Men's leather jacket: how to choose, style, leather, care and storage

Buying a leather jacket means making an investment for years to come. Men's leather jacket is durable and will not go out of trend in the coming decades. The thing looks equally good on both men of all ages and teenagers.

Редакция Bow&Tie рассказывает о том, какие фасоны бывают, какая кожа используется для производства, как подобрать куртку по фигуре, как за ней ухаживать и хранить.

How to buy a leather jacket for your figure

John Simon Ritchie better known as Sid Vicious

Genuine leather jacket with a good fit sits like a second skin, providing ease of movement. The main thing is that the thing must completely fit in the shoulders. If the jacket fits in the shoulders, but it is slightly cramped in it, it's okay, it is for this that the size of the leather jacket will increase over time (spread).

The problem at this stage is that jackets are usually made to fit as many different body types as possible at the same time:

• For short men, we recommend wearing a short jacket (at the waist) without elastic bands in the hem to visually lengthen the legs.
• For thin men, we recommend jackets with elastic at the waist, which will help create a silhouette with accented shoulders and a wider torso.
• We recommend that overweight men avoid jackets that will stretch around the body, visually increasing the figure.

Please try on site before purchasing. If ordering from online stores, never ignore the site's size guidelines. Do not order or buy from stores that do not support returns and exchanges.

Brad Pitt as Tyler Durden in Fight Club

How to choose a leather jacket for your figure – general recommendations:

• Sleeve length – a leather motorcycle jacket has a sleeve longer than a casual jacket, but not below the wrists, because the jacket should not be pulled over the shoulders when the wearer reaches out to the motorcycle grips.
• Jacket for motorcycle and everyday wear – to the waist or mid-thigh. Longer ones are for specific purposes, such as hunting or hiking with an overnight stay in a tent.
• Jacket Fit – Should not fit snugly. A high-quality leather jacket will last for years, so it should imply age-related changes in the figure. If it fits too tightly, then the wearer will be uncomfortable – the movements will be constrained.

If you do not pay attention to the fit when shopping, you will rarely wear a jacket, because it is uncomfortable in it.

Leather types, lining recommendations, seams

Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones

Personal experience shows that it is better not to buy a jacket with insignificant but numerous decorative details – zippers, buckles, buttons. They wear out before the skin of the jacket and are expensive to replace.

Types of leather used for jackets:

• Horse leather is the toughest used for leather jackets.
• Cowhide is tough leather with one of the longest lifespans. Great for protective hunting or touring leather jackets.
• Calfskin is much softer than cowhide.
• Goat leather is elastic, durable and water-repellent.
• Sheepskin is flexible leather, lighter than goat or calf and not as tough.
• Lambskin – delicate, light and soft fibers are not only aesthetically pleasing, but also absorb sweat.
• Pigskin – very abraded (reduced service life), rough to the touch, but the most inexpensive jackets are sewn from it.

For protective jackets, choose products with a leather thickness of 1.1-1.3 mm and with a wool lining. For everyday wear, a lightweight polyester lining with thinner leather will do. For example, sheepskin or lamb skin.

The seams must be strong and the ends of the threads must not be visible

If the jacket is lined with thin lining, the leather is most likely cheap. After all, a tear in the lining is an expensive repair. Be sure to check the lining in the pockets that are most susceptible to wear.

The seams must be strong and the bottom edge straight. Check the stitching on both the inside and outside seams. A tight, tight and even stitch with polyester thread is a sign of good quality. There must be no loose ends or potential for thread blossomed in the future.

Styles of leather jackets

First, a few words about color. The most popular color for leather jackets is black. It's classic and it looks cool, but that doesn't mean black is the best choice for a leather jacket.

Experiment with other masculine colors: brown, gray, beige. And even red. Remember that the Indiana Jones brown jacket and Tyler Durden's red jacket, even in 2020, not only successfully emphasize, but downright 'scream' about the masculinity of their owners.

Double rider jackets

An icon of the American classic style, first introduced by Irving Schott. With asymmetric closures and a diagonal zip, the jacket features a flared collar and large, flared lapels with metal snaps to keep the collar in place in the wind.

Moto Racer Jackets

Simple, minimalistic, streamlined design with neck protection. Often used by racing associations, although they defile the sleek jacket with logos and uniforms.

Bomber

Originally designed to keep the crew of a bomber plane warm. This is a waist-length leather jacket with padded inner lining. The turn-down collar was finished with fleece, corduroy or flannel. The waist and cuffs are reinforced with elastic to keep you warm.

Utility Jackets

An example of a hunting or tourist leather jacket. May have four or more front pockets. Just for storing additional items that should be at hand while traveling – cartridges, water, matches, etc.

Car coat

It is believed that this model is designed specifically for motorists. Buttons or buttons instead of zippers allow you to zip the jacket selectively. For example, do not button the bottom so that the lower part of the jacket falls freely over the upper thigh area, without constraining the motorist's legs or folding in folds above the waist while driving.

Cattleman

This model is believed to be designed for riding. The back cutout in the lower part of the jacket makes it comfortable to ride a horse. Also, this model uses buttons or buttons instead of a zipper.

Duster jackets

This model is better known as the 'boot'. A version of the coat for protection from adverse weather conditions.

Varsity jackets

The model is popular with young people and American student sports teams. Has leather sleeves and a fabric body.

Care, drying and impregnation with a water repellent agent

The lifespan of a leather jacket is dependent on care. For example, with proper care, cowhide products will last over 10 years. The service life of products made from other types of leather, with the exception of pork, is surely more than 5 years. A pigskin jacket will have severe abrasions at this point, but this is not always a bad thing. Some people like it and they artificially age their skin.

Impregnation with water-repellent agent

Leather is already water-repellent. Additional impregnation will maximize the effect and extend the service life. Usually, products come in the form of aerosols or liquids with a sponge. We recommend aerosols, which should be sprayed at a distance of 25-50 cm from the jacket surface. Liquid impregnations can leave unpleasant streaks on the skin. Repeat the impregnation every 2-3 weeks. The thicker the skin, the more often.

Drying

If the jacket is wet, let it dry naturally, with wide shoulders and away from heat sources. Do not artificially dry, do not hang near heaters, do not iron. Also:

• Fasten all the zippers so the jacket will return to its original shape when dry and will not deform.
• Take everything out of your pockets – also to avoid deformations.

Do not hang a damp jacket in the closet – diaper rash and an unpleasant odor will appear.

Restoration of flexibility and gloss

Jude Law as Sky Captain in the film of the same name

To restore the flexibility of the skin, use a special conditioner and oil polish to restore shine. But avoid getting perfume on your skin. For suede and velor, use the suede spray (this should also be indicated on the product tag).

Moisten the jacket before long-term storage. For example, if the jacket is put away for the winter. If the skin is very dry, use impregnation – applying impregnation over and over again until it penetrates to its full depth and a visible effect occurs (if after the first application there is no effect, you will immediately notice it).

Shine should be restored with polish only when it has already faded. Do not polish for prevention purposes – the trigger will lose color faster and the skin will dry out. Do not polish suede and velor – this will damage the structure of the material. It is impossible to fix such damage in 90% of cases.

Use only professional products to moisturize and restore shine, and discard folk products such as glycerin or castor oil.

How to store, remove dirt and stains

Arnold Schwarzenegger as Terminator in the film of the same name

To hang the jacket in the closet, use soft hangers to prevent stretch marks. Preferably stored in a cloth bag. Do not store in a plastic bag. Don't fold the jacket, just hang it up.

To remove salt deposits, dried dirt and dust, use a cloth dampened with soapy water. To remove ink marks, felt-tip pens and watercolors, use a stain remover with paint particle thinner.

You can try to remove stains of unknown origin with a leather stain remover applied to a cotton swab. If this does not work, you should contact the dry cleaner. Deep and difficult stains, such as from fuel oil, gasoline or industrial paint, can only be removed by dry cleaning.

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