These are the best leather jackets for autumn
Looking to up your leather jacket game? We've found the best designs of this classic wardrobe staple — and the ones to buy
Words: Jonathan Wells
Along with your crisp white dress shirt and pair of trusty blue denim jeans, the leather jacket is one of the most essential staples in your wardrobe. Made covetable by everyone from Hollywood superstars to sporting heroes, it pays to invest in a good quality, stylishly dependable leather jacket.
Easier said than done. With more styles and designs than any other genus of jacket, the leather zip or button-up comes in many sizes, guises and looks. We’ve split the pack into three of the best variations and, as the cold weather creeps in, we’re here to guide you through the best to buy.
An aviator jacket will prepare you for winter weather
The shearling collar is as comforting as things come. Warm and furry, it’ll keep your neck warm whether you’re riding a motorbike, hiking a mountain or even just nipping into the city on a particularly nippy day. Pair with a good quality leather construction and you’ve got the perfect transitional garment for autumn.
A masterstroke of a collaboration, Connolly + Goodwood have brought their motor-obsessed heads together to create this brown leather option, cut from supple leather and detailed with a statement shearling collar. Schott’s classic take on the style was worn by Marines and Army airmen through WWII, and Tom Ford offers up a slightly shined leather that will develop a handsome patina over time.
Turn heads with collarless cool
If, like the majority of leather jacket wearers, you’re looking to up your cool credentials with your new purchase, it’ll pay to ditch the collar altogether. Shearling may look functional, but we must suffer for our fashion — and nothing is more devil-may-care cool than a simple, chic collarless jacket.
Just look at The Kooples’s stripped-back jacket. With zips galore but a chic black colour, it’s an education in minimalist, tailored outerwear. The same can be said for Belstaff’s V Racer jacket — although the reinforced stitching around the shoulders adds a little more interest. Finally, The Row offers up its Cole jacket; slim-fit and made from butter-soft leather that’ll shape to your body and become even more comfortable over time.
Bring your bomber into autumn
Our final suggestion would be the humble bomber. Usually reserved for spring or summer, once you cast this classic in leather, it takes on a whole new facet of functionality — and looks bloody good doing it. Dunhill has even played with the conventional colours of a leather jacket, bringing a milky indigo hue to its ribbed jacket.
Paul Smith has followed in those colourful footsteps — offering up a brighter blue bomber jacket complete with the brand’s signature stripe as trim. Or, if you’ve got deep pockets in your existing jacket, why not opt for a Loro Piana Rain System bomber — an investment piece made to last a lifetime with soft trims and dropped shoulders.
More of an overcoat man? Here are the best to see you through winter 2020…
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Further reading
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