Nikki

Graduated in June 2010 with honours and won an award :)

Here’s my little leather jacket story.

I wasted a lot of money the first two times I bought leather jackets. The first time I bought myself a leather jacket, which was fall 2008, I had no clue about leather jackets and quality.

So one day I waltzed into the mall, I had an image in my mind of what I wanted. Basically just a black leather jacket with a zipper and a hood, and drawstrings. I went into Mango, which is considered a pretty upscale store, and bought myself exactly what I wanted. A black leather jacket with a hood. It was made of sheepskin, I had heard before that lambskin is the best so this is the closest I could get, and was happy with my purchase. I spent $250 on it. Later on after buying it, I noticed that the leather on the inside of the zipper was flaking. :( And I also noticed that it was really tight around the waist, and that the arms were huge and boxy. I read up on the internet a little more (I should’ve done this well before ever purchasing a leather jacket), and was horrified to find out that the ‘proper’ way to wear a leather jacket these days is to find one that fits fairly skinny in the arms, and that lambskin is preferred. I was bummed. Every time I looked at the jacket I felt as though it just didn’t fit me correctly, and was basically a piece of crap. I sold it on Craigs list for a 30 measly bucks (that’s all I could get for it). Pathetic, huh?

My next attempt was an online purchase. I decided to spring for a Soia & kyo jacket. The fall 2008 season featured a black leather hoodie, exactly what I was looking for. I ordered it, and to my horror when it arrived, the leather quality was crap. I learned my lesson. Never order a leather jacket online unless they specifically state what kind of leather it is. If all the description says is “100% Genuine Leather”, you can be sure it’s real leather, but you can’t be sure that it’s going to be nice leather. I wore it for about a month- but the leather quality, which seemed like pig skin, just made me cringe. The fit of the jacket was perfect, but off to Craigs list it went, it just wasn’t totally perfect.

I went onto fashion forums online and researched thoroughly for the perfect leather jacket brands. I learned about Rick Owens, Vince, Mike & Chris, Yaya Aflalo, S.W.O.R.D., All Saints, Mackage, and more. Now I was starting to discover some high quality lambskin jackets with great skinny fit in the arms. I’ve ended up with the Mike & Chris Jesse lambskin jacket in the colour Amber Rust, and a Rick Owens look-a-like sheepskin jacket I ordered off eBay, and I couldn’t be happier. Both fit great, both made of quality leather. It’s kind of funny, I paid $900 for the Mike & Chris and $200 for the Rick Owens look-a-like, and even though the price difference is huge between them, I would say they both appear to be around the same quality (though the more expensive one is softer to the touch). Mike & Chris jackets are very expensive, but you can get them at steep discounts when online stores have clearance sales. You can also find high quality look-a-likes of $3000 leather jackets that all the celebrities wear if you take the time to browse through eBay.

If you research well, you won’t waste as much money as I did with finding the perfect leather jacket. If you’re picky like me, it pays to wait and really browse before spending your hard earned money. But if you’re extremely lucky, you’ll find the perfect one for less than 100 bucks at a thrift store. :)

I’m currently volunteering at a senior’s home, and it has been a very rewarding experience…