25oz Wool Melton Shirt Jacket with Cape
Perhaps no one style more fully embodies the heritage of American tailoring than the shirt jacket.
And perhaps no piece is harder to find today in a fully custom version that is made in a long lasting heavyweight wool cloth.
The shirt jacket embodies the philosophy of layering and ideally forms the outermost layer of the ideal outfit for hiking, hunting, fishing, or outdoor labor such as farming or construction during the winter months. Wherever there were men working outdoors or engaged in fall and winter sports during the 20th century, you were sure to find the shirt jacket.
Many classic shirt jackets are made from a single layer of 25oz wool melton cloth and are cut with a slightly boxy fit. The felted wool is highly wind resistant and water resistant, but also highly breathable. The unique fit, crisp fabric, and soft structure enable make movement completely free and easy.
Felted wool meltons are also incredibly thin and dense for their weight. This quality allows them to keep you warm with none of the bulk that more “puffy” winter coats have.
Olive Drab Caped Shirt Jacket
The fabrics that we use for these coats have their roots in military attire and are substantially the same as those worn by soldiers in the Revolutionary War, campaigns against Napoleon, and the American Civil War and are often from the same historic mills that supplied those armies.
The pics show a few of our most recent versions.
The blue jacket is made from a 25oz wool melton cloth that is woven from extrafine merino wool that is made in England by Abraham Moon and is incredibly soft and smooth to the touch.
The style features a double layer of cloth on all sections of the sleeves and body. The pockets add a full extra layer to the front (and with the game pocket, to the back).
The second coat in olive drab is a more deluxe version of this coat with a full liner and detachable hood.
The final jacket, in a 25oz grey melton, is useful only in the very coldest of climates.
This version was made for a hunter in Michigan and is finished with a 16oz fleece liner that is quilted to a thinsulate backer. The tall collar flips up to cover the ears and most of the face.
Wool and Deerskin Shirt Jacket
The piece is trimmed with deerskin on the inside collar stand, inside cuffs, and insides of the pockets.
Pieces like these, when made from the type of heritage fabrics that we use, will stand up to a lifetime of continuous wear.
Each shirt jacket is completely custom made. You choose from thousands of fabrics and discover possible details from the entire history of menswear or from your own imagination.
We can make a shirt jacket that is extremely fitted—-or very roomy. Cut to the lower hip or to the waistband.
Just let us know what you might like via our contact form and we will start sketching for you and mailing you fabrics until we discover exactly what you might like.
Last year we made custom shirt jackets for clients on three continents, but all of our pieces are 100% cut and sewn here in our studio in Denver, Colorado.
Making pieces like these embodies our vision of preserving heritage tailoring in the United States in the face of a disposable age.
