What to wear in the winter

If you are talking about the cold winters in Alaska, you really need to learn how to dress appropriately, but once you learn you will not feel cold. 

Depending where you live you have to adapt your dressing habits to the new trend of clothing you need to start buying.  

Lets say you live on the coast, then you will need to have something warm what I mean is a heavy down coat, at least 550 fill down power insulation,  it must be waterproof and windproof also; the coat needs to be insulated even on the sleeves.  Do not buy a coat that has only an outer shell, with only lining and no insulation in between.

Having a down coat doesn't mean much if you don't actually have some layers underneath the coat, layering is the name of the game.  

You need to start dressing from inside out and not just the shell, so first things first, before you buy a nice down coat, you need a pair of warm undergarments, you need to choose something that will keep you warm but dry inside at all times; I personally prefer the ones that have a graph showing to what temps I will be able to put up with the cold.  They are usually made of Merino wool or some kind of synthetic material, my preference is always for the synthetic ones, they really keep you warm.
   

Next will be socks, the ones I have seen that work the best are RedHead Extreme Cold Socks, made by Bass Pro Shop, according to my husband, who works in the Alaskan Arctic, these are the most warm and durable ones, they keep his feet warm for about a couple of hours. 

Now we are getting ready to buy some shirts and sweaters, again the fleece sweaters are the best, but there is a great variety of fabric to choose from; some of the sweaters come with hoodies, some turtle necks, some are made of thick fleece or really thin ones, the important part is to wear a couple of them, it is better to be hot and take some of the clothes off, then not have enough warm clothes; 

If you decide to buy a vest it is even better, keeping your chest covered is an insurance against a cold or flu, the vest can be wool, fleece, or even down, you choose depending on how cold you get.  

Then, some thick mittens, NOT gloves, mittens keep all of you fingers together therefore making contact one with the other generating heat.  

A warm hat that covers your ears, such as a bomber hat style with the ear flaps that hang down or some kind of thick beanie with the ears covered or even a head band that also will cover your ears.  If you are afraid of "hat hair" get a coat with a hood and buy a pair of earmuffs or a nice fleece headband to protect your ears. Wear the muffs and the hood at the same time. 

I hope you haven't forgot to buy some scarves or neck warmers, you can buy then in wool, fleece (some of them come with pockets so you can insert heat packs), or even fur, it is up to you, but always have one handy.  

Here is a list of the minimum, for what I would call cold weather (-25) here in Anchorage, would be a pair of warm boots by Columbia, Kamik, or Sorel. Something with insulation.

Insulated snow pants if you want to go for walks outside, go snowboarding, or sledding, etc.  

If you are not used to the cold, keep this in mind: If you go for fashion instead of warmth or don't wear a hat because you don't want hat hair, and you get frostbite or just get really really cold in your fingertips, nose, ears, etc. that part of your body will be cold-sensitive for the rest of your life. The circulation will never be the same. So, when you see people running into the grocery store wearing a sweatshirt and shorts, don't follow their example. If their car were to break down and they didn't have a parka and snow pants or an insulated suit with them in the car, they would be in a world of hurt from frostbite and could maybe die of hypothermia. It happens sometimes.

If you don't plan on doing winter sports and are just walking from house to car to mall/work/school, then one of the heavy down coats or parkas Columbia or Northface Jackets with the inner fleece jacket would be a good choice. You can add a sweater or hoodie underneath when it gets colder .

 Take a look at what locals wear and don't be shy about asking people's opinion.

Now enjoy your winter as we do!!