Elements of tweed jacket
Before the appearance of tweed jacket which are called classical there was a lot of similar models of men’s clothes. Aristocrats in Europe wore camisoles (a long single-breasted jacket without lapels), bourgeois — jupes, actors — full evening dresses, bankers — dinner jackets. Officials, doctors and engineers preferred frocks (a long a little bit slim-waisted double-breasted jacket).
Men’s two-piece outfit grew into fashion in Europe in the early 20th century, and from then jacket is a main item of men’s wardrobe. We will take a look at the major features of this kind of clothes.
Lapels of the jacket
Men’s tweed jackets do not go out of fashion more than 200 years. Fashion changes, new cuts appear, but the main elements remain the same.
Every jacket has lapels, which are flaps placed symmetrically in collar zone that reach an upper button. They can be tight, wide, short or long, sloping, rectangular, skewed and so on.
Lapels’ ends can be sharp-pointed or smooth, rounded.
Lapel can be also a part of collar (open-necked cut or shawl collar).
Pockets of the jacket
A jacket can have side outer pockets (slash and patch pockets, pockets with flaps) and inner pockets. Outer pockets are an important part of item’s design and the inner pocket is necessary for keeping documents or portemonaie. Pockets can also be false (dead-sewed and covered with flaps).
Buttons of the jacket
Depending on cut and appearance of an item jacket can have one, two, three or four buttons (on the double-breasted model till eight buttons), which can be big, medium or small (in the same colour as fabric or contrasting). On the jacket’s sleeves buttons play a part of ornamental element.
Vent of the jacket
Vent is a slit in the bottom hem of a jacket, which allows to move easily. An item can have only one vent, and then it is at the centre of clothes.
If there are two vents in the cut, they are on each side of the jacket. There are cuts where there is not any vent: straight half loose blazers.
Handkerchiefs in the chest pocket
A handkerchief in the chest pocket is a designer ornament, which is rarely used in formal suit. However, dress or holiday tweed suit is almost always trimmed with a pocket handkerchief. It is very important, to sort out the right combination of colours: noble and exotic variants of colour combinations are generally used. In an elegant suit handkerchief has the same tint as jacket but in one or two tones paler (for example, with dark blue jacket matches blue accessory).
Handkerchiefs are folded by the rules of decorum. It can be a square, edge or figured variant in the shape of wineglass. The length of handkerchief should be chosen considering size of the pocket, so that fabric could easily get inside and the outer part would be seen. The handkerchief’s texture can be:
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soft and light (of cambric and silk)
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rough (of cotton and flax)
Anyway edges of the item should be accentuated accurately.
Every way of folding a handkerchief should be chosen considering design of the suit and forthcoming measure. This accessory (as neckerchief) gives a suit a completed appearance and emphasizes individuality of its owner.
You can also read about different designs of jackets.