Leather Jackets

If you want to learn how to chose a good jacket for yourself, then the first starting point should be to learn a bit about leather.

Leather History

As you'll notice, leather has been used by man since the first days:

• The first humans used animal skin -primarily- to protect them against cold.
• During the Stone Age, most garments were held together with leather straps.
• Anthropologist have even found leather shoes in Egyptian tombs.
• Roman soldiers often used leather as a protection, and then all Rome started to use leather for shoes and tunics.
• The Mayan, Incan, and Aztec cultures in Central and South America, and American Indians as well, used leather to sew garments.

Raw Materials
The most common materials to make leather jackets are:

• Antelope
• Buckskin
• Lambskin
• Sheepskin
• Cowhide
• Kangaroo

Preparation Process
After the skin is removed from the animal the following process follows:

1. Skin is refrigerated, packed in barrels of brine and/or salted.
2. The hides are trimmed by weight and size and then cleaned, eliminating the protein that may be there and stimulate the growth of bacteria.
3. Skin is tanned with vegetable, mineral or oil tanning. Usually, vegetable is the best since the other methods can change the hides color, vegetable is also the slower method.
4. Final wash and then dried

While hand-made jackets still have a place in the market, they are mostly considered luxury items. Due to the development of advanced/automated sewing machinery, it is a lot cheaper to mass-produce leather jackets.

1. Fashion designers usually design the production patterns using computer software (Also called CAD)
2. The leather is cut with a aid of automated cutting machines
3. The jacket is assembled in -usually- this order: a) Sides are stitched to the back portion b) Sleeve underseams are stitched together and c) Sleeves are attached to the armholes
4. The jacket is molded through heat and pressure
5. The leather jacket is now complete, a final quality test is performed

These kind of jacket is not only a fashion item, but it is used in lots of different ways which also define the jacket's design; just to name a few:

• Cowboy/Ranch Jackets
• Motorcycle Jackets
• Pilots Jackets
• Bomber Jackets
• Heavy Metal (Rock) Jackets
• Costume Jackets
• Skying Jackets

This is the key, picking the right jacket will turn it into an investment and save time while shopping for a jacket.

Obviously, the first step is to decide which use you'll be giving to the jacket: Is it for everyday use or something more specific like, say, bike riding?

Then you'll have to chose the style. Here's a tip: Light leather jackets can be a great choice since you'll be able to use them year-round.

For color, black is classic and it's easier to combine it with different clothes, shirts and pants. Brown is a close second as well, though it may be too difficult to match it with some of your clothes, it works best with with shirts and jeans.

Always check that the jacket fits you and that you feel comfortable wearing it, since leather is a thought material and while it will blend a bit to your body's shape, it will keep it's original form for several years (and if it's a good leather jacket, probably forever).

Now that you know how leather jackets are made and how to pick a great leather jacket, you are ready to go out and shop!

But first, here's a word of advice: Look for deals online! The difference in price is SO significant, that you'll probably could buy two jackets for the price of 1. There are lots of different online stores to buy from, but -in my opinion- the best two are eBay and Amazon. Why? Well, among other things, they are usually cheaper than their competition, not to mention that you could be lucky and find a leather jacket with free shipping as well.

I've read lots of Amazon customer reviews and some of them even mentioned that they purchased the wrong size and Amazon changed their jacket with free shipping - both ways!

You can't go wrong with a leather jacket, so go ahead, pick yours below and save!