Till recently, double-breasted jackets were regarded as a relic of the past times, but now, in a refreshed form, they are very popular among modern beaus..
A glamorous tailcoat and a wool coat are precursors of double-breasted jackets. This piece of clothing entered the canons of elegant men’s fashion already in the 1920s. Its formal character and practical features (taming the tie and masking the mostly squeezed parts of the shirt) were promptly appreciated by gentlemen all over the world.
Popularisation of double-breasted jackets was supported also by pop and style icons, such as Robert Redfrord, Cary Grant, Humphrey Bogart, Fred Astaire and Clint Eastwood. In the course of time, the fashion started to move towards less formal clothing.
The shaping casual style superseded doublebreasted jackets till 80s-90s, when they returned in an oversize form with 1×6 closure (out of six buttons, only one at the bottom is buttoned). Today, we recall this style as archaic.
During the last year’s Pitti Uomo fair, a Mecca of all lovers of breaking the classics, gentlemen dressed like kingbirds had double-breasted jackets. It was a sign foretelling an incoming trend for the whole world of men’s fashion.
Nearly one year after Pitti ‚86 in Florence, stars again are used to promote these jackets. In Kingsman, a movie regarded as the most stylish of recent years, Colin Firth acts in a double-breasted suit, made of Dormeuil – British-French fabric (available e.g. at Pitti Style atelier). Several weeks from the premiere of Kingsman, Daniel Craig, i.e. nowadays James Bond, presented himself in a double-breasted suit by Brunello Cucinelli and it was clear then what will be the most fashionable in the incoming months.
Double-breasted jackets can be in terms of the number, arrangement and the way of buttoning the buttons. Only two variants are worth our attention: 2×6 and 2×4.
2×6 arrangement is the most popular one; four bottom buttons (two of which are buttoned) form a square, while two other are placed above, giving a shape of a diverted trapezoid – such style is presenting in a very elegant way, being modern at the same time.
2×4 buttoning is slightly less formal, it can be often found in linen and cotton jackets, perfectly suiting the chinos and everyday smart casual style.
As in case of each fashionable element of clothing, there are trends concerning colours and patterns. The incoming summer will be dominated by shades of blue and dark blue and various variants of check – it’s an everyday proposition. For more formal occasions, I recommend black, broken with gray thread and gentle stripes or grayness set with dark chocolate brown – just like in Kingsman.
The issue we should finally arouse is an answer to the question „does this jacket style is proper for each figure?” Unfortunately, double-breasted jackets perfectly emphasize men’s physique at the same time accentuating all its flaws.
Improperly arranged buttons at the height of belly or too wide facings may add us few centimeters. What is needed by all who want to be fashionable in this season is specialised tailors and custom-made tailoring. Thanks to measures like proper choice of the width of flaps, the height of cushions, arrangement and type of buttons, density of patterns, and each man will look in the double-breasted jacket elegantly and with class.
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