The blazer is an iconic piece of menswear as well as a central piece o any gentleman’s wardrobe. Unfortunately, the definition of a blazer has gotten hazier over time. To make sure you’re taking advantage of the blazer’s remarkable versatility, we will define a blazer, discuss its history, modern interpretations of the jacket and elaborate on how to wear it best. What exactly is a blazer? One might be tempted to think it is any jacket that happens to be worn without matching pants. It is a jacket that is worn over a shirt and that looks like a suit jacket but is not part of a suit.
Below Are The Few Features Of A Blazer
Clearly the various definitions are neither very specific nor complete, but a few things can be inferred from men’s clothing encyclopedias and from our assumptions of what a blazer is. In many countries, the term blazer is synonymous for any jacket, especially in womenswear, but for the purpose of this write-up we will use the technical definition of a blazer:
It is a standalone jacket worn with trousers of a contrasting colour, pattern or material
It is a solid coloured or has bold, vividly coloured stripes.
Solid colours are almost exclusively a shade of nave blue, but can include other solid colours as bottle green, white or red.
History Of The Blazer
If rightly describing the characteristics of the blazer was a daunting task, tracing its history proves to be no less difficult. There seem to be multiple theories of how the blazer got its name, with one source listing as many as ten! However, to narrow things down, the blazer as we know it today seems to have evolved from two:
Blazer Origin N0 1
Members of the Lady Magaret Boat Club wore bright, scarlet red-coloured flannel jackets, and since they blazed they were named blazers. The club still exists today and keeps with the same tradition. Interestingly, gold buttons as well as piping are only reserved members.
Blazer Origin N0 2 – H.M.S
The second story of how the blazer got its name is probably the more popular one, although the timeline suggests that it is the latter of the two. In 1837, Queen Victoria decided to carry out an inspection of one of the vessels of the Royal Navy, named the H.M.S Blazer. In his effort to impress the Queen, the Commander of the H.M.S Blazer decided to get new uniforms for his men as he felt that the current uniforms were hideous. After much deliberation, he settled on an outfit on an outfit that included a double-breasted jacket with brass Royal Navy buttons.
