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I’m a big fan of sticking with a uniform when it comes to style. Especially as a young woman trying to keep up with seasonal trends fed into the exhausting fashion pipeline and distributed and/or copied by fast-fashion institutions like Zara, Shein and Fashion Nova, the idea of relying on subtle variations of a single look is much more appealing.
But sometimes your uniform needs a little update. And today is that day.
You’ve got some impressive threads, but you keep grabbing your tried-and-true denim (which, granted, will forever be stylish and in the deepest parts of my brain inspires visions of hot 1800s railroad workers lifting things and building things). Today, however, I am asking you to drop your go-to denim jacket in place of something a little sexier, a little more suave and a little more sophisticated.
Suede, baby. I’m talkin’ ‘bout suede.
Suede jackets have this certain indescribable charm about them. If jean jackets are the quintessential everyman jacket, and leather jackets are the predictable (but still hot) bad boi jacket, then suede jackets fill in the gap with a sprinkle of intrigue. Forever in vogue, suede possesses the perfect amount of rustic cowboy swagger that says, “At heart, I’m a fancy man, but I don’t need a suit jacket to prove it.”
Among approximately one hundred other reasons I’m intrigued by suede is that it effortlessly straddles the worlds of the extravagant and the practical. You can wear a suede jacket to the office and stunt on your coworkers who refuse to budge from their T-shirt and jeans uniform. But you can also wear it out to Soho House and gently glide your fingers along the hide as you wait 45 minutes for a waiter to finally take your drink order. It’s versatile. And versatility also screams “good investment.”
Even to the touch, a suede jacket sends an excited little shiver down my spine. It’s not denim! It’s not leather! It’s like … petting an animal I would very much like to take home with me! It signals that you’ve taken a small risk in your wardrobe, and it allows me to envision you taking other attractive risks in life: leaving that corporate shithole for your dream job in crypto, inviting the person you took on one date on a week-long trip to Costa Rica or posting a public manifesto in support of women’s reproductive rights on your Instagram.
Whether you’re shopping for yourself or your partner is lurking around for gift ideas, I highly recommend the suede jacket as the perfect gift for a manz who is trying to elevate his style game. Also, it’ll be even hotter once the jacket racks up a couple decades in the closet, becomes an in-demand vintage item and your future kids will be like, “WOW Dad no one told me you were cool back in the day!!!” Happy shopping!
Abercrombie & Fitch Relaxed Vegan Suede Zip Jacket
At the lowest price point, this vegan suede option is great for your resident animal lover or environmentalist.
Polo Ralph Lauren Suede Bomber Jacket
We love a bomber and we love suede, so this mid-price piece is the mashup of our dreams.
Buck Mason Full Grain Suede Rider Jacket
I got this jacket for my significant other for his 30th birthday because I am a very nice girlfriend with very nice taste.
Acne Studios Ian Suede Jacket
This jacket from Acne Studios has nearly every fabric you’ve been dreaming about and some geometric shapes to top it all off. You could literally wear plain everything else and let this baby shine.
Brunello Cucinelli Shearling-Lined Cashmere-Trimmed Suede Bomber Jacket
But of course my favorite is the priciest! Seriously, the shearling details are to die for, and I can already envision you standing in the middle of a snowy Central Park looking sexy and aloof in this.
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