What to Wear to Christmas Markets in Chicago

Packing philosophy

Dress for a plaza in lake wind. NOAA's figures for O'Hare give December 2.6°C by day and −4.2°C at night, with 2.11 inches of precipitation across 10.6 days and 7.6 inches of snow; NWS Chicago's daily normal high falls from 41°F on the 1st to 33°F on the 31st. The Christkindlmarket fills Daley Plaza, an open square between towers, and after sunset at about 4:20pm the wind funnels through it. So the coat is ankle-length down with a hood, the knit is a heavy cable, the trousers are wool flannel, and the boots are pac boots with a rubber shell. Gloves need leather palms, because snow soaks through knit at the first stall.

What the dress code actually is

There is no dress code at the Christkindlmarket, and entry is free. It is a German market by design: it began on Pioneer Court in 1996, modelled on Nuremberg's Christkindlesmarkt, moved to Daley Plaza in 1997, and this is its 30th anniversary. Glühwein comes in a souvenir boot mug that collectors buy every year. The market opens at 11am daily and closes at 8pm Sunday to Thursday and 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays, with a 4pm close on Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. Chicago's own convention is practical: everybody wears the long down coat, and nobody apologises for it.

The capsule

1. 
   01

   Black ankle-length hooded down coat

   Daley Plaza funnels wind off the lake between towers, and at −4.2°C a wool overcoat without a hood fails in minutes. An ankle-length channel-quilted down coat covers your legs, the hood goes over your hat, and the two-way zip opens at the knee for walking to the L.

2. 
   02

   Mid-grey fine-rib merino crew

   The base that stays warm when you sweat on the walk and then stand still at a stall. Merino wicks and holds heat, and grey sits under charcoal without showing.

3. 
   03

   Charcoal Aran cable roll-neck

   Chicago's December calls for a heavy knit, and an Aran cable traps more warmth than a fine-gauge crew. The roll-neck covers your throat under the down coat's collar in the wind. Charcoal hides a Glühwein spill.

4. 
   04

   Charcoal wool-flannel straight trousers

   Wool flannel blocks wind that goes straight through denim, and it stays warm damp. A straight leg falls over pac boots and takes a thermal legging underneath at −4°C / 25°F.

5. 
   05

   Black pac boots, rubber shell, shearling cuff, deep lug

   NOAA's O'Hare normal gives December 7.6 inches of snow, and the Loop is salted slush between falls. A rubber shell keeps both out, the shearling cuff seals the top, and a deep lug grips the plaza. Suede and canvas do not survive a week.

6. 
   06

   Charcoal knit gloves, leather palms and fingertips

   Snow soaks through all-knit gloves at the first stall; leather palms and fingertips keep your hands dry, grip a hot boot mug and tap a card. Wear them under the coat's cuffs.

7. 
   07

   Light grey fine-knit beanie, deep folded cuff

   Worn under the hood it adds a second layer over your ears; with the hood down at ZooLights it stays on. A deep folded cuff doubles the wool where the wind hits.

8. 
   08

   Black canvas-and-leather zip crossbody

   A zip-top crossbody worn over the coat holds a phone, a card and the receipt for your mug deposit, and stays in front of you in the Friday-night crowd. Canvas and leather shed snow.

A suggested look — black ankle-length hooded down coat, charcoal cable roll-neck, charcoal wool-flannel trousers, black shearling-cuff pac boots, light grey cuffed beanie.

What to avoid

• A wool overcoat alone — no hood, no insulation
• Suede or canvas — snow and salt
• All-knit gloves — they soak through
• Christmas Eve after 4pm — closes early