When the New Fashion Eye Gets Accustomed to the Old…..

…… such as the brown velvet jacket, retrieved from deep in my wardrobe archives. It’s like discovering treasure, or wads of money in a forgotten pocket! Over the past 20 or so years, it has been worn minimally, probably due to the outdated look of the high, square shoulder. I hung on to it because I love the materials and general autumn-ish look — but could not look past the big-ish shoulders.

My Hershey’s Bar of a jacket! You’ll soon see it on me since it looks better on a real body — patience, readers.

Why retrieve it and why now? Because while it hung for many years, forlornly, along with some other things I couldn’t let go of, my eye slowly got accustomed to the higher shoulders trending again in 2026, and I found new love for this jacket. Enough love to wear it in the autumn and winter of 2026. Isn’t it funny how the same obsolete thing begins to look really good a few years down the road? Just proves that fashion is mostly cyclic.

The details:

The original inspiration was a jacket pictured in a magazine editorial in the exact same brown velvet and satin collar and lapels. Something clicked, and before i knew it, I had copied that magazine picture to the best of my ability. All materials were already in my stash at the time.

The fabrics used are 100% cotton velvet, printed silk habutai lining, rayon satin lapels and covered buttons.

It is simply tailored and not quite haute couture. Do bound buttonholes count as haute couture? Buttons are covered in the same rayon satin as the collar and lapels. But, I think a change of buttons in 2026 might be a good idea.

Kapow. The lining (below) is a “shock and awe” element which should not be hidden. But it is.

Info for non-tailors: see that loose, folded bit of fabric on the upper back lining? It’s a pleat which has to be factored into the construction of a jacket lining — out of necessity. It provides room for the wearer to move around easily without pulling, and is a standard feature.
Inside out at the front.

The Simplicity pattern cannot be located; it must have gone to recycled paper heaven.

What should I have done differently, if anything? Maybe made the under pinnings of the lapels a tad more substantial to tally with the visual weight of the velvet. My memory is not cooperating regarding the interfacing used in the collar and lapels. Oh well. I’m now mulling over how to wear it. An informal styling option is appealing to me, thereby reducing the formality inherent in the formal classic lines of a tailored jacket.

Guys, how about some input on styling it, so it looks put together but effortless? Comment away.

Samina

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