The recent receipt of an Orvis Bush Pilot Jacket as a present has shifted my thinking on leather jackets. The new jacket from Orvis is made of lambskin, which means it is extremely soft. It is truly a delight to wear. I pair it with an OCBD or Viyella shirt, flat-front khakis, surcingle belt, and Alden loafers. The last time I wore such a garment was in the early '90s, when in a temporary fit of sartorial madness I acquired a leather flight jacket from Sam Walker in Covent Garden. Although the item met with almost unanimous approval from friends and family, who explained that it was completely out of Sloane Ranger character, the jacket's horsehide construction made it exceedingly uncomfortable. It now languishes in storage.
When I think of leather jackets I think of an elderly gent from my school days. Every afternoon, outside the cafe where my chums and I had tea with our master, an old chap would walk past the window wearing a leather jacket, tweed trousers, brogues, tattersall shirt, knit tie, and tweed deerstalker cap. He had short white hair and a moustache, and carried a plastic Tesco bag. This image has remained.
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