Show me your best Sport Jacket with blue jeans (and list the brand, model, and $)

[redboat]

Image from The Nordic Fit. Jacket is from Cantarelli.
http://thenordicfit.com/a-casual-denim-look

 

[redboat]

Jacket by Cantarelli, jeans from Indigofera. http://thenordicfit.com/khaki-navy-sky-blue-and-denim

 

[pasteurisation]

Excuse me. Could anyone explain briefly the difference between a sport coat & a suit jacket?

 

[petercoleman]

I'll be keeping an eye on this thread as I'm keen to find an unstructured tweed sport coat in the next few months.

 

[FlyingMonkey]

Excuse me. Could anyone explain briefly the difference between a sport coat & a suit jacket?

A sport coat, AKA odd jacket, is usually cut more softly than a suit jacket, with less padding in the shoulders (or even none, as in unconstructed jackets) - although you'll find strong shoulders on some sport coats too. The materials vary but generally sport coats tend to avoid worsted wool and the kinds of fabrics used for business suits - so moleskin, cotten twills and corduroy, tweed and other rough wools, wool-silk blends, linen (and linen blends). Colours and patterns can also be far more varied, but again sport coats tend to avoid some particular colours and patterns associated with either formalwear or business - black, or navy with pinstripes, for example. Finally, pockets are a clue. Blazers, a particular sub-set of sport coats, have patch pockets; sport coats can also have patch pckets but often have jetted pockets or flaps and sometimes with no pockets at all.

This is all complicated by two things:
1. the fact that manufacturers make jackets with more traditionally suit-like features and sell them as sport coats; and
2. the rise of the 'casual suit' (from Italian traditions, the revinvention of the English country suit and of course, the catwalk) - whose jackets tend to have a lot of features that a sport coat has. Incidentally, I don't see any problem with splitting such suits (i.e. using the jacket as a sport coat) if they look right as separates, but I would almost never split a traditional business suit; it tends to look obvious that you are wearing a suit jacket and this means either that you have no idea what you are doing or you know exactly what you are doing and how and why you are breaking the rules, and you have to be very good at it indeed (and the vast majority of people fall into the former category, whatever they think...).




Left to right: blazer, sport coat, suit jacket (according to Esquire). However the one in the centre could also be a suit jacket... and the one on the right could also be a sport coat depending on the fabric etc. etc.

 

[benjamin831]

I've been avoiding this combo for good reason. This thread, with the exception of Redboat's last fit, pretty much reaffirms my thinking.

 

[FlyingMonkey]

I've been avoiding this combo for good reason. This thread, with the exception of Redboat's last fit, pretty much reaffirms my thinking.

This thread, over on CM, is probably useful from the sport coat perspective. Less so on the combination with denim (although there are some good exponents)... it's one of those things that falls between CM and SW&D and neither seems to like it that much.

 

[Gus]

Bespoke jacket by NSM (cashmere wool blend herring bone pattern)

Bespoke jacket by NSM (Loro Piana cashmere very heavy tweed herringbone)

 

[benjamin831]

Still looks off to my eyes, especially the second pic.

 

[Gus]



Still looks off to my eyes, especially the second pic.

Interesting. One of the moderators thinks that is the very best NSM jacket he has ever seen on Styleforum.

So, what exactly is "off"?

 

[oboy_oboy]

It's not the jacket. It's the pairing with that shade of denim.

 

[Gus]



It's not the jacket. It's the pairing with that shade of denim.

Fair enough. Show us a pic of how you do it right.

 

[951socal2012]

pocketsquareguy, you have awesome jackets!

 

[oboy_oboy]

Not claiming I'm a master...just trying to speak to the question.

I love that jacket. And that pairing beats most efforts handily. I just think the SC w/ denim is often thought of as an easy combo but so much depends on the shade and cut of the jeans. There's a lot of leeway w/ the coat,
assuming it's not an orphaned suit jacket.

Personally I think that jeans w/ a larger hem opening look bad when paired w/ a SC. A stronger taper really makes a difference. This pov does not necessarily carry over to chinos and not everyone will agree. The more casual--ie. unconstructed--the coat, the easier it pairs w/ looser fitting pants. Once there's structure in the shoulder I really think a narrower hem brings things together.

Regarding shades of denim, I also just really prefer darker denim in all stages--new, somewhat faded, really beat up. Medium blue just looks generic to me.

Again: all just my own POV.

 

[benjamin831]



Interesting. One of the moderators thinks that is the very best NSM jacket he has ever seen on Styleforum.

So, what exactly is "off"?

I'm sure the jacket is absolutely wonderful and it does look great. But as obey said, I don't think it has much to do with the jacket.

The problem with the denim combo is that there's such a massive dichotomy between your upper body and your legs. If I put my hands over your pants (sounds weird), I can imagine a much different outfit than what you actually wore. Same could be said if I cover up the top half of the picture. The denim combo almost always underperforms because always a better pair of pants that could achieve the same casual affect and look infinitely better.

I can think of one way to tie the top and bottom together, and that is to wear a casual sports shirt, maybe something in plaid of gingham, sans tie.