How to style my grandfather's jacket?

[FizzyFelidae]

Hey, first time posting. My grandfather had this old Cabela's jacket that he wore all the times. He passed a couple years ago, and I want to wear his jacket around to honor him I guess. Issue is it's too big for me (it says XL/Reg on the tag) and I know next to nothing when it comes to fashion. I'm hoping y'all can help me out.

 

[breakaway01]

It’s hard to tell with these photos—can you post a plain frontal view with your arms by your sides (no hands on your hip or pocket, not holding the camera)?
Right now the trend especially for casual wear has moved to more relaxed fits. This might be good, especially with pants that are a little more straight/relaxed too.

 

[FizzyFelidae]

It’s hard to tell with these photos—can you post a plain frontal view with your arms by your sides (no hands on your hip or pocket, not holding the camera)?
Right now the trend especially for casual wear has moved to more relaxed fits. This might be good, especially with pants that are a little more straight/relaxed too.

Certainly! Here you go.

Pants that are more straight/relaxed... noted. Thank you!

 

[KOz]

I would second a more relaxed trouser fit.

Perhaps a local tailor would be able to shorten the hem and the sleeves a bit as well.

 

[breakaway01]

It's oversized but in a good way. I think you could pull it off.

 

[double00]

a couple notes :

- imho would work a lot better for you without the ribbing on the sleeves or the collar . but don't get rid of them just roll them inside . if you happen to like that you can get the ribbing tacked that way . ( caveat it will expose the shell to a bit more wear )

- think about repairing the back quilting

 

[FizzyFelidae]

a couple notes :

- imho would work a lot better for you without the ribbing on the sleeves or the collar . but don't get rid of them just roll them inside . if you happen to like that you can get the ribbing tacked that way . ( caveat it will expose the shell to a bit more wear )

- think about repairing the back quilting

I'm not sure I quite understand.

- When you say "the ribbing" I'm guessing you're referring to the knitting on the cuffs and collar. If so, why do you think that rolling them inside would look better? Is it to make a better silhouette?

- What's wrong with the back quilt? I just examined up close and all the stitching looks fine to me. There is some crud near the top right shoulder blade but I don't think you're talking about that. Here I'll provide a better photo of just the back;

 

[FizzyFelidae]

I would second a more relaxed trouser fit.

Perhaps a local tailor would be able to shorten the hem and the sleeves a bit as well.

Ok, just to make sure I understand what you and @breakaway01 mean by "relaxed fit" it's something more like this right?

If so, I'm not sure if I have any pants that match that description. I'll look to see. Few more questions though

- You said trousers while breakaway01 said pants. Is there a meaningful semantical difference or am I reading too much in your word choice?

- Neither you criticized me for picking jeans. I'm assuming that means jeans were a good choice, but would other pants look good? Like Chinos or Khakis? If I found a relaxed sweatpants, would that look decent?

- similarly, no one has criticized the shirt. Why is that? Do dark, thicker shirts look "right" with the jacket? If so how come? And how would other shirts affect the "look"?

- lastly, breakaway01 immediately put the jacket in casualwear? I assume it's because the jacket is oversized for me, but are there other contexts this jacket could work in? Like workwear or streetwear?

 

[breakaway01]

Ok, just to make sure I understand what you and @breakaway01 mean by "relaxed fit" it's something more like this right?

View attachment 2296623

Yes in terms of overall shape but of course the materials, styling, etc can vary widely

If so, I'm not sure if I have any pants that match that description. I'll look to see. Few more questions though


- You said trousers while breakaway01 said pants. Is there a meaningful semantical difference or am I reading too much in your word choice?

No, we mean the same thing

- Neither you criticized me for picking jeans. I'm assuming that means jeans were a good choice, but would other pants look good? Like Chinos or Khakis? If I found a relaxed sweatpants, would that look decent?

Absolutely -- you probably know this already but I'd just take this jacket with you shopping, and try on a lot of different styles of outfits and see what works. If you do try out chinos, look for chinos that are more workwear than office-appropriate. There will be details in terms of how the seams are finished or the smoothness of the material that will make a pair of chinos more or less formal. Look at pictures of outfits (not individual pieces) online. If you find outfits that you like, it is totally okay to try to replicate them and see if they work on you. A lot of the process is learning what works/doesn't work on you and developing your own eye and personal style.

- similarly, no one has criticized the shirt. Why is that? Do dark, thicker shirts look "right" with the jacket? If so how come? And how would other shirts affect the "look"?

Didn't really look at the shirt TBH. It's a neutral color and the styling fits. The jacket is actually fairly versatile in terms of its color and overall shape. You could wear a lot of different tops with that jacket. Outerwear like this looks better generally when unbuttoned and layered. So you can try wearing an overshirt or knitwear underneath, for example.

- lastly, breakaway01 immediately put the jacket in casualwear? I assume it's because the jacket is oversized for me, but are there other contexts this jacket could work in? Like workwear or streetwear?

I didn't want to get too deep into specifics here. As I'm sure you've figured out, this is a menswear forum where there is a 'classic/tailored' side (suits, sportcoats, etc) and a 'streetwear/denim' side. Obviously this jacket isn't 'tailored' so I just lumped it into 'casual'. But there are so many subcategories like workwear and streetwear. I wouldn't overthink this -- on the casual side there are far fewer "rules" than in classic/tailored clothing, where people have had arguments about what styles of dress shoe should or shouldn't be worn with chinos.

Try mixing and matching what you already own with this jacket. See what works. If you don't have a pair of pants that are more relaxed, try some on. If you have good thrift stores nearby, you might consider that for some low-cost, low-risk options. I did a fair bit of that when I first started getting interested in dressing better, and it was a good way for me to get started.

 

[FizzyFelidae]

@breakaway01 thank you for such a thoughtful reply. I've started thrifting around a little bit, but I only started really doing it yesterday. I'll definitely try out some overshirts and sweaters next time

I wouldn't overthink this -- on the casual side there are far fewer "rules" than in classic/tailored clothing

Yeah you're right. I know there aren't any hard and fast rules when it comes to fashion. What's considered professional today will change considerably in 1000 years, much like language. It's just I've been underthinking it for so long that I lack the instincts and the knowledge you all have seemed to developed. Like I would've never have thought to roll up the knitted cuffs, but that was @double00 first suggestion. And it looked good! How? Why? What?

I think I'm realizing that I moreso want to understand why something looks better than something else. Why does a relax fit look better in this context than a slim one? Why does rolling up the sleeves look better? Etc. That way, when I'm thrifting around, I can apply that logic and thought into outfits

Er, sorry. Got a Lil sidetracked. Yeah I'll definitely thrift around and see what comes up

 

[breakaway01]

@breakaway01
Yeah you're right. I know there aren't any hard and fast rules when it comes to fashion. What's considered professional today will change considerably in 1000 years, much like language. It's just I've been underthinking it for so long that I lack the instincts and the knowledge you all have seemed to developed. Like I would've never have thought to roll up the knitted cuffs, but that was @double00 first suggestion. And it looked good! How? Why? What?

I think I'm realizing that I moreso want to understand why something looks better than something else. Why does a relax fit look better in this context than a slim one? Why does rolling up the sleeves look better? Etc. That way, when I'm thrifting around, I can apply that logic and thought into outfits

There was a poster here @dieworkwear (who no longer posts here; is mostly on Twitter and Bluesky) who has also posted some very interesting articles on developing one's own eye for style. See this post for links to them

How to figure out ones style

Hello, I posted in the introduction thread but will basically be posting the same thing here. I am 25 years old and finally decided to improve certain aspects of my life. I am at a point in my life where I want to finally settle down and do better. One of those aspects is my wardrobe. I have...

www.styleforum.net

You're right -- dressing is a form of expression that has many 'languages' rooted partly in cultural and historical contexts. The more you look at outfits, particularly those from different eras and contexts, the more you understand how this works.

What I'd say in general is that you should think about whether a particular outfit is coherent. Oversize jacket + slim trousers is a very hard look to do well because it looks unbalanced and breaks coherence of proportion/silhouette (at least IMO). It's easier to pair oversize jacket and roomier trousers. So one dimension of 'coherence' is proportion and silhouette. There are other aspects - as mentioned, cultural/historial context of the outfit that you may be referencing, color, hue (warm/cool), texture. 'Formality' is cultural/historical, so it's easy to pair a sportcoat with wool dress trousers and dress shoes, hard to pair with cargo pants and hiking boots. Really good dressers know how to break some of these 'rules' of coherence to create interesting tensions but that is advanced.

For now, look at lots of outfits. Try not to buy an individual item of clothing for itself, but rather think about how it could work with other items that you already have or intend to acquire.

@double00 's suggestion to roll up the ribbed cuffs, I think, is not so much around these principles as it is effectively shortening the sleeve so it doesn't look as long on you, but maybe better if he explains his reasoning himself.

 

[double00]

to be clear I don't believe in fashion-as-essay or some kind of literacy of cosplay .

the cuff comment is about leaning into the garment's oversize and squaring up the silhouette a bit

 

[Using Technology]

Reiterating what others have said: this is big on you, yes, but looks fashionably oversized. I think you can rock it. If you feel it looks TOO big and empty around you, then try putting on a chunky sweater underneath?

The pants you are wearing are pretty slim. This outfit would look better with straight leg or wide leg, probably. Chunky boots would be good too. This is a casual jacket, so works fine with jeans (since you asked).

 

[Using Technology]

@breakaway01
I think I'm realizing that I moreso want to understand why something looks better than something else. Why does a relax fit look better in this context than a slim one? Why does rolling up the sleeves look better? Etc. That way, when I'm thrifting around, I can apply that logic and thought into outfits

Rolling up the cuffs would shorten the sleeves, and so have it bunch up less in the arms. As breakaway said, in terms of silhouette / overall shape, wider pants would make the top and bottom halves of the outfit more balanced. Posting the first google result I got for bomber and wide leg pants as example:

Thin pants and big jacket can look a bit like a lollipop shape. But of course almost anything can be pulled off if done right...

 

[FizzyFelidae]

Thank you all for the advice thus far. I think I'm gonna thrift for a couple of days and come back with what I found. See if I made wise purchases and what not. Hope y'all have a good weekend