Jean jacket

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Jean jacket
A man pictured wearing a denim jacket in Hungary in 1976
TypeJacket
MaterialDenim
Place of originUnited States

A denim jacket, also called a jean jacket or trucker jacket, is a jacket made from denim. Introduced in the United States in the late 19th century, it has been a popular type of casual apparel with both men and women and has been described as an iconic element of American fashion. Though a staple of western wear, the denim jacket has also enjoyed a more general appeal.

History[edit]

The first recorded denim jacket is part of the collection of the German Historical Commission of the Rhineland (Stiftung Historische Kommission für die Rheinlande 1789–1815) [1] and dates back to 1805 or 1810. In the United States the first recorded denim jacket is from about 1880 which was from the German businessman Levi Strauss, approximately ten years after he had invented jeans as a new type of work apparel intended for use by cowboys, miners, and railroad workers.[2] The "Type III" denim jacket, introduced by Levis Strauss & Co. in 1962,[a] has been described as the Denim jacket "to rule them all".[5] Also known as "the trucker jacket", design elements of the Type III include a tapered style, welt hand pockets, and bar tacks which hold down chest pocket and sleeve openings.[3]

In 2014, Google collaborated with Levi Strauss & Co. to develop a "connected" denim jacket described by Wired as the "denim jacket of the future".[6] The underlying technology, named "Jacquard," encompassed a processor, a built-in battery, and a special yarn that gave the bottom of the arm a pseudo-touchscreen functionality.[6] The same year, New York Fashion Week featured several denim jackets, with The Guardian predicting that the denim jacket would "be everywhere in 2018".[7] A second version of the Jacquard jacket, featuring an appearance closer to jackets without the technology as well as a lower price, was released in late 2019.[8]

In addition to Levi Strauss & Co., companies designing denim jackets have included Wrangler, Calvin Klein, Tom Ford, Gucci, and Dior, among others.[9]

A woman models a denim jacket.

Cultural impact[edit]

According to GQ, there are "few things more iconic, more innately American, than a denim jacket" and the magazine has called it "a staple for stylish men".[10][11] Jean jackets have also been popular with women.[12]

Jean jackets, like jeans, are a major element of western wear; however, like jeans themselves, they have also enjoyed a more general appeal.[13] Notable wearers of jean jackets have included western entertainers James Dean and John Lennon,[2] as well as Polish anti-Communist dissident Jacek Kuroń.[14] In 2017, GQ opined that Kanye West seemed to own "an alarming number of jean jackets", remarking that "he doesn't seem to go a few days without wearing one".[15]

According to Levi Strauss & Co., the jean jacket has traditionally appealed to nonconformists as "a knock to the 'suits' of the world, its informal yet edgy heritage making it the ideal item to stick it to the man".[16]

In the 2022 Jordan Peele film Nope, the flying alien is eventually referred to as "Jean Jacket", named after one of Em's horses.[17]

Wear and styling[edit]

While jean jackets are predominantly found in blue, denim can be dyed any color achievable with cotton, so jackets in colors such as white and violet also exist.[18] As with jeans themselves, it is possible to buy "raw" or "dry" denim jean jackets, which have not been washed or distressed at the factory and instead fade and break in naturally over time with wear.[19] Jean jackets with sherpa lining for warmth are also available.[18]

Canadian tuxedo[edit]

A man sitting on a statue of a tortoise and wearing a Canadian tuxedo

A "Canadian tuxedo" is a colloquial term for wearing a jean shirt or denim jacket with jeans.[20] The term reportedly originated in 1951 after Bing Crosby was refused entry to a hotel in Vancouver, British Columbia, because he was wearing a denim top and denim bottoms.[20][21] After learning of the incident, Levi Strauss & Co. designed a tuxedo made entirely of denim for Crosby as a publicity stunt.[20]

Despite its name, the "Canadian tuxedo" is not a specifically Canadian style, but is also closely correlated with images in American pop culture, such as the Marlboro Man.[22]

The Crosby incident has been credited with helping to spur the evolution of denim from blue collar work wear into a fashion staple;[23] however, the popularity of the full "Canadian tuxedo" look has varied, being accepted as stylish and on trend at some times and as a fashion faux pas at others.[23] Some fashion stylists have asserted that the look works better if the jeans and the jacket are different colours than it does if they're the same shade.[24] The "Canadian tuxedo" has also sometimes been interpreted as including a flannel shirt under the jacket,[25] although this is not a universal definition.

The Canadian tuxedo achieved a "pop cultural peak" in 2001 when Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake wore the combination to that year's American Music Awards.[20][26][21] In 2016, Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau wore a "Canadian tuxedo" to a concert by The Tragically Hip.[27] Lady Gaga has also worn a Canadian tuxedo in public.[28]

In 2014, Levi Strauss produced a limited run of 200 replicas of the original Crosby tuxedo jacket as part of that year's line.[23] Various fashion design houses have also produced couture interpretations of the "Canadian tuxedo".[22]

Gallery[edit]

  • Ronald Reagan wearing a jean jacket at Rancho Del Cielo in 1977
    Ronald Reagan wearing a jean jacket at Rancho del Cielo in 1977
  • A man shown wearing a jean jacket as part of a "Canadian tuxedo" in 2007
    A man shown wearing a jean jacket as part of a "Canadian tuxedo" in 2007
  • A woman wearing a jean jacket in 2015
    A woman wearing a jean jacket in 2015

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Levi Strauss & Co. reports an introduction date of 1967, while the Wall Street Journal claims 1961, and Complex cites 1962.[3][4][5]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Home". stiftung-hkr.info.
  2. ^ a b Chabbot, Sophia (August 19, 2015). "From Marilyn Monroe to Madonna, Here's a Brief History of the All-American Denim Jacket". Glamour. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  3. ^ a b "The Type III Trucker Jacket Celebrates 50 Years". levistrauss.com. Levi Strauss & Co. 2 October 2017. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  4. ^ Hrabi, Dale (April 6, 2016). "A Jean Jacket That Makes Others Look Ordinary". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  5. ^ a b Babcock, Gregory (September 24, 2014). "A Brief History of the Denim Jacket". Complex. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  6. ^ a b Pierce, David (September 25, 2017). "I Wore the Denim Jacket of the Future". Wired. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  7. ^ Cartner-Morley, Jess (December 17, 2015). "It's in the jeans: why the denim jacket is 2018's new power dressing". The Guardian. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  8. ^ Hartmans, Avery. "Levi's and Google are launching new denim jackets that can answer phone calls and control your music". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
  9. ^ "11 Denim Jackets to Wear With Everything in Your Wardrobe". Esquire. October 3, 2017. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  10. ^ Berlinger, Max (October 21, 2016). "The Best Denim Jacket: Citizens of Humanity Denim Jacket". GQ. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  11. ^ Woolf, Cam (October 3, 2017). "The Best Jean Jacket Gets Better Every Time You Wear It". GQ. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  12. ^ Friedman, Lauren (2016). 50 Ways to Wear Denim. Chronicle Books. pp. 16–24. ISBN 978-1452150635.
  13. ^ Lynch, Annette (2014). Ethnic Dress in the United States: A Cultural Encyclopedia. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 301–302. ISBN 978-0759121508.
  14. ^ Easton, Adam (June 17, 2004). "Polish Solidarity co-founder dies". BBC News. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  15. ^ Woolf, Jake (June 27, 2017). "Kanye West Owns an Alarming Number of Jean Jackets". GQ. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  16. ^ "The Evolution of an American Style Staple". levistrauss.com. Levi Strauss & Co. 9 December 2014. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  17. ^ Bentz, Adam (September 17, 2022). "Nope: Connection Between Gordy & Jean Jacket Finally Explained By Producer". ScreenRant.
  18. ^ a b Boston, Lloyd (2010). The Style Checklist: The Ultimate Wardrobe Essentials for You. Simon and Schuster. p. 35. ISBN 978-1439163948.
  19. ^ "The Three Tiers of Denim Jackets: Entry, Mid, and End Level". Heddels. 2019-05-15. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
  20. ^ a b c d Yotka, Steff (April 20, 2017). "11 Unexpected Ways to Reinvent the Canadian Tuxedo". Vogue. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  21. ^ a b Fawcett, Kirsten (October 27, 2015). "The 'Canadian Tuxedo' Can Apparently Be Traced Back to Bing Crosby". Mental Floss. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  22. ^ a b Hannah Ongley, "the controversial american history of the canadian tuxedo". i-D, January 5, 2018.
  23. ^ a b c Vienna Vernose, "The History of the Canadian Tuxedo: How the fashion faux pas became a runway staple". CR Fashion Book, April 24, 2019.
  24. ^ Scott Christian, "Why You Should Stop Worrying and Learn to Love the Canadian Tuxedo". Esquire, June 16, 2016.
  25. ^ Scott Stinson, "Redblacks bring winning mindset to title game". Windsor Star, November 25, 2016.
  26. ^ La Rose, Lauren (September 2, 2014). "The Canadian tuxedo: Expert tips on how to wear the double-denim look". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  27. ^ "Justin Trudeau At The Hip's Final Concert Gave Us Canada Overload". Huffington Post. August 21, 2016. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  28. ^ Cheng, Andrea (June 30, 2017). "10 New Celebrity-Approved Ways to Double Up on Denim". InStyle. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
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