All right, gents. So, I got a question
the other day, it went like this, “Antonio, I’m
42 years old and I love leather jackets. But,
what’s the right style for my age? I definitely
don’t want to buy one that’s out of fashion and
I don’t want to buy one that’s not appropriate for
my age. Can you help a guy out? Sincerely, Paul”
Well, Paul. I’ve got some good news for
you. Any man between the ages of 18 and
80 can pull off wearing a leather
jacket if he buys the right one.
Now, gents, I’m going to break today’s
video into two parts. First up,
I’m going to give you the three general rules,
things you want to pay attention to. Then,
I’m going to get in particular jacket styles and
talk about the type of men, the age, the body type
that’s going to work for that particular style.
But, the first rule the first thing you need to
make sure any time you buy a jacket, it has
to fit you. When it comes to leather jackets,
these are very difficult to get adjusted
because if it doesn’t fit you in the shoulders
if the sleeve length is 2 inches too long or
2 inches too short, if it is, you know, just
doesn’t fit the length, doesn’t look right.
Getting this adjusted 99.9% of men are not going
to do this, so you’re going to end up buying
a jacket that’s going to sit in your closet.
So, make sure when you buy the jacket,
you try it on. When you buy it online,
they’ve got a good return policy because you
need to make sure that this is something when you
look at yourself in the mirror, it looks good.
Now, the second thing you want to pay attention,
you need to understand is that different jacket
styles are going to suit different body types.
So, there’s a reason that most guys think that the
leather jacket is the, you know, it’s the realm of
young man. Why? Because when you’re 22 years old,
you’re usually in the best shape of your life.
When you’re 52 years old, you’re not, yeah, you
may be gained a little bit of weight around the
midsection and a lot of styles that the
leather jackets are made in are just not
necessarily going to suit your body type.
But, if you’re looking at the moto style,
if you’re looking at the shorter jacket
styles, the bomber type style leather jacket,
you need to understand that that is really
geared towards the man that’s in great shape.
If your midsection is larger, then you’ve got
to understand that most leather jacket styles
are not going to suit your build and there’s
other clothing you’re going to want to try.
Now, the third rule to finding the perfect leather
jacket is to understand that all leather jackets
by default are casual. Yes, there are
going to be some styles of leather jacket,
maybe one that’s an overcoat style, [sound
effect] that is going to feel more formal.
But, the material of leather especially the
tougher leather or leather in a lighter color,
this is always going to be a casual material
when compared with worsted wool or cashmere
or anything like that. This is not going to
be the domain normally of dress clothing.
Now, what about the different types of leathers
out there? For today’s video, I’m focusing on
cattle and calf, the most common types out there.
But, you will see bison, you’re going to see goat,
you’re going to see sheep, you’re even going
to see kangaroo, you’re going to see elk,
you’re going to see deer. There are many
different materials that leather is made from.
Now, what about the cut of the leather? In
today’s video, we’re going to be talking
about the top grain, we’re going to be talking
about the full grain. This is going to be made
from the top part of a leather. This is
considered to be the more durable part.
And depending on where you cut it from the
hide, it can be totally unblemished, it could
maybe have a few cuts or scrapes. Point being
is this is going to be the part of leather, the
vast majority of leather jackets are made from.
Now, what about suede? Suede is a type of genuine
leather and that’s going to be a lower cut of
leather, so it’s not going to come from the top
part of the hide, therefore it’s not going to
be water resistant. It’s often going to be less
dense, but there are a lot of properties to it
that make it very attractive. Because it’s not
as dense, it’s going to be softer, it’s going to
be more supple. It also has a textured surface.
Now, personally, I’ve always been disappointed
when it comes to the options out there for
suede jackets. I felt that they should keep
the style simple and they should add fun
with the colors. I want something that’s
going to be able to match anything in my
wardrobe whether it’d be jeans whether it’d
be dark gray flannels. I wanted something I
can dress up and something I can dress down.
So, guys, check out these jackets right here.
These are all prototypes. And I would love to
hear from you guys down in the description of
today’s video, I’ve got a place where you could
enter your email. I’m not selling anything
right now. I’m just gathering to see if there’s
interest in me producing these suede jackets.
I’ll send you more information. Right
now, we’re at the early phases on this
project. I’m just wanting to get interest
and I want to share more of the idea with
you. So, yeah, check it out down below.
So, the first leather jacket style I want
to talk about, it’s an American icon and that
is the double rider. So, this jacket style was
introduced over 70 years ago by a guy named Irving
Schott. And it was made popular in the movie,
The Wild One, when Marlon Brando wore this jacket
and all of a sudden, everybody had to have one.
So, this jacket is a functional jacket. And I
think if you’re 18 or if you’re 80, you can pull
it off. If you ride motorcycles if you used
to ride motorcycles, you just like the look,
you feel it looks amazing on you, then you
can pull off this jacket. But, in general,
it does look best on men that are in shape.
[0:04:52]
Now, if you can’t tell, this jacket is a
casual jacket with the asymmetrical fastening
with the diagonal zipper with those oversized
collars right on there. Everything about
this jacket just screams this is a functional
piece. This isn’t something clean, this isn’t
something that you’d be able to dress up.
That being said, it’s an American classic
and I absolutely love this jacket. I think
any guy can pull it off if you’ve got the
body for it and if you understand that it’s
really geared for guys that ride bikes.
Next up, we’ve got my favorite type of leather
jacket, the motor racer also known as the café
racer. When you look at this jacket, you see
symmetry. You see something that is very sleek,
very simple in design. This is all
about protection, this is all about
function. When you go up, then you see
it zips up all the way on the collar.
And, by the way, if it’s a true racing jacket when
you open it up, it’s also going to have the flap
there to protect you from the wind coming
in. Point being is this jacket right here
is designed for the elegant European racer
on a motorcycle. And that’s really where
it has its origin. I absolutely love
this one. It’s classic in design.
Usually if it’s a true racer, it’s going
to have snap over that’s going to fully
shut up that collar. If it doesn’t have
that, then it’s just more for show.
Now, if you choose to purchase this jacket
in a dark leather, you can dress it up.
If you choose to go with a lighter color or with
contrast colors, you’re going to see a lot of
these racers using bright colors. That is going
to bring down the formality, make it more of a
fun casual jacket. Really, it’s up to you.
You also want to pay close attention to the
quality of the hardware. In this case,
the zippers. The zipper that not only
goes up and down the front, but the zipper
you’re going to find over on the pockets,
you’re going to find occasionally on the
sleeves. These are all natural on a café racer.
And you want to make sure that they go up and
down, you don’t get any type of catching. A low
quality zipper is oftentimes an indicator that
they didn’t use a good quality leather as well.
Next up, we’ve got the leather bomber jacket,
also known as the leather flight jacket. This,
as the name implies have history with pilots.
Why would pilots wear leather jackets? Well,
because leather does a very good job
of stopping wind right in its tracks
and it’s going to be flexible, you’re going
to be able to move around in the cockpit.
And you need to be able to stay warm. They
weren’t heated. A lot of people don’t know,
once you’re up at like 20,000, 15,000, even
10,000 ft, it gets really cold really fast. So,
when those cockpits were not insulated, hey, you
need to make sure that you actually stayed warm.
Another key characteristic of bomber jacket
is going to be the elastic around the wrist
and around the waist. This helps to keep in
that warm air and better insulate the wearer.
Other key characteristics are going to be
a turndown collar lined with fleece to help
keep the pilot warm. And, occasionally you’ll see
large pockets right there on the front lower part
of the jacket, so the pilot can
throw whatever he wants inside.
In general, this is a very casual style,
but suitable for any age range. Seriously,
I’ve been at air shows and I’ve seen
pilots in their 50s and 60s pulling
this jacket style off and looking good.
Now, really quick, let’s talk about the
varsity style jacket and the leather you’re going
to see here is usually just on the sleeves. So,
some of you guys may not consider
this a leather jacket, I do.
So, this style right here is geared towards the
younger men; the men in high school, the men in
college, hence the style of this jacket. I think
for 24 years old, you graduated college two years
ago, yeah, probably not something you want to be
still wearing your varsity jacket and definitely
not your high school jackets. But, in general,
this is in my opinion a young man’s style.
So, the next jacket I want to talk about is
the car coat. It’s called that because of the
length of the jacket. So, in general, jackets
are going to be at the waist area and then,
coats are going to be a lot longer. Coats will
sometimes even go down to your mid calf area.
But, if you’re going to be getting in and out
of a vehicle, you know you don’t want to wear
a long jacket because it’s going to drag,
it’s going to get caught. Car coats were
developed to actually be that perfect length.
Just covering the buttocks, so they provide a
lot of warmth in and around your torso area,
but not so long as that when you get in and
out of a vehicle, they get caught on anything.
Whenever I’m traveling over in Ukraine, I see a
lot of these and I think that they actually look
great. Now, car coats in general are very simple
and clean in design. You’re not going to see a
whole lot of accessories or hardware on this.
They’re going to have pockets, but they’re often
going to be jetted, so you won’t even see them,
unless you have your hands in them.
So, because of all these, I think
car coats can be dressed up and these type of
jackets look amazing on men over the age of 30,
40, 50. If you want to be a younger
guy and pull this jacket off, you can.
But, I think that this is the realm of the older
men. And in my opinion these jackets are just
perfect for older guys to look I think stately.
And, yeah, they’re just solid jackets. I think
every older man should have in his wardrobe.
The next leather jacket style I want to talk
about is the utility jacket, the fatigue jacket.
This one has a military origin, has a hunting
origin. It’s simply a functional jacket. It’s
going to be a very casual jacket because of
the four large pockets right there on the front.
You will see some of the see some of these jackets
with only two pockets, but they’re going to
have fasteners, they’re going to have large
hardware. You’re going to see buttons
on the front, you’re also going to see
zippers on the front in more modern variations.
These go back over a hundred year. And the key
here is a jacket that can protect a man keep them
warm. So, you’re going to find insulated versions,
non-insulated version. It comes in a wide variety
of styles. I think in the movie, Defiance, Daniel
Craig is pulling one off and it looks amazing.
[0:10:03]
I like this jacket style because it’s a bit
longer. So, if you’ve got a bit of a midsection,
these longer jackets like this and the
car coat, they’re going to work really
well for you. You don’t have to worry about,
you know, they’ll cover that extra 20, 30,
40 lbs even. And it will make you look good.
So, these jackets in general I think are solid,
but remember they lie in the realm
of casual wear. These aren’t jackets
that you could ever dress up.
Next up on this list, we have the
leather blazer a.k.a. the cattleman. Some
of you guys are going to say, “Come on,
this is only for mobsters or cowboys.” I think if
it fits you well and if you really like the look,
let’s say you’re a Soprano fan, let’s say you did
grow up on a ranch, why not pull this look off?
In general, go for a darker leather and make
sure it’s a two-button. If it’s a three-button
or a four-button or a one-button, you may want to
avoid it and make sure it’s classic in style. The
key here is you’ve got to make sure it fits you
because if it’s way too big or if it’s too small,
getting that adjusted, very difficult.
Most tailors cannot work on leather.
But, if you put on one on and it just
feels great, you find it a great deal,
why not? Especially if you’re a guy in your 40s
in your 50s in your 60s, go for it and have fun.
Two other styles of leather jackets you’re
going to see out there occasionally,
the leather duster and the leather fencing
jacket. Both of these very specialty type jackets,
I do not recommend for the vast majority of men.
But, let’s say you’re still riding a horse,
you want a functional piece and you find
that that leather duster, it’s on sale,
well, go for it. Or if you’re going to be
doing a lot of fencing and you’re into that
and you find the leather fencing jacket and
just love the style, want to incorporate it
into your wardrobe, why not.
Now, gents, I know you’ve got an
opinion. I want to hear from you down in the
comments. What is your favorite style leather
jacket? Let me know down in the comments.
So, what video to watch next? How about
ten things I wish I would have bought sooner?
Seriously, if I would have bought these things,
I would have been much better off. So, what
are they? Find out, gents, by clicking on
this video right here.
