KEEPING WARM CAN BE MATTER OF STYLE

November in this part of the country hangs on to Oct. 31 ... all month long.

One morning a light jacket is perfect; other days biting winds chill to the bone. The weather is a bag of tricks.

With wide fluctuation in temperature common in Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois, "Everyone's wardrobe could use several coats in different weights," said Janice Hill of Hartford's on South Broadview.

But that first morning when cold triggers the dragging out of a winter coat, it may not be frost that causes the shuddering.

Don't despair. Warmth and a closet update come in many sizes, shapes, colors and price ranges this winter.

Eye-catching coat styles for all ages are as plentiful as personalities.

Versatility may be the single, common thread among many styles available in local stores and shops. But versatility doesn't translate to shortage of appeal. It just makes the garment more fun.

Take the topper-length coat, for instance. "It's a nice, in-between" coat, Hill said. "It's not a jacket, not a full-length coat. You can wear it with slacks and it also looks nice with skirts and sweaters."

Hill described the topper length as striking a little above the knee, with the precise length varying from style to style.

Another look with lots of built-in versatility is the swing coat. "You can wear them with anything," said Donna Miller, senior merchandising manager with J.C. Penney Co. in West Park Mall.

A revival of the coat style often worn by the late Lucille Ball, the swing coat typically strikes between the knee and the hip, Miller said.

A tuxedo front added this year brings new flair. The swing coat is great for career apparel, Miller said. "There's a lot of ease in them."

When it comes to fashion, hemlines and coats, again, versatility is the watchword. "There's no one set length this year," Miller said.

Women's leather coats, once a novelty, are now practically a basic, she said. Leather styles just keep getting updated with new colors, accents, lengths and other features.

Still, tradition remains strong in dress outerwear, but it's tradition with flair.

Long and short dress coats are often seen with embellishments. Braiding and specially designed linings make for updated looks.

Accessories, too, can add just the right accent to understated elegance.

Attention to fine detail is not saved for women alone. Men's street- length dress coats in the darker tones are real show stoppers. "They're very European looking," Rodney Bridges of Garber's Men's Wear in Town Plaza Shopping Center said of a line of dress coats his store is carrying.

Men's dress coats can also be found in "anything from a car-coat length with zip-out liner to all-weather weights to micro fibers and wools in long lengths," Bridges said.

Micro fibers are among the newest of fabrications, a number of clothing experts said. The soft, supple fabric is showing up in many varieties of coats this winter.

On the more casual side, barn-coat styles are gaining much attention these days, Bridges said. They can be found in materials ranging from cotton canvas to denim to wool, and "some have button-out flannel, quilted liners," the men's store owner said.

When it comes to colors for the more casual coats, "green is predominate in the color pallet," Bridges said. The color is found in many hues ranging from hunter greens to teals, said Bridges.

Earth tones, the deeper colors, are strong this year in most all styles for all age groups.

"Olives, forest greens, browns, earth tones on into the brighter reds and burgundies," they're all popular, said Vicki Connell, display and preteen manager at Children's Bazaar, The Crossroads. Royal blues and purples are cropping up too, she said.

Casual, comfortable, lightweight styles are big on children's shopping lists, Connell said. "The kids are dictating the styles now, and comfort is a big plus."

Popular children's coat styles include jackets found in a multitude of fabrics and colors to three-in-one coats and over-the-hip styles with drawstring waists. Then there's the timeless, traditional, wool dress coat.

For years wool coats -- often with matching berets or caps -- have set the standard for dressed-up little girls. Often, smiling grandmothers will say. "Oh, this is like something I bought for my little girl," said Arlinda McElmurry, merchandise manager of All American Kids, Plaza Galleria.

"The little caplet type coat is really popular right now," McElmurry said. Color-wise, she said, "There's anything from the traditional navy and reds to fuschia and some really pretty little plaid wools."

Layering, too, continues its popularity in the winter months.

"There's lots of layering," said David Vinson of Chrisman Outfitters on Main Street. Fleece is playing an important role in that look. And some companies are offering a new environmentally conscience twist. "They're grinding up two-liter soda bottles and recycling that into this fleece," Vinson explained.

Hip-length and longer styles are popular among men and women and in all age groups, he said. Plus, coats with versatility-enhancing zip-out features just keep gaining strength each year, Vinson said.

Also growing stronger each year among people of many interests and backgrounds is a style once worn primarily by one segment of the population -- the Western look.

Dusters, a style of riding coat favored for their practical uses by men and women more than 100 years ago, have been revived, this time in the world of fashion. Canvas is a popular material for the style followed closely by the oilskin Australian Outback, said Lisa Sparkman of Circle S Saddle Co. in Gordonville.

The boot-length Australian coat is fashioned from beeswax-treated material, making it quite water resistant, Sparkman explained.

Other favorites are waist-length jackets in many colors and prints, some with a collar and some without, she said.

"You can go anywhere in it," Sparkman said of the versatile attire. "It started out as a trend, but I think it's a style that's here to stay."