Clockwise from top left: Gucci GG leather jacket in black; Ivan Kinori Kashmiri Field Shirt in Charcoal; Comme Des Garçons Homme Plus Rose-Print Double-Breasted Coat; The Welsh Bonner men’s studio track in burgundy is worn as a top skirt; Jackets provided by Dover Street Market LA; Courtesy of the author on still by hand semi double easy jacket amber
(For Widny Bazile / Times)
This story is part of Image Issue 10, “Clarity,” a living document of how LA radiates in its own way. Read the full issue here.
Of the great myths associated with Los Angeles (everyone is in the show business, we all have Botox, we surf every day), no one is as different from the real story as the tall story that you don’t need to dress in your closet. LA 72 may be and is often sunny, but we are not a climate monolith of any kind. When it gets cold in West Adams, it gets cold in Marina del Rema (and also in the Harmony Gold screening room at sunset). My apartment has its own microclimate – no matter the weather, it gets cold early in the morning, which makes you feel like you were born in the direct sun when you go out. We are not made for this. And yet, sometimes we have to endure. We need some kind of outer covering. Our other thing to wear. We need a jacket.
If the temperature is variable and unpredictable, how to find the perfect jacket in LA? I’m talking about a jacket that can take you from work to the gym to the restaurant; From Burbank to Inglewood to Culver City to CityWalk. Does such a grill exist? There is so much to consider: content, opportunity, fit and, of course, the mythical environment that we cannot describe but follow for the rest of our natural life to breathe. Speaking of mortality, let’s set the level. You may have some jackets or they will get old soon. Not sure if I’m wearing the wrong letterman jacket in my 50s. But when you get it oh perfect, the jacket becomes LA cheat code. The perfect jacket is unavailable and ideal for all occasions. Choosing one is probably the last challenge.
I started my jacket research journey where many sartorial escapades end – with Kanye West. The Gap and Yeezy recently dropped another drop of their now infamous round jacket, an absurdly big puffer jacket variation that comes in sky blue, black and cherry red. The drop was announced long after I pressed the buy button on this piece. My remorse was almost immediate. Do I need to reduce the size? Was black good for my dark winter wardrobe? Will people ring their car horns as I walk down the street?
Art direction by neonhoney / Los Angeles Times. Set, style and hair: Widny Bazile; Makeup: Lia Bass; Assistant: Jamal Wade; Model: Leah Bass
(For Widny Bazile / Times)
LA is not a place where strangers offer compliments or hackles to travelers. Very hard I was sweating a bit while trekking to get coffee and chopped cheese at Silver Lake’s new Cafe Bodega Park. I felt like a method man with my greasy meat sandwich and showy puffer coat. Another strike against this jacket is that you can’t drive in it; Seeing that my airbag had been accidentally deployed, I could only reach the center console of my car. It is foolish to design for so many special situations. Some people don’t think about fashion with practicality. It’s about the silhouette and not the regular, everyday work of clothing. Maybe that’s the downside Extremely rich designing fabric. The person who never drives himself does not think about the practical worries of being able to open your car by wearing a jacket.
The best jackets, of course, need less material – you need something lighter, more flexible. Track jackets offer versatility and mobility, due to their origins as athletic wear. One of the best choices in that subgenre comes from UK-based superstar artist-designer Grace Wells Bonner. The Wells Bonner burgundy fleece track jacket – zip-up, snug fit, lots of stripes and symbols – made me want to go to lap at Fairfax High School like Albert Brooks in the movie “Modern Romance”. It’s a great feeling, but I’m a traditionalist at heart, and it’s very informal to live a proper dinner. Many of the city’s top-notch restaurants naturally ask for more sophisticated items, such as blazers, one of which is enough for me to decorate a small advertising firm. One of my favorites is the Japanese brand Steel Buy Hand – a single-button front, unstructured, light gray that has been described by the glamorous general store as “amber”. Not Amber, which 311 reminds us of “the color of your energy.”
If you’re not as full as I am, the blazer will feel like a pair of handcuffs. Los Angeles is an emergency place. Some of the finest outerwear is made by Supreme, a brand that still defines many cultures in Fairfax’s stretch between Melrose and Beverly. Supreme’s Navy Blue Gore-Tex windbreaker is waterproof, unlike any blazer, so you have some protection against rain. The problem is, such a jacket will cost you $ 348 in the Dover Street Market.
A cheaper, more versatile option is a coach jacket. The nylon exterior is breathable, easy to clean and makes a lot of noise as you move your hands, which helps you if people want to hear you from a block away. The cost of a Navy Blue Palace coach jacket is more manageable at 168. Commes des Garçons Coach’s jacket is my best variation on the theme. I just bought one in black, my favorite color choice for everything and including underwear. Black is the best base color for deciding on a dress for a person who lacks time. I can grab it from the closet and attach it to anything. This is the ultimate utility player.
Practicality like that doesn’t seem like a big concern in Los Angeles, but LA is a city of doers; People who have things to do. However, the form is not always related to the function. Coach jackets, like track jackets, were designed for a very special athletic purpose. If that purpose is not fulfilled, there may be a cognitive discrepancy between the utility of the object and the context in which it is being used. Overseas and core coats, the phenomenon you see across the city, are the domain of workers. In LA, the appearance of a blue-collar worker is a unique determination for those who do not make things with their hands. And yet, many choose to call working class stealth heroism. If you can drop 1,015 for a heavy weight, dark gray cashmere piece from Evan Kinori, you may not be standing out for the right reasons.
The CDG 100% polyethylene trench will give you a different look. If I tell you the price, you’ll be suffocated, but the flower-print motif from head to toe makes it a really unique piece that feels amazing and changes the head wherever you go. If you want Polyethylene will not keep you warm, as long as the compliment that warms your soul is not enough to last you.
(For Widny Bazile / Times)
The best jacket should be a daily piece. The foundation of the wardrobe that works in every environment. Jean Jacket, Highland Park IPA illuminati’s favorite, is free from the problematic associations of the blank coat. It’s ubiquitous and has been around for decades because it’s not as fierce as a blazer and it’s not directly tied to activities like track jackets or coach jackets. I prefer good denim when the situation calls for a relaxed, accessible look. But it’s also a little too casual to make it in the evening.
True outerwear Nirvana can only be found in one place – in a comfortable leather hug (or the wrong skin, for vegetarians) in a jacket. The skin can take you through the day and not get too hot for our more temperate winters. Some people may say that the skin is too sexy, too loose or too loose Very much. These are all true things, but this is Los Angeles. We are a city where sex, sleaz and Very much In our DNA. To reject those word-for-word tendencies is to forget why we live here. The Gucci has an over-the-counter trademark printed leather jacket that will melt your bank account, but it’s my personal favorite because it’s also a blazer. The biker jacket from Sweden’s Acne Studio is perfect for the best Swedish underlined moments.
But really, the skin is almost never thin. It draws attention to itself because it attracts the eye, not with decoration or branding, but with attitude. The leather jacket is practically designed to protect the motorcyclist from tearing his body in case of an accident. But it does manage to get the job done because we love form. It has the same paradoxes as our city: erotic but vulgar; Simple but extraordinary; Soft and hard all at once. Whatever you choose to achieve through these sub-60-degree temperatures over the next few months, don’t be ashamed to say that you are shivering from the cold when the sun is out. This is Los Angeles. We’ve just made a difference.
And since not everyone in our city can enjoy these colder months, please take a moment to donate to a non-profit organization like the Downtown Women’s Center, which helps provide outdoor clothing to our homeless neighbors. If you are going to buy any of these jackets, donate old ones.