WAIT SELECTION: The denim jacket. Origins, evolution and selection of the best contemporary models

Among the small and large iconographic objects that have defined the history of fashion over the centuries, one of these is undoubtedly the denim jacket. It may seems strange, but one of the modern item actually has very ancient origins and not exactly American, but European. And to contend for the ‘authorship’ of this timeless object are two countries: France and Italy.

The origins of the fabric

The story of jeans begins in the 15th century, although according to some fashion historians it has even more ancient roots that go back to the Middle Ages. In this period, in fact, in Chieri (Turin) precious and resistant fabrics were produced, which then became famous throughout Europe and, in the following centuries were sold all over the world through the port of Genoa. It was in this city that with the blue Chieri moleskin, the bags were made to put the sails in, and the first work clothes since this type of moleskin is a very resistant fabric. The name “blue-jeans” would come from the French expression “bleu de Genes”, or the “blue of Genoa”, to refer to the color of moleskin dyed with guado, the plant from which indigo color is obtained. But it was then in the United States, precisely in San Francisco, that a tailor named Levi Strauss in the mid-nineteenth century made the first trousers for the workers who had arrived in California from half the world. He made the fabric even more resistant by strengthening the weave and adopting finishing processes to change its color. In 1853 he founded a company namely “Levis Strauss & Co.”, which soon became famous in Europe as well because of the new clothing used by the working classes.

The jeans jacket

In 1873 a tailor called Jacob Davis, received the patent for the introduction of “denim” together with Levi’s Strauss, who recognized them the right to apply copper inserts to reinforce men’s work trousers in jeans, the fabric originating from the French city by Nìmes. Inserting the rivets in the easiest places to wear, such as pockets, gave Levi’s the opportunity to introduce jackets for factory workers on the market, precisely in 1880. But, the first real great success came in 1903 with the release of the “506xx”: a blouse with a front lining with sewn pleats, but which could be opened to be able to insert layers of warmer fabrics, equipped with a pocket and a rear strap with a buckle to adjust the width. Then, in 1921 Lee, the Levi’s rival denim brand, invented the railroad jacket designed especially for railway workers. Then, came the 91 jacket, the first in denim with a zip, and the slim jacket, intended for cowboys: it had slanted pockets to put your hands in more easily while riding and a higher hem that prevented it from rolling up. The cowboy-denim-manhood duo, has since taken root in the imagination and has been widely exploited by advertising: Marlboro, for example, invented the Marlboro Cowboy, who dressed in denim gave his cigarettes a more masculine aura. In 1933, Lee introduced also one of his most famous jackets: the storm rider, a winter version of the slim jacket with a padded collar and cuffs.

The jacket among the Hollywood stars

The jacket had one of its best period in the 50s and 60s. Those who wore an oversized denim jacket did it mostly to differentiate themselves, since it was customary to wear jackets with a much more classic and tight tailoring. And even the big Hollywood stars began to favor it. From Bing Crosby, who even has an anecdote about him rejected by a Grand Hotel because he was wearing a jacket, to Steve McQueen, the ‘rebel’ par excellence in whose honor one of the most famous models was named.

And, in addition to Levis and Lee, brands such as Wrangler have increasingly established themselves put on the market models increasingly sought after by the public such as the 11 MJ Blue Bell equipped with bellows pleats to allow freedom of movement. And the “storm rider” is chosen by actors of the caliber of Kirk Douglas who launched it in “Lonely Are the Brave” of 1962, by Paul Newman who wore it in “Hud the savage” of 1963. And, finally, it was Marilyn Monroe in “The Misfits” (1961) to make it a real must-have.

The evolution of the model

But it was in the 70s that the jeans jacket became a symbol of struggle and transgression, favored by Hippies from all over the world together with a pair of fringed or flared trousers, a dress-code also sported at the time of the Woodstock Festival . To choose it as an iconic and sensual object will also be the model Verushka, the most famous model of the time, who became famous with Michelangelo Antonioni‘s film “Blow Up” (1966).

In the 80s and 90s, the denim jacket underwent a profound transformation: from a symbol of protest to an object worn by the middle-upper social classes, it also became a luxury item. Almost all of them fall out of fashion if they ‘take possession’ of it by modifying the silhouette, dyeing it according to the seasons or inserting bold prints and graphics. And it is also in these years that the fashion of denim shirts explodes: narrow or wide it does not matter, they will be adopted in all seasons and in every wardrobe, especially in those of the real “man” of the time. A 1985 advertisement “Denim, for the man who never has to ask” recalls him.

Today, however, the jeans jacket loses all limits or borders becoming more and more globalized, more and more common. The denim fabric, reinterpreted in all its variants, is a cult in all respects; the “denim-trend” is reconfirmed season after season and we see it in the streets, on the international catwalks and also with celebrities who choose it as an indispensable must-have.

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Woman

Lee

Available here. Price 99,95€

Levi’s

Available here. Price 119€

Tommy Hilfiger

Available here. Price 129€

Diesel

Available here. Price 149,99€

Nudie Jeans

Available here. Price 169€

Ganni

Available here. Price 289€

Ralph Lauren

Available here. Price 299,99€

MSGM

Available here. Price 630€

Maison Margiela

Available here. Price 850€

Givenchy

Available here. Price 890€

Dsquared2

Available here. Price 890€

Saint Laurent

Available here. Price 990€

Alexander McQueen

Available here. Price 1,390€

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