Throughout history, leather has been used to make shoes and outerwear for people in civilisations all around the world. Leather is one of nature’s toughest materials; its made by ‘tanning’ animal hides. There are three basic methods used for tanning: vegetable tanning, which requires soaking the skin in progressively stronger tannic acid solutions over a period of time; mineral tanning, which is done by putting the hide into a drum of alum salts that is constantly agitated; and oil tanning, which involves spraying fish oil onto the hide. Vegetable tanning takes longest, mineral tanning is fastest and oil tanning is the method that most closely resembles how hides were tanned by ancient peoples the world over.
Once the leather is tanned, it is washed, stretched and dried. The dry hides are then buffed before having a final finish, such as glaze, dye or lacquer applied. When the finish is applied, the leather is ready for use in garment making. Leather is used to make a number of durable goods, from belts and gloves to handbags. Arguably, the most iconic item made from leather is the jacket.
Because it is a durable material with good insulation properties, leather is excellent for making jackets for men, women and children. Leather jackets for all the family are available in a wide selection of designs to suit most tastes and budgets. Making a leather jacket was once a time consuming process that involved many hours of laborious cutting, stitching and sealing – today, computerised design and production machinery allow companies to make leather jackets more rapidly, though personal attention is usually given to each garment as it passes through the assembly line.
Generally, leather jackets are made from a collection of panels – the sides are sewn to the back, the sleeves are stitched to the armholes and then the collars, cuffs and pockets are applied before the finishing touches, like the buttons and zips, are added according to the designer’s instructions. Once the pieces are together, the leather jacket is typically placed in a press to give it an appropriate shape. The jackets are then inspected for quality and conformance to the standard set by the manufacturer, before being packed and distributed to retailers.
Because leather is made from the hides of animals, no two garments are truly the same despite quality control measures throughout the jacket making process. Leather jackets are exceptionally durable, offer good protection from the elements and are typically associated with many different lifestyles. Though leather jacket styles have varied through the years, and generally each new fashion season includes variations on a few of the classic popular shapes, such as: the trench coat, the biker jacket, the bomber jacket and the ranch jacket.
Leather jackets in the last century have been worn by such a wide variety of characters in classic and popular films that it is easy to see why they are popular with such a diverse selection of people everywhere. The leather biker jackets worn by Marlon Brando and Michael Pare established a close link with the biker and ‘greaser’ communities of the 1950s and 60s; similarly, the jacket worn by ‘The Fonz’ on Happy Days held a close association with ‘outsiders’. Leather bomber jackets have strong ties to the military for obvious reasons.
Quality leather jackets for men, women and children are available from a number of online retailers, as well as a wide selection of high street merchants.
© Jackets.org.uk 2008
