Leather jacket :Garments with history

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The leather jacket is eternal and a necessary basic to turn any look into cool. It does not matter if it is padded, with zippers, full of tacks or quilted, it is always a good choice to have at least one in the closet. Each season we can see new jackets in a variety of colors, but where does this basic come from? Continue reading to discover its history.

Who does not like a good leather jacket? They are a must! They have become timeless and essential, essential basic garments that we all want to have and that give a sophisticated and rocker point to the simplest looks. Leather jacket endures over time and is that they are garments with a lot of history, here we want to summarize briefly.

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Its origins go back to World War II when its function was more technical than aesthetic. The leather jacket was the ideal garment used by the army, especially aviators, to protect themselves from the cold, since it also used to be lined with sheep’s wool inside. It was also a comfortable, flexible and very resistant garment.

leather jacket

Leather jacket use was still technical, and that was adopted by motorcyclists to protect themselves in the event of an accident. In this case, they incorporated more reinforcements and began to cut back their original length, coming from their military use, so that they would not be uncomfortable at the time of “driving” this new means of transport, motorcycles.

In the early 1900s, aviators and members of the army used these types of leather jacket to protect themselves from the cold, but it was during World War II that they acquired the name “bombing jackets”. These jackets were perfect to protect the soldiers and officers of the low temperatures since on many occasions they were lined with sheepskin.

During the 1920s, leather jacket gained popularity because brothers Irving and Jack Shott designed the “Perfecto”, a garment to protect motorcyclists in the event of an accident. The characteristics of this type of jackets are cross zipper closure, asymmetric pockets and military style shoulder pads.

Over the years, leather jacket quickly became a very popular garment for motorcyclists and many Hollywood stars began to use it also because it was a garment that alluded to rebellion. An example can be seen in the film Wild, with Marlon Brando as the protagonist.

James Dean was another great follower of the leather jacket and he loved to combine it with a white shirt. The image that showed was very negative and began to prohibit its use in many colleges or universities, but without success, because non-conformists who did not want to follow the trends opted for this type of jacket, accompanied by casual clothes.

However, this garment has not been left only in the world of movies or motorcycles, but many representatives of important rock bands of the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s wore the leather jacket and turned them into a whole suburban trend.

Although it is a model that was made so long ago, today is the standard jacket and the most seen on the street, explains Kristen Haggerty, director of the exhibition Beyond Rebellion: Fashioning the leather Jacket by Fashion Institute of Technology from New York. With this garment was intended to break the rules and those who dared belonged to contracultural movements, However, now, it is not necessary to belong to any movement to use it.

As for Haute Couture, the first designer who saw the potential of leather jacket was Yves Saint Laurent. This French mldist presented in 1960 his first jacket in a collection for Christian Dior and caused much commotion for followers of the most purist fashion.

Thanks to his idea of incorporating it as a perfect leather jacket for the day to day, Saint Laurent managed to become an accepted and very modern garment, as is currently the case.

Today we can find a large number of the leather jacket of thousands of shapes and colors. If you still do not have any in your wardrobe, do not wait any longer, because it is the perfect garment to make your outfit look very casual and daring. It fits well with everything, and if not, do not miss the photographs that we have selected for you so that you will be inspired and do not take off this winter the garment of the moment.