Having looked at some descriptions and definitions of the word, I came to the conclusion that the term 'jacket' can be thought of like this: A jacket is an item of clothing designed for the top part of a ,man or woman's body. Most jackets hang to the hips or waist line of the wearer and has sleeves. A jacket is differentiated from a coat by its length, although certain jacket styles mean that there is hardly any difference between a coat and a jacket, a good example being the jacket that Neo wore in the Matrix could possibly be described as being somewhere in between a jacket or a coat.
Different types of jacket can be grouped into different categories:
- Jackets that are fogue based
- Protective jackets
Trend Jackets
Blazer Jacket
The blazer resembles a suit jacket. In general blazers include metallic front and cuff buttons and a breast pocket. Therefore it is typically worn as smart casual wear. The blazer is similar to the boating jacket and sporting jacket in cut and style. Even so the blazer tends to be of a more subdued color, 'navy' for example is a popular blazer color, as is black. Blazers are in many instances used as the basis of a uniform, e.g. for school children and airline stewards or as part of the dress for a club.
Leather Jackets
The leather jacket is very well-known simultaneously for the image of its style and also for the material it is comprised of. Leather jackets turned out to be remarkably in demand immediately after World War Two: people liked the design and style of the 'bomber jacket', so called due to the fact it was worn by the pilots of bomber planes. At first the leather jacket was connected with rebellion and worn by actors like James Dean and Marlon Brando. Leather jackets are still identifiable with rebellious sub-cultures such as rock stars and bikers but they are unquestionably part of the mainstream fashion world. A modern example of this jacket variety is the Superdry mens leather jacket.
Denim Jackets
The word 'denim' comes from the phrase 'serge de Nimes'. 'Serge' is a fabric and was initially grown in the Nimes area of France. So 'serge de nimes' evolved into 'denim'. Denim had a similar fashion path to leather: Initially denim was functional, being used by workers in challenging environments. Later it became included in fashion lines and became wildly fashionable in the 1960s and 1970s.
Many widely recognized design brands create jackets, for example Wrangler, Nike, G Star and Lacoste. G Star jackets are a relative newcomer contrary to the other more well-known players. On the other hand the Lacoste jackets is far more widely known.
Jackets That Offer Protection
The Donkey Jacket
From Wikipedia: "A Donkey jacket is a short buttoned coat, typically made of unlined black or dark blue woolen material; originally worn as a work jacket in the United Kingdom. It is derived from the wool sack coat worn by workers in the 19th century, and the OED references the term as first used in 1929: "one with leather shoulders and back".
Flak Jacket
'Flak' describes the debrie from bombs, i.e. shards of metal. A 'flak jacket' protects the wearer from flak. It does this by having a lining of strong protective material such as steel or titanium. These types of jackets are worn by soldiers and police forces in the majority of countries. In this situation they defend the wearer from weapons, knives, bullets etc.
The Chef Jacket
The white chef jacket is totally identifiable. It serves a protective purpose by safeguarding the chef from hot liquids and oil. At the same time, it is functional - the chef can quickly turn the jacket inside-out to disguise food spills.
Other Jackets
President Eisenhower, the World War Two USA President had a unique jacket known as the 'Ike'. It was styled to make Ike appear like a warrior having a blouson style.
