This ultra-warm jacket from Patagonia is lightweight and made with 100% recycled down - plus it doesn't make that annoying swishing noise

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Patagonia

• Before you find yourself chilled to the bone this winter, get a jacket from Patagonia's new Silent Down collection ($229-$349), which is quieter and more responsibly manufactured than most other outerwear options.
• I tried the Silent Down Jacket ($249), a light, soft, and very warm puffy jacket made from 100% recycled down and 70% recycled polyester.
• I've already worn it multiple times in the last few weeks and plan on doing so for many more to come.

Rapid footsteps approach, accompanied by a menacing swishing noise. You turn around, bracing to face the worst and - oh, it's just your friend in her winter jacket.

If I were to create a soundtrack of fall and winter sounds, it wouldn't contain the crunch of leaves under your feet or the satisfied sigh after the first sip of hot cocoa. It would mainly comprise the cacophony of coats and jackets being put on and taken off and pushed up against each other on public transportation. It's a small price to pay for warmth, but Patagonia has a new line of jackets and parkas, the Silent Down collection, that doesn't pay this price at all.

The Silent Down Jacket is currently one of my favorite winter jackets, and not only because everyone on my entire floor can no longer hear me walking down the hallway.

Patagonia

Increasingly looming over me is the awareness that our time on a habitable Earth is rapidly dwindling. Sure, it's bleak, but it also means I care a lot more now about what brands I'm buying from and what they make their products out of. If I'm going to buy and wear something, I hope it doesn't leave the world a worse place than it was before.

Joining flats made from plastic water bottles and denim manufactured with recycled water (among many other innovative products), the Silent Down collection is one of those responsible creations. The shell and lining are made from 70% recycled polyester, while the insulation is 100% recycled down, made from reclaimed duck and goose down.

The recycled qualities in no way compromise the efficacy of the jacket. It's very soft and comfortable, and many features, in addition to the down insulation, keep me warm and toasty, including the double protection of both a zipper and snap buttons, and a stand-up collar for when I forget to or don't want to wear a scarf. I also love stuffing my hands into the warm and soft micro-brushed jersey-lined pockets, particularly because I'm not a fan of the inconvenience of gloves.

Patagonia

Since it has a water-repellent finish, I wear it without hesitation on days when it might rain or snow, and it bounces back quickly after getting wet. It's also, as one online reviewer describes perfectly, "super smooshy." No formal term can better capture how easily it folds down and compacts despite its puffy full form. When I go on my holiday vacation, I'm definitely packing the Silent Down Jacket in lieu of heavier coats.

I opted for the Kastanos Brown, a mustard yellow color I wish I owned more of because it's both eye-catching and seasonally appropriate. It also comes in black, gray, and blue. The other pieces in the Silent Down collection are the Parka ($349) if you really need to lean into winter weather protection, and the down Shirt ($229) for a more casual look.

And while it's not actually completely silent (I doubt any article of outerwear can ever reach that point), it's certainly more quiet than most. Like any great piece of apparel, it doesn't rely solely on one interesting feature to make it a worthy buy. "Silent" is just one piece of the puzzle.

Shop the Women's Silent Down Jacket, $249, available at Patagonia

Shop the entire Silent Down collection at Patagonia here

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