To build your best style wardrobe in the modern era, you’ve got to look backwards on occasion. Not all the way back, but to the days when, for lack of a better term, men were men — when guys like James Dean or Steve McQueen solidified themselves in the style pantheon as purveyors of timeless cool.
That’s just one man’s take: Adding a dash of rugged, retro cool to your wardrobe can add a heck of a lot to your fall wardrobe, when the best layers and the best leather jackets for men reign supreme. There’s inspiration to be found wherever one looks, including — of course — Mr. James Dean, but where’s a guy to be a jacket that nearly mimics that sense of adventurous style?
If there’s one brand that knows this better than anyone, it might be Buck Mason, at least in my experience: The Los Angeles-based brand first looked to America’s Rust Belt when developing its soft yet supple tees and basics well over a decade ago, later moving on to felted chore coats, overshirts, expertly cut denim and leather goods to go along with it all.
The heavy hitters of the Buck Mason men’s style rotation are clearer and more present than ever — take the handsome Buck Mason Bruiser PCH Jacket showcased here to great effect (if I do say so myself).
Inspired by 1940s Hercules horsehide jackets and fashioned from full-grain cow leather with a hefty handfeel and autumn-ready thickness, there are classic details aplenty accounted for here, from the foldover collar to the back belt, single-welt slash zipper pockets and a zipper chest pocket.
And with a classic fit made for layering other Buck Mason menswear staples, there’s plentiful opportunity to incorporate timeless moves like a durable chambray shirt or a sturdy heavyweight pocket tee beneath this investment-quality leather jacket. There’s even vintage-inspired chain-stitch detailing finishing off this hard-hitting leather jacket, made all the better by the fact that it comes in tough-as-nails black, the kind of leather jacket you can easily pair up with faded black jeans or expertly faded blue denim.
If you want the best of the best, I’d wager you’ll want the Buck Mason Bruiser PCH Jacket on your back this shoulder season.
