With the first leather contemporary leather jacket dating back to the late 1920’s, it’s safe to say this menswear staple has come a long way. Few menswear garments come packaged with as much masculinity, history and attitude as a leather jacket. Outside of the suit, a leather jacket will be one of the biggest investments a guy will make in his wardrobe. This is why we’ve decided to put together this one stop guide, to ensure you’re getting your value for money.
1. Leather
The biggest factor in the price of the jacket? The quality of the leather.
A good rule of thumb to follow is: Stay away from corrected leather. This tends to be found with cheaper jackets under $500, and consists of sanding down the natural scaring of the animal hide. Cheaper jackets will use leather that is corrected. Animals that have a lot of scarring, branding or knicks from how they are raised. These skins will be sanded down and sometimes faux leather grains will be pressed into it, as well as extra spraying of dyes and treatments to make them more uniform. When it comes to a good quality leather jacket, you’ll usually have two skins to choose from: Cow leather and Lambskin. The difference? both great quality skins to have in your wardrobe, although there’s an unbelievable softness to lambskin that makes for more comfortable wearing.
2. Stitching
This is what I consider the skeleton of a good quality leather jacket. Designers can cut cost by using regular, thin thread and limiting the amount of top stitching on a garment. High end leather jackets will instead use thick Guttermann thread in the manufacturing process. The stitching of leather jacket should never be overlooked!
3. Lining & Zippers
Detail is everything! You wouldn’t put a cheap rubber tyre on a Maserati, right? Similar principal applies to the lining and zippers of a leather jacket. Be sure to check if the YKK or RiRi zipper moves up and down smoothly. Secondly, there should be two separate linings for the body and sleeve. The synthetic or silk lining should feel smooth when you put on the garment. If you get a rough and crunchy feel, it’s likely a cheap lining has been used.
4. Fit & Colour
Let me start off by saying: Fit is king. You want your leather jacket to fit nice and snug, but also be able to bend your arms comfortably. Whether you feel the jacket needs to be able to zip up is completely up to you, and a preference that will differ from person to person. Remember, you’re wearing an animal skin, so you can expect the jacket to bend and mold with your body over time. As for the colour, this depends on whether or not it’s your first leather jacket. I would suggest for a first time buyer sticking to the staples to begin with (such as brown and black). These colours can be worn many different ways, to many different social and work environments. Later on down the track, you can opt for more adventurous colours like burgundy and green.
I hope you enjoyed this blog post, and found it informative on your adventure for a new leather jacket! You can see our handmade collection online at:
https://www.urbbana.com.au/product-category/clothing/luxury-lambskin-leather-jackets/
Signing off,
Kaan Tavli
Brand & BDM
