several of them over the years. I'm willing to wait until next season to buy a duffel coat from LL Bean if the cheap accessories are replaced with quality goods that regular Bean customers are expecting. Please bring back the quality products synonymous with your branding and my dollars have expected for the past 55 years.