What to Wear in Tallinn in December

Dress to stand still in wind. On the Estonian Weather Service's tables December is Tallinn's darkest and windiest month: 21 hours of sunshine in total, a mean wind of 3.8 m/s, the highest of the year, and afternoons of 1.2°C over nights of −3.1°C. Only 59mm falls, across about 14 days, so wet is not the main problem. Standing is. The Christmas market holds Town Hall Square from 20 November to 6 January, around a tree Visit Tallinn traces to 1441, and you spend an hour at a time there without moving. A still body makes less heat than a walking one, and wind carries off what it does make. Pack a loden coat the wind cannot pass through, a coral-red cardigan, wool trousers, lined boots and a hat.

The capsule

1. 
   01

   Deep forest-green loden coat, stand collar, knee length

   Loden is wool fulled until it is dense, and density is what stops wind. December's 3.8 m/s mean wind is the strongest of the year at Tallinn-Harku, and a deep forest-green loden coat to the knee, stand collar closed, keeps it off your chest and thighs through an hour at the market. Button it all the way; the coral cardigan still shows at the neck.

2. 
   02

   Coral-red ribbed knit cardigan, V-neck, cropped

   With the coat buttoned all evening, the neckline is the only part of your outfit anyone sees at a stall on Town Hall Square, so make it coral red. A ribbed, cropped cardigan sits over the cream base without adding bulk under the loden, and it works alone in a warm café once the sun has set at about 3:20pm.

3. 
   03

   Cream cotton-wool long-sleeve base layer

   Start with a soft layer against the skin. With 21 hours of sunshine in the month there is no midday warm-up to dress around: expect about 1°C / 34°F at noon and −3°C / 27°F after dark. A cream cotton-wool long-sleeve is the first layer for both, gentler than a coarse knit on bare skin, and cream frames the coral at the V of the cardigan.

4. 
   04

   Heather-oat wool trousers, pleated, cuffed hem

   Pleated wool trousers leave room for a thermal layer underneath, which is what gets you through a night at −3°C / 27°F. Heather-oat wool keeps its warmth when you stop moving, and at a market stall that is most of the evening. The cuffed hem sits on top of the lined boots, so the wind finds no gap at the ankle.

5. 
   05

   Dark brown shearling-lined winter boots

   Stand on stone at −3°C / 27°F for an hour and your feet go cold before anything else. A shearling lining keeps heat in around the foot, a chunky rubber lug sole puts distance between you and the cobbles, and the lugs grip on the icy climb up to Toompea. Wear them over wool socks; cotton ones stay damp inside the lining.

6. 
   06

   Cream knitted wool hat with a red pattern band

   Cover your ears before the wind does its work. A cream wool hat pulled down over them keeps the heat a bare head gives away on an open square, and December's mean wind is the highest of the year. The red pattern band ties the hat to the cardigan; if you leave it at home, the knitwear stalls at the market are where to replace it.

7. 
   07

   Narrow mid-grey fine wool scarf

   The stand collar does most of the work at the throat, so the scarf can be narrow. A mid-grey fine wool scarf wound once fills the gap between collar and chin in a crosswind across Town Hall Square, and folds small enough for a coat pocket in a heated shop. Grey keeps the attention on the coral at your neck.

8. 
   08

   Dark brown structured top-handle bag, gold clasp

   Carry it by the handle, in front of you, where you can see it among the stalls. A dark brown structured bag with a gold clasp shuts with one press, which matters when your fingers are cold and you are paying at −3°C / 27°F. Its brown matches the boots, so the top and bottom of the outfit agree.

A suggested look — deep green loden coat, red ribbed cardigan over a cream base, heather oat wool trousers, dark brown lined winter boots, cream patterned wool hat.

What to avoid

• An umbrella — the year's strongest mean wind, 3.8 m/s
• Smooth soles — cobbles turn icy after a wet day and a −3°C night
• A bare head at the market — an hour standing in wind at −3°C / 27°F
• Daylight plans after three — sunset about 3:20pm mid-month
• Errands saved for 24 December — a public holiday, like the 25th and 26th