Remember the Snuggie? No? Then crawl back into the shallow, Vanilla Coked-out part of your brain from the 2000s, and you’ll find the meme-able, sleeved blanket that became an infomercial icon. It promised something so genius, yet so easy, that it reorganized the atoms in our body: It’s just a blanket [puffs joint], but you wear it like a kaftan. Eons have passed since we’ve seen such an exemplary invention for hot, lazy people, and the idea that some new product would come along and knock the Snuggie off of its plush pedestal was beginning to feel like a pipe dream.
Then, quite recently, TikTok became abuzz with viral reviews for a new breed of house coat that is so comfy, it inspired users such as Carrie Berk (@carrieberkk) to say that “[it] literally felt like I was in bed, and wearing a duvet,” instead of actual clothing. The post has garnered over 86,000 views, and is one of many praising the unparalleled plushiness of the coat:
Videos by VICE
And @carrieberkk wasn’t the only one craving a comforter-on-the-go experience. “When we think about robes, their main purpose is to mimic that comfort of staying in bed,” said another TikTok user, Destiny’s Diary ( @destinytatiana), of the robe. “I immediately thought that this was something [from] an upscale hotel or spa.” It turns out that the house coat is made by Skims, the apparel and loungewear company by Kim Kardashian (that is actually really damn good).
The Skims house coat isn’t alone in this revolution. It’s actually one of many new, duvet-esque house coats that are popping up in sleepwear and loungewear brands with the promise of recreating the sensation of being curled up in your own bed while sitting on the couch or hanging around your apartment—and, no, a house coat is not just another bathrobe, even though the best bathrobes can sometimes be worn like a house coat,à la Tony Soprano. A bathrobe is usually made of terry cloth, Turkish cotton, or some other sort of material that’s ideal for absorbing water, getting in and out of the shower, and schvitzing at the baths. The best house coats, on the other hand, are meant to go above and beyond the transitory experience of drying your sweet cheeks; they can even swaddle you up for a (quick) trip to the bodega, and keep you cozy and stylish on movie night.
If you’re looking to hop on the house coat horse, here are a few of our favorite, comforter-level pieces for staying extra warm this winter and beyond, whether you’re looking for the Michelin Man fit, or something a little more colorful.
The best duvet house coat under $100
Many of the best plush robes can cost hundreds of Benjamins, because you’re essentially shopping for a wearable, tailored version of your coziest blanket—but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some more wallet-friendly options out there. This duvet-like house coat by Stafford checks all of our boxes: It’s quilted for optimal coziness, comes with pockets, and is currently more than 40% off the original price with the code BEMINE6 at check-out.
OFFHOURS’ ultra-cozy home coat
Rec Room editor Hilary Pollack gave this OFFHOURS home coat a test run, and was not expecting the level of Cozy Town Express that it offers. “I feel like I can’t live without it,” she explained, “It’s like a super-chic Snuggie, perfect for wrapping myself in while I’m drinking tea and getting my morning work started, and I love the earthy colors and super-soft fabric. Def going to be sinking into it constantly…” The gentle color blocking design is perfect for the Bauhaus-loving Taurus in your friend group.
Casper’s wearable duvet
Will we ever stop pining after Casper? The brand’s mattresses are legendary, its memory foam dog beds are straight up luxurious, and now it has launched a collection of loungewear—sorry, “snoozewear”—that includes the duvet house coat of our dreams. The pockets are ample enough to fit your phone, chapstick, and a bag of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, and unlike the other lovely coats on our list, this fluffer clearly pulls inspiration from kimono silhouettes with its super breezy sleeves. “It’s the piece of loungewear I never knew I needed,” says Rec Room editor Ian Burke about his Snoozewear Blanket Robe. “I’m never taking it off.”
Lunya’s double-faced house coat literally has vitamins in it
NOW we’re cooking with gas, because this house coat by Lunya is so well-executed that we’d argue it’s a three-in-one design; it has all of the duvet energy we crave from a house coat, and it looks like it could replace our winter-to-spring transitional puffer jacket. It’s pima cotton material is also blended with vitamin E and “and a bunch of other good stuff” (vague, but we’ll take it) so that you feel supercharged to take on that Zoom call.
Stay cozy out there.
The Rec Room staff independently selected all of the stuff featured in this story.