I have been watching the developments of the Pennant Label at J.Press with interest. I posted about their sport coats during my 3/2 roll roundup not long ago. I emailed them to get a few more details about the jacket and the line itself. The fine folks over at J.Press were kind enough to send me one of their summer tweeds to test out.
Let me tell you what they told me about the summer tweed. By they I mean none other than Robert Squillaro the Sr. Vice President & Chief Merchandising Officer at J.Press (Check him out at Ivy Style). What he told me is that this jacket is obviously aimed at a younger audience than J.Press’s main line and that it is meant to ride the fence between sport coat and a jacket. It’s not made in the USA like most things at Press, but that was a decision that they had to make to keep it affordable. I really appreciated all of the inside baseball from Robert.
What do I think about the summer tweed? First and foremost, it has a classic 3/2 roll ivy silhouette. So classic that when I put it on it conjured up images of Brooks Brothers No.1 from 1901. The jacket is dart-less, the edges are swelled, the quarters are open which is rare these days, and the shoulders are soft. It is lightweight and unlined. You can even see some light through the weave if you hold it up. Although it would still be a little hot to wear in the full heat of summer. However, I think that’s true for all sport coats and blazers no matter the material. It would work nicely on a cool summer morning and in any air conditioned office.
How it fits. It’s alpha sized so fit is going to vary. I am a 37S and the small fits me a lot better than I anticipated. It covers my rear which was my number one worry. The shoulders are a touch big but because it’s unstructured the shoulders are very forgiving and it’s hardly noticeable. The downside is that because it’s unstructured you will get some creasing around the trap and shoulder area. Being unlined makes it cooler but also a tad challenging to get on and off. Lined sleeves would have fixed that but would have also made it warmer. The button stance is maybe a touch high. As with any jacket I need get the sleeves taken up. I might benefit from a touch of waist suppression, but I doubt that I will do that. I would call this size small a 37S/38S (see measurements below).
Overall I am a big fan. Its versatility is what I like most after the shape. The tweed material makes it both casual and sophisticated. I can dress it up with a tie and khakis, but at the same time it would look great simply thrown on with jeans and an OCBD. While they call it a summer tweed I will be wearing this fall, winter, and spring.
Measurements for size small:
Pit-to-Pit: 17.5″
Chest: 20″
Length: 28.5″
Looks like lapels are getting wider again.
Looks like it. These are about 3.5″ at the the very widest point.
Could I ask how long the sleeves are?
Dick, they are 24″.
Nice write up Jerrod, the coat looks good on you.
It’s nice to see J. Press offering something more affordable for a younger audience, it would make a great first Tweed sports coat for someone. Does the top button of the jacket do up?
Nice button pocket harmony from the bottom button hole to the top of the flapped patch pockets.
Unfortunately I do think that the gorge height on the lapels is a touch high, but it otherwise looks really good.
Cheers 🙂
Tie Clip, thanks! The top button does work. A few people have mentioned that J.Press has a higher gorge in general. I doubt it’s this high, but I thought that was interesting.
Do you know where the jacket is made?
China.