Fall & Winter Jackets

Winter is soon upon us, for some sooner than others it would seem.

Browsing around social media it seems people are already bringing out their flannels and tweeds while I’m here in Kyoto trying my best to mix up an adequately fitting autumn outfit in 28℃ degrees. 

(edit. The weather actually turned about a week after writing this, but that isn’t to say we won’t have a good mix of the normal 15℃ days and sudden 20℃ + days taking us by surprise. Some years ago it was 25℃ degrees in mid December, for reference).

Spending the first three quarters of your life in Scandinavia you learn a thing or two about keeping warm in the winter but you also grow quite resilient to cold weather. Obviously I’ve always worn coats in winter, but I never really liked layering beneath for other purposes than style. In other words, I seldom feel a practical need to wear anything more than a thin wool knit underneath a coat. 

Besides being a rather trivial story, it does explain my choices when picking out odd jackets for this years colder months.

Light Cloths

First of all, I will be keeping about half of my summer jackets in rotation. First and foremost because the colour and look of them is perfectly fine for the darker months, but also because I like the weight. 

In my case I find that lighter odd jackets are perfect for layering. Even though the plain weaves of most of them are quite breathable, they insulate well when layered under an overcoat. In addition, it feels less bulky when you’re closing in on 4-5 layers. This is also one of the reasons I wear my high-twist suits all year round. Besides being very wrinkle resistant and keeping drape, they are generally heavy cloths that insulate well when layered.

The jackets that I have repurposed, or rather, kept in rotation, you can read about in my articles here and here. Some of them are the brown windowpane Drago jacket, the cotton herringbone Caruso jacket, the green Ferla and the burgundy E. Thomas jacket (all pictured above).

As for new additions in this category, there are two. It’s not to say these won’t be worn in the summer, they are inherently summer jackets after all, but I think you’ll understand my reasoning. I’m still undecided on whether I will acquire more jackets in this category, space is also a growing concern after all.

Lanificio Di Pray

Unsurprisingly, all jackets I acquired are from Ring Jacket and this first one is a Black Watch from Lanificio Di Pray. 

The purists will have a field day with this one, but it’s a cloth comprised of 42% Silk, 30 Linen and 28% wool at 210 gram. The jacket model is the No-269, so I knew what to expect for that part.

I ordered this one online, as it’s an older model not available in store. I was slightly disappointed upon first seeing it, but that more or less instantly turned into relief. The pattern isn’t as distinctive as I had imagined (pictures will always be misleading) and in some sense it didn’t feel as a true Black Watch as such. On the other hand because it’s a more subtle rendition of the pattern it’s far easier to pair and wear than I initially had expected. So, as opposed to sporting a classic Black Watch probably two times a year, I now I have a jacket that can be worn more often as a substitute for the navy odd jacket. Also, the more subtle Black Watch feels more sophisticated as only the trained eye can immediately tell what it is.

Balloon

The second addition is actually a Balloon jacket (yay!). It has a gun club/mini check pattern in brown tones, so, needless to say it works well in my wardrobe. It has a slightly more smooth texture than one would expect from a summer fabric and the colours are a little darker as well. What this does provide however is a smoother layer that doesn’t friction as much with what’s underneath nor on top.

Heavier Cloths

My idea here was to acquire jackets heavy enough to be worn on their own without a coat, but also suitable for a light overcoat (in which I have quite a few). 

As for the patterns, there’s some lucky coincidence and some retreat from my initial goal. I initially wanted to get cloths with ridiculously big traditional patterns, but it seems that so happens to be a trend this year…

In any case.

Loro Piana Pecora Nera

The first jacket is a houndstooth jacket with a wonderful cloth from Loro Piana. 

The Pecora Nera cloth comprises natural, undyed wool fibers. In other words, the brown wool fibers seen in the houndstooth pattern are naturally brown. The cloth is also immensely soft. It’s heavy at 500 gram, which is perfect for the previously mentioned purpose. 

This specific look; the pattern size and colour, has actually been on my list for a while, so I was quite happy to find it as an off the rack jacket. I had initially thought of a thinner/lighter cloth and I am still considering acquiring just that, albeit with some navy and red tones incorporated in the pattern. But none the less, this release was the perfect coincidence. 

Fox Brothers

The second jacket is where I could make the compromise in terms of big traditional patterns. I had sort of left the thought of acquiring big patterned jackets when this jacket with a Fox Brothers and Ring Jacket limited cloth was released. Yet again another off the rack jacket so an acquisition became inevitable.

It has a huge Prince of Wales pattern in green and brown with a dark orange overlay. Fox Brother cloth, commissioned by Ring Jacket, green and brown; it was inevitable I had to get this. As for the pattern, big POW patterns isn’t unusual as such, but I hope you can agree that the size of this one is still turning it up to 11.

At 460 gram it also makes for the perfect worn-by-itself jacket. 

Ring Jacket Original Fabric

The last one is a Ring Jacket original wool fabric at about 400 gram. Heavy, but not as heavy as the previous two. The green with brown windowpane is another perfect fit to my earthy tones preference. 

It’s no surprise, but I really like the prominent double stitch detail which you usually see on my suits.

This is another No-269 model from last years line-up so the cut and general details are just perfect.

Conclusion

This time around my thoughts behind the decisions is mentioned in the article itself. 

I think you’re perfectly fine going with summer cloths for autumn and winter as long as the colours and patterns fit. Personally, I would shy away from linen (and obviously seersucker etc) as you would be hard pressed not to evoke association with summer if wearing them. That being said, I actually wear linen shirts, or shirts with linen in them, during fall and winter because I find the texture looks good with flannels etc. Personal choice. 

As for other prospects, you will be the first to know if anything comes up.

As for suits and trousers, there are some presentations coming, but I don’t see much value in explaining why flannel is a good choice for winter, so a presentation will have to suffice ;)