One of the most cliche questions in fashion industry can be that “which style of bulk varsity jackets never fails to disappoint, always stays in fashion, looks cool and great?” because the answer always will be the men’s leather jackets. It has proved it mark in men’s fashion world throughout the 20th century. It has been popular in all decades and loved by all celebrities and common men alike. No other clothing article has been able to defeat leather jackets.
We are programmed to associate men’s jackets with various but definite sub cultures. One of the most iconic leather jackets of all times is biker jacket. However the process of evolution of leather jackets has not stopped. Leather jackets have become part of every attire let it be formal or casual. The trick is to choose the correct color and cut to suit your occasion.
There are various styles of men’s leather wear. Few of them are briefly described below.
The Biker Jacket
It is easy to say that perhaps one of the most famous and outlawed style for jacket has been the biker jacket. It has been always associated with the rebel.
If you are a man with rugged looks and masculine physique then biker jackets would look perfect on you. Bike jacket are not designed for the sophisticated and urban look. Biker jackets should only be worn when one is confident to pull it off completely because biker jackets do not help one look handsome. On the other hand if you are confident enough then you can make a hell of a style statement with you biker jacket.
If you want to achieve an urban look but are a huge fan of biker’s jacket there are few simple guidelines to follow. First and foremost avoid the biker jackets with logos or giant symbols e.g. American flag, skulls or eagles. These symbols and logos are designed especially for heavy bikers. They can easily ruin your urban look. Try to find a biker jacket with a hood. The hood gives a modern look to your personality.
The Bomber
The Bomber style jacket safely secures a long term spot in fashion industry. It is always cool and hip to wear a bomber leather jacket. They never look outdated. No matter what kind of bomber jacket you choose let it be a grungy urban bomber jacket or an expensive and classy one it would not fail to complete your look.
Bomber jackets are not just beautiful articles of clothing but they also help to bring out the best in you. The help emphasizing on the important and positive features of your body e.g. six packs and hide problematic areas e.g. narrow hips. Wide cut bomber jackets with a tapered waist helps hide your narrow shoulders. It creates the illusion of making your waist appear smaller and shoulders broader.
The Aviator
Hollywood movies have played a huge role in promoting leather jackets. The military style leather jackets commonly known as the aviators also gain their popularity majorly because of being shown in Hollywood movies. Top Gun was a movie after which every guy wanted to have at least one aviator jacket in his wardrobe. You can wear this men’s leather jacket with other military clothing items, such as combat trousers or military boots. This jacket also looks great with simple jeans.
While fashion trends are constantly changing and new things come and go, there are certain items that always manage to stay in style. Leather jackets are one of these items. The particular style or cuts that are popular at any time may change. However as whole leather jackets of some sort are always popular. Today the variety available come in such a wide variety that no matter what your style may be, there is a leather jacket that will suit your wardrobe. Of course there are the always popular biker styles and bomber styles, but your options don’t stop there. You can find styles for everyday casual wear as well as formal occasions. For the business person, options are even available as part of a formal suit.
The use of leather as a protective article of clothing can be traced back to the cave man who found that they could use smoke to dry the hides of animals. They would use plants that were available to them to help preserve these hides. These hides would then be used as rudimentary articles of clothing which would provide superior warmth and protection compared to those fashioned from plants that were available. In essence, these were the first leather jackets known to man. While these techniques were obviously very crude, they laid the ground work for the advanced techniques used in leather crafting today.
In modern culture, leather jackets first became popular in the early 1900’s with the bomber style jacket worn by aviators and members of the military. These jackets were worn as part of a uniform to help protect against the harsh conditions encountered at high altitudes. These bomber style jackets were valued for both their comfort as well as their durability.
In 1953, the movie “The Wild One” starring Marlon Brando introduced the iconic look of the biker jacket to popular culture. This started a trend tying Hollywood’s stars to leather jackets which has been used many times since in movies when portraying a character as “cool”. In the years since the release of “The Wild One” we have been given a wide array of memorable lead characters that were all decked out in their jackets of various styles. During the 1970’s and 1980’s the TV Show “Happy Days” featured one of its main characters “The Fonz” as the icon of what was cool, and of course rarely was “The Fonz” seen on screen without his motorcycle jacket. In 1978 John Travolta wore a leather motorcycle jacket to play the character Danny Zuko in the classic movie “Grease”. Of course who can forget Arnold Schwarzenegger in the role of the T-800 in the 1984 smash hit “The Terminator’ and its sequels. Harrison Ford donned a brown leather jacket in his portrayal of the iconic character “Indiana Jones” throughout the entire series of movies. The list of Hollywood superstars wearing leather to portray legendary characters goes on and on.
These jackets of course are also much more than a fashionable article of clothing. Leather motorcycle jackets or biker jackets are actually designed to function as a piece of safety equipment to help protect the motorcycle rider. These jackets are typically made of thicker and heavier grade leather in order to protect the rider from the various hazards they can potentially encounter while riding motorcycles. Motorcycle riders value these types of jackets for their protective nature and durable design. Leather motorcycle jackets come in a variety of styles and designs. Some of these leather motorcycle jackets incorporate additional padding or armor in strategic locations throughout the jacket to help protect the rider. This padding is placed in high impact zones in case of the event that the rider loses control of the motorcycle and ends up going down. Many people who do not ride motorcycles also value the motorcycle jacket both for their style as well as the fact that they are very durable and will last for many years of wear.
Many Italian fashion designers have also included leather into their lines of clothing. These jacket designs brought the leather jacket to areas of culture where other designs would not fit in. The variety of Italian designer jackets offers a style of leather to suit almost any occasion and almost any wardrobe. These jackets are available in a wide variety of designs for both men and women. Styles of jackets are available to suit clothing styles ranging from daily casual wear through to formal occasions. While traditionally leather jackets were only available in brown or black, today they can be found in virtually any color or combination of colors desired.
Leather jackets are a timeless article of clothing that have found their way into cultures throughout the world and through history. Like any other article of clothing, styles and designs that are considered fashionable may change from time to time. However leather jackets of varying designs are always in style and a design of leather jacket can be found for any occasion to fit any wardrobe. Leather jackets have certainly evolved and advanced along with the processes used to make them since cave man first learned to fashion animal hides into clothing. Throughout all these changes and advances, leather jackets have always been with us and will continue to be a widely used article of clothing in many forms for the foreseeable future.