Rain, and the accessories that survive it
Suede, silk and straw are all wrong today. Here is what to reach for instead.
Built on: Whatever the weather demands, plus a coat.
Rain is the one condition that genuinely rules accessories out, and most people find out which ones the hard way. It is worth knowing before rather than after, because several of the casualties are permanent.
What water actually ruins. Suede is the big one — it water-spots on contact and the marks are difficult to remove, so a suede bag in rain is a decision you live with. Straw and raffia lose their shape and stay lost. Silk scarves water-spot the same way suede does. Real leather is fine if it is wiped dry promptly, and marks if it is not. Coated PU is genuinely waterproof, which is the one context where it beats leather outright.
What is fine. Nylon, canvas, coated fabric, any hardware, and every kind of jewellery except pearls and untreated shell, both of which are porous and dull if repeatedly soaked. A wool scarf handles rain better than almost anything, since wool holds warmth wet.
The hair problem is the real problem. More accessories are ruined by rain indirectly — a scarf pulled over hair, a hat crushed into a bag — than by getting wet directly. A packable hat with a wire brim reshapes; a felt one sat on stays crushed.
The practical answer for a bag is a crossbody in coated fabric or nylon with a zip closure, because in rain an open tote collects water. Worn under the coat rather than over it, which keeps both the bag and its contents dry and is what the strap is for.
Glasses, if you wear them, and sunglasses on a bright wet day: rain on a lens is worse than no lens. This is a hat day rather than a sunglasses day.
