
My favorite time of year, coat season, is officially warming up and I’m looking forward to bringing the hottest looks this fall/winter. Getting a late start, it took me a while to narrow down my top preferences and decide which of these 2021 outerwear trends I’ll be wearing this year and hopefully next. From puffers to long-line trench coats, it feels like the options are limitless when stalking the net for your next purchase but it's the styles that stand the test of time that make it all worth it.
Start early when building your seasonal wardrobe, guaranteeing first dibs on the flyest styles before they’re gone. Also keep in mind, that functionality, design, and comfort are necessary requirements when securing the shopping bag. For a few everyday outfit ideas, here are the coats I’ve recently added to my cold-weather line-up.
Leather Puffer

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole
It was love at first sight when I spotted this chocolate brown puffer coat. Elevating the darker tones, I opted for a slinky leopard print dress and black leather boots. Planning a quick morning trip to the corner cafe before taking care of today’s business, I threw on a sleek cap to top off this look.

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole
Long-Line Trench

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole
Being that green is my favorite color I had to keep the love going while looking for new additions to my closet. Long-line trench coats are going strong this year but it's the color and design that cause a selection of styles to stand out from the rest. Paired with printed denim and black boots for a sharp contrast, next time I want to try wearing muted tones allowing the jacket to speak for itself.

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole
Sherpa Aviator

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole
High on the hottest trends list this season are aviator jackets lined with contrasting sherpa. Quirky and fun, I love this two-toned faux leather and shearling combination. Keeping it light and colorful, I added a soft green trouser along with a cropped cream knit top complete with multi-panel boots.

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole

Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole
To get your fashion fix and to stay up to date with the latest trends, check out the xoNecole Style section here.
Featured image by Shahirah Ahmed/xoNecole
This article is in partnership with Lexus.
Luxury is often defined by someone else’s standards. But what if the finer things in life looked different through the lens of those crafting and shaping Black culture?
In Redefining Excellence, a two-episode short-form video series presented by Will Packer Media in collaboration with Lexus, we dare to broaden how we think about luxury. Here, it’s not just about the price tag. Luxury is a practice.
At its core, Redefining Excellence is a celebration of intention woven into every detail of how we live: our joy, our spaces, our craft, but also our rituals of care. These are the Black creators who not only give the best to themselves in what they build, but also pay it forward to the communities around them.
Through their vision, they embody the same precision and artistry that Lexus embraces when in pursuit of a higher standard, the Standard of Amazing.
In Episode 1, “Ingredients of Success,” the series follows chef, restaurateur, and Lexus Culinary Master Kwame Onwuachi, whose artistry is imbued with rich cultural storytelling. We see him wander purposefully through a garden, gently testing the ripeness of fresh fruits and vegetables. “Luxury isn’t about exclusivity. It’s about being intentional with your choices and craft,” he says.
The article continues after the video.
“Now, because of my work and the ingredients I use, luxury means something different. I am boldly setting a new standard of amazing and innovation.”
As he chops vegetables, plates vibrant dishes, and loads the finished product into the sleek Lexus LC Convertible, he continues, “For me, luxury means ingredients that carry memory… dining experiences and locations that honor the stories that raised me and feel like us.”
In Episode 2, “The Texture of Luxury,” the lens turns to founder and CEO of CurlyCon LA Ava Pearl, whose ingredients take a different form. As the trunk of her Lexus LX 700h lifts, she says, “When I think of luxury, it isn’t expensive, it’s expansive.” The scene shifts, and we watch Ava lay down a bouquet of fresh flowers upon entering her home before using aloe vera leaves to prepare gel by hand.
The article continues after the video.
“When I was younger, I thought luxury was something you bought. Now I know it’s about living up to a higher standard… Black women have always defined what’s next, setting the standard for beauty, luxury, and excellence.”
Like Kwame, she builds with intention, pouring care into the details, believing, like Lexus, that “luxury isn’t just a finish, it’s a standard. One that’s built to amaze.”
Through these stories, Redefining Excellence serves as a reminder that the journey is not just about the destination, but also the ingredients you choose along the way.
Watch both episodes now and learn more about how Kwame and Ava set their own standard of amazing.
Featured image by xoNecole/Will Packer Media
Cree Summer Opens Up About Her Sex Evolution: From Performance To Presence
Cree Summer is considered by many to be the voice of our generation. Beyond her iconic turn as Freddie Brooks on the cultural staple A Different World, she's managed to breathe life into countless animated characters throughout the decades, adding soul and technicolor to our collective Black girl childhoods.
These days, the decorated entertainer has been using that same voice to speak openly about intimacy and reminding us that our sexuality only grows richer with age.
On a recent episode of the rewatch podcast, ReLiving Single, hosted by former series co-stars Erika Alexander and Kim Coles, Cree got candid about how her relationship with sex has evolved in recent years. And according to the Ironheart actress, the sex has never been better.
Cree Summer On Her Sexual Evolution
"I'm having better sex now than I've ever had in my life," she said on the podcast. "I think I enjoyed sex when I was younger but it was performative many times. Something had to get me loose or to set me free. And at this age, everything is where it is...I breastfed two babies. And I've been through some shit, and nothing--it doesn't look like it used to, but it feels better because I don't have the ability to put on a performance.
"I don't have the ability to pretend. You get the honor to be alive for this long. Who the fuck wants to do all that?"
Menopause As A Turning Point
When Kim asked what flipped that switch for her, Cree shouted out menopause as the real MVP in her sexual evolution. "Honestly it's going to sound crazy. I think it was when I went into menopause because my body became out of my control... When your body starts behaving in a way that you have no control over then you don't have that 20-year-old control where it's like, 'Oh I'm going to pose like this,' and 'I'm going to moan like this.' And it's all just a 'Hollywood handjob' in the end.
"But now I think it's just delighting in how present I am... I feel like I want to try all kinds of things and I'm becoming less shy. I used to be quite shy."
This isn't the first time the 56-year-old has talked about the liberation that comes with sex after menopause. In her appearance on Shannon Boodram's podcast Lovers By Shan earlier this year, she also reflected on how her relationship with intimacy has deepened with age. "Now in my 50s, I just don't care anymore. I'm feeling things I've never felt before and trying things I've never felt before," she shared with Shannon in the April 29 episode.
Intimacy Beyond Performance
"There's a freedom now that I never had, not even in my 40s." She even revealed some of her newly discovered turn-ons like taking things slow, maintaining eye contact, and in her words, "I like to be choked a little bit."
Hearing her speak so openly and lovingly about how menopause has "freed" her sexually offers a reframe we don't hear often enough.
Because in a world where hot flashes and vaginal dryness are often the loudest parts of the menopause narrative, Cree's POV is as refreshing as it is potent in reminding us that this chapter doesn't have to be an end for pleasure and feeling good in our bodies. For many women, it can also be an awakening to parts of yourself you didn't know were waiting to be explored.
Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Featured image by Rob Latour/Shutterstock









