What is wrong with me?

[handymike]

You might be on to something here.

 

[ton312]

Having a couple core keepers is a must. After two or three leather jackets…at least for me, they become far less compelling. It’s fun to rotate through different styles, hides, etc. play the field!

 

[handymike]

Maybe we’re finally getting to the core issue.
At some point, it’s just not fun to “collect.” The thrill of the hunt is over since we’ve already found the grail (and often sold it too).
At what point do we call it quits on the acquisition side and enjoy? Or is it truly more zen to then sell off all but the very very top?

 

[handymike]

I just learned that LL has discontinued Rutland Sheep!
Now I will keep the Dominator as well…Nirvana is 3!

1 beer down.

 

[JMax]

Selling off most of my jackets did feel good. I too hesitated and questioned whether I should but once I did, the sales started to flow. And it felt right.

I kept my must haves and hard to finds, all else gone. All I hunt for now are insane deals and/or jackets that speak to me. I say pick one or two that are “easier” to sell and go for it. See what happens and how you feel. If it’s too much you can always look for the jacket to buy again. I bet you feel good about it and keep selling until you get to where you need to be. Keep your must haves and hard to finds tho.

 

[Fonzie]

I just learned that LL has discontinued Rutland Sheep!
Now I will keep the Dominator as well…Nirvana is 3!

1 beer down.

Lol! The way this is going and a few more beers down and you’ll end up keeping your collection as it is and tomorrow that thread will just be a blur and a hangover!

 

[VansonRider]

Wait wait wait... You're missing a key opportunity here. You need to get into wool coats! There's a couple Filsons, a couple '60s peacoats, 40s and 50s army trenches, three pelerines, woolrich hunters... I dig my leather on the bike but nothing beats wool for daily wearability!

Ditch the leather if it doesn't bring you joy anymore, but keep them if they do, and then expand your horizons into the great fuzzy scratchy warmth that wears like iron while resisting odor AND precipitation! You think conditioning leather is a process? Try lanolizing a full length guardcoat!

Call me when wool gets boring and we'll find you a vintage Barbour A7, or Belstaff Trialsmaster. Or rubberizes cotton! Old Macs, and rubberized canvas soviet officers rain cape, or British poncho...

And you'll need woolen trousers for deep winter, waxed overtrousers for rain...

There are some amazing boot makers...

I love my leather, it's a great windbreaker and road slider, but there's a whole world out there. Someone mentioned leather just isn't very comfortable to wear, and I think it can be, but the conditions are pretty narrow. A good wool coat however, can be tough, stylish, and as cozy as a blanket.

 

[El Marro]

I’ve been feeling the same way this winter and the leather jackets have been seeing less and less wear. And then things got even stranger.
One of my oldest friends invited me to go duck hunting with him in a couple weeks and being the compulsive person I am I had to buy myself an entire new wardrobe of duck hunting gear. Its all made of plastic and miracle fibers, think Patagonia for people who shoot things with shotguns.
So I have been wearing some of this gear at work to see how warm it really is and man I’m impressed. Super light, easy to move around in and warm as well. It’s getting harder and harder to go back to leather.

 

[VansonRider]

I’ve been feeling the same way this winter and the leather jackets have been seeing less and less wear. And then things got even stranger.
One of my oldest friends invited me to go duck hunting with him in a couple weeks and being the compulsive person I am I had to buy myself an entire new wardrobe of duck hunting gear. Its all made of plastic and miracle fibers, think Patagonia for people who shoot things with shotguns.
So I have been wearing some of this gear at work to see how warm it really is and man I’m impressed. Super light, easy to move around in and warm as well. It’s getting harder and harder to go back to leather.

Here are some premium wool hunting clothing companies if your interested in harvesting some food.

https://weatherwool.com/
https://sleepingindianshop.com/
https://kingofthemountain.com/collections/jackets

 

[MrProper]

and man I’m impressed. Super light, easy to move around in and warm as well. It’s getting harder and harder to go back to leather.

I already had this phase a few years ago. Use sports and functional clothes for everyday life in addition to sports. But in the long run, it's somehow not the same as leather jackets. However, I would always wear sports clothes, I would find my leather jackets uncomfortable. With vests, however, I prefer fabric because it's more suitable to wear underneath.
I'm minimizing my jackets right now for colors and style, and I get by just fine with six jackets (excluding shearling). A café racer might be replaced with a board racer, but that's it.
BTW...I don't save my jackets for special occasions. I go shopping with it, to the office, traveling, camping, hauling boxes. Only if there is a risk of sweating through the jackets, I prefer to take the sports jackets or my vests

 

[Trenchfriend]

Three Nappa jackets, three suede jackets, enough.

 

[Monitor]

I’ve been feeling the same way this winter and the leather jackets have been seeing less and less wear. And then things got even stranger.
One of my oldest friends invited me to go duck hunting with him in a couple weeks and being the compulsive person I am I had to buy myself an entire new wardrobe of duck hunting gear. Its all made of plastic and miracle fibers, think Patagonia for people who shoot things with shotguns.
So I have been wearing some of this gear at work to see how warm it really is and man I’m impressed. Super light, easy to move around in and warm as well. It’s getting harder and harder to go back to leather.

I already had this phase a few years ago. Use sports and functional clothes for everyday life in addition to sports. But in the long run, it's somehow not the same as leather jackets. However, I would always wear sports clothes, I would find my leather jackets uncomfortable. With vests, however, I prefer fabric because it's more suitable to wear underneath.
I'm minimizing my jackets right now for colors and style, and I get by just fine with six jackets (excluding shearling). A café racer might be replaced with a board racer, but that's it.
BTW...I don't save my jackets for special occasions. I go shopping with it, to the office, traveling, camping, hauling boxes. Only if there is a risk of sweating through the jackets, I prefer to take the sports jackets or my vests

I'm telling you people, leather jackets are horribly uncomfortable. Even the comfortable ones.

 

[moktabe]

I can see where you're coming from on this!

Only been on the leather wagon for a couple of years now and ended up with 6 x Aeros. 1 xWindward, 2x Sheene, 1 x Happy Days, 1 x Cross Zip and 1 x Hudson. I appreciate I may be missing out on stuff from other makers but Aero have nailed my fit. Decided the Hudson wasn't really my style so it's gone to a new home and 5 x leather jackets are enough for me

Then I got my B3 Shearling....and it hasn't been off my back. Keep thinking "wear a leather today" and then throw the Shearling on.

Currently not giving the leathers a 2nd look but I know that'll change once Spring approaches, haven't gone off them by any means but I detest feeling chilly. Have 2 great woollen overcoats but even they aren't getting a look in at the moment!

In my eyes it's just a cyclical thing and very dependant on weather. If I were you I'd sit tight on your jackets for 12 months then if you still don't feel the urge to wear some of the then move them on.

 

[Monitor]

I can see where you're coming from on this!

Only been on the leather wagon for a couple of years now and ended up with 6 x Aeros. 1 xWindward, 2x Sheene, 1 x Happy Days, 1 x Cross Zip and 1 x Hudson. I appreciate I may be missing out on stuff from other makers but Aero have nailed my fit. Decided the Hudson wasn't really my style so it's gone to a new home and 5 x leather jackets are enough for me

Then I got my B3 Shearling....and it hasn't been off my back. Keep thinking "wear a leather today" and then throw the Shearling on.

Currently not giving the leathers a 2nd look but I know that'll change once Spring approaches, haven't gone off them by any means but I detest feeling chilly. Have 2 great woollen overcoats but even they aren't getting a look in at the moment!

In my eyes it's just a cyclical thing and very dependant on weather. If I were you I'd sit tight on your jackets for 12 months then if you still don't feel the urge to wear some of the then move them on.

Same thing for me and it's been like that for several winters by now. I have to fight myself not to leave the apartment in this sheepskin trucker every single day...

 

[Marc mndt]

Am I the outlier here?

I pretty much own one of every style, in brown and in black, vintage and repro. Still my hunger is not satisfied lol. I bought a 50s Buco j24 this week, have projects going with FL, Thedi, Regius.

I sold a lot too though, only kept the irreplaceable grail pieces. Therefore I now have a rack full of grail pieces which I enjoy wearing or just admiring. They're also great conversation pieces. Friends who visit us walk by the jacket room when they come in and they all want to know the story behind it.

Also, I really enjoy doing full custom projects. The research, sourcing the right (vintage) hardware, conversations with the makers. For me this jacket hobby is about so much more than just 'wearing a nice jacket'.

Edit : typo

 

[MrProper]

Same thing for me and it's been like that for several winters by now. I have to fight myself not to leave the apartment in this sheepskin trucker every single day...

I've seen these on you a few times now and it's still one of the coolest jackets ever for me.

 

[navetsea]

that's why normal people only have 1 or 2 leather jacket, you had been immersed into a leather jacket hobby, and then one day your interest moved into something else, maybe camera, maybe a new passion, new whatever, and then while you are still knowing and loving all those jackets but the flame is not there anymore, one day you might relapse into it or might not who knows.

I never want to be a collector, I never immerse myself too deep into buying, I have sampled here and there having several pieces and that's it, I shift my interest into wearing them, finding combinations with other items, see them develop fades and patina,

I have great interest about leather vest, but I know a leather vest will take front seat once I have it and my duck canvas and wabash vest will never get the chance to be worn, so I will wait and wear my current vests until they fade into a beauty then I will get a leather vest. I keep my dream alive to see it fading into nice looking wabash fade or duck canvas set in creases and soft fading and then level up into leather vest level.

for the rest of styles I don't have I save their pictures especially the worn in old jackets photos, it keeps my flame going to wear mine.

 

[handymike]

Am I the outlier here?

I pretty much own one of every style, in brown and in black, vintage and repro. Still my hunger is not satisfied lol. I bought a 50s Buco j24 this week, have projects going with FL, Thedi, Regius.

I sold a lot too though, only kept the irreplaceable grail pieces. Therefore I now have a rack full of grail pieces which I enjoy wearing or just admiring. They're also great conversation pieces. Friends who visit us walk by the jacket room when they come in and they all want to know the story behind it.

Also, I really enjoy doing full custom projects. The research, sourcing the right (vintage) hardware, conversions with the makers. For me this jacket hobby is about so much more than just 'wearing a nice jacket'.

You are a collector, and that is awesome. We all benefit by watching your journey, and love seeing the pieces you come up with (like Terry), but you are also in the upswing of the cycle. I have been at this for over 10 years now, and @navetsea is right. This whole thing began when I turned 40, things were on auto-pilot, and we were having our second child. It got me through the baby years…and then some. I obsessed, planned on becoming a maker myself, bought and sold looking for my perfect patterns, learned to sew, visited other makers, went to shops to see jackets, met with other forum members to handle their jackets, visited tanneries, etc. During the pandemic I began to re-discover my passion for my photography. All thoughts of making the perfect jacket and my alt-business plan melted away, and now all I can think about is re-igniting my career. It’s a tough sell as a white-haired old guy without a lot of style who dislikes social media these days, but hey, I’ve got an eye for detail, a love of the craft, a message, and a 100mp camera. “Put me in coach!”

 

[El Marro]

Here are some premium wool hunting clothing companies if your interested in harvesting some food.

https://weatherwool.com/
https://sleepingindianshop.com/
https://kingofthemountain.com/collections/jackets

Oh man, there’s a whole Nother rabbit hole to fall in!

 

[El Marro]

I already had this phase a few years ago. Use sports and functional clothes for everyday life in addition to sports. But in the long run, it's somehow not the same as leather jackets. However, I would always wear sports clothes, I would find my leather jackets uncomfortable. With vests, however, I prefer fabric because it's more suitable to wear underneath.

Yes, I think I will do the same. After all none of this synthetic crap looks half as cool as a good leather jacket.