The Essential Men’s Leather Jacket Guide: 12 Of The Best Brands And Jacket Styles (Updated 2022)
In This Article
- Our Picks
- Key Leather Jacket Styles
- Do’s and Don’ts
- Leather Jackets FAQs
1. Best Overall Leather Jacket: Belstaff
A brand favored by everyone from A-list actors to the Pope, Belstaff has been making motorcycle gear since the 1920s. While offering different styles of leather jackets, the British brand is perhaps best known for its long, belted styles.
Look for options that have been hand-waxed for an authentic worn-in feel that will ensure your jacket only gets better with age. It’s also a water-repellent treatment, meaning you shouldn’t be afraid to wear it in light rain.
2. Best Leather Motorcycle Jackets: Cromford
Named after the village of Cromford in Derbyshire, the birthplace of the industrial revolution, this brand has been a specialist in leather, suede and shearling for over 45 years. Based on Marylebone’s Chiltern Street, it offers bespoke, made-to-measure and an alterations services alongside its own collection, all handmade in London.
Clients include celebrities and wardrobe designers for films, presumably seduced by the brand’s superlative crop of leathers, which are hand-picked from small tanneries around Europe.
3. Best Colorful Leather Jacket: The Jacket Maker
We know leather jackets are great, but sometimes you need something more than the traditional brown or black. This is the year for expression, so you might not want to be stuck wearing the same dark motorcycle jacket everyone (and their dog) has been rocking for the last few decades. And to stand out sometimes, you have to take a little risk – a sky blue or race-car red seems appropriate to us. It’s also nice to know the risk won’t come with any compromise in quality.
If you want sure-fire protection with a more expressive style, whether it be on a motorcycle or dealing with harsh season-changing weather, The Jacket Maker’s Ionic motorcycle jacket covers all your bases. Not only can you find those summer-friendly bright blues and reds we fawned over, but they’re hand-crafted by master leather workers using the best full-grain leather money can buy. Meaning this top pick is ready to be rotated in your wardrobe year-round (hello, no-brainer investment).
