Safari Jacket & Alternative Summer Outfits

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Summer is traditionally the time for lighter fabrics and brighter colors, though most men will wear the same style of clothing, such as a single breasted 3 button suit in seersucker or a navy blazer with lighter colored pants. While this is perfectly acceptable, there are a few alternative garments, such as the Safari Jacket, that were originally designed for tropical climates and  will give your warm weather look a unique yet traditional spin. Hence I would like to write a little bit about these summer outfits using a fashion illustration from the 1930’s.

Safari Jacket of Clark Gable in Mogambo
Safari Jacket of Clark Gable in Mogambo

Safari Jacket / Safari Suit

First, let’s take a closer look at the classic Safari Jacket. It was probably invented at the end of the 19th century, but its exact roots remain unclear. In any case, it became popular with the British elite in Africa during the early 20th century.

The Safari jacket was designed for African hunts and was supposed to be comfortable in hot climate with ample pocket space for hunting essentials.

A bush jacket was usually made of lightweight, tan cotton twill  with bellows, belt and pleated pockets for more storage space. Later it was also made out of poplin and the color shifted more towards khaki. With its 4 symmetrical, flapped front pockets, belt and epaulettes, it had a para-militaristic look. Hence, some date the origins back to tropical British military uniforms, while other see parallels to the Norfolk jacket. Both have a point in my opinion.

Unlike a regular jacket, it had an open shirt style collar and lapel that would create the look of a ghillie collar when closed all the way. However, it was rarely worn that way. Ernest Hemingway was one of the early, more prominent proponents of the safari jacket because it was washable, comfortable and most of all, functional. Clark Gable wore bush jackets in 1932’s Red Dust, as well as in Mogambo in 1953 (see picture below). Roger Moore wore a Safari Jacket as James Bond in The Man with the Golden Gun, Octopussy and Moonraker.

Beretta Safari Jacket
Beretta Safari Jacket

In the 1960’s and 1970’s it had some kind of a revival, especially when Yves Saint Laurent introduced his Saharienne collection in 1968. In fact, it was so influential that the Safari Jacket is still referred to as Saharienne at times.

Safari Suit & Shirt

Often, the Safari Jacket had matching pants, a very similarly styled safari shirt and a casual neckerchief.

Safari Jacket Today

Today, the Safari Jacket is certainly past its peak, yet there are still manufacturers like Beretta that produce their interpretation of this jacket today. As such, owning such a garment is a great way to add a bit of individuality to your outfit, without departing from classic silhouettes. The gentleman on the right in the fashion illustration clearly has neither a belted jacket, a shirt collar or epaulettes, but the outfit is distinctly inspired by the Safari Jacket. So, if you already have a number of single and double breasted jackets and you like to spend some time in warmer places, think about the Safari Jacket or certain elements of it, such as the big, flapped bellowed patch pockets.

Alternative Summer Outfits
Alternative Summer Outfits

Brown & Green For Summer

In case you are not quite comfortable with the look of the Bush Jacket, you might consider other garments in summer fabrics in more unusual colors. For example, the chap on the left pairs a lovat green – grey double breasted jacket with grey shirt or light blue shirt, a Madras bow tie, an olive green hat and brown chalk striped trousers with white buckskin shoes.

For the really hot days, you can either wear jackets and shorts (like the folks at Pitti) and make a questionable impression, or you can simply wear pants with a polo shirt and light colored shoes. In my opinion, that wears cooler than a jacket with shorts, in addition to appearing more comfortable and relaxed without showing your (hairy) legs. Don’t get me wrong, shorts have a place in your closet – they are just better combined with more suitable partners than your suit jackets. The gentleman in the middle wears the aforementioned combination. and he appears classic and simply elegant. The fit of the slacks is very 1930’s – high waisted, without a belt and fully cut. Unless you are the skipper of an actual boat and don’t mind a bit of kitsch, then you should skip the pipe/captains hat combo.

What are your favorite alternative summer outfits?

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Reader Comments

  1. I completely agree with you on the elaboration on the shorts. They shouldn’t be worn with suit jackets. The safari jacket is pretty nice also, but only in the warmer places as you said. Too bad they would look out of place in North America or Northern Europe (in my opinion), because I’d love to have one.

    1. Dear Michael, while they are special, I don’t think it is impossible to wear them. With a little courage and the right summer weather you should be just fine.

  2. I think it would take quite a bit of courage: possibly as much wearing the sea captain’s hat.

    The problem with safari suits is that they are so completely associated with the 1970s and leisure suits in most people’s minds. Perhaps there might be a way to redeem them – the safari/bush style shirt looks absolutely fine – but I think a degree of restyling to make them obviously different to the 70s version would be required.

  3. The AA/Esky illustration has always been my favorite inspiration whenever there’s a need to do a new suits /sports jacket.I am thinking of doing the safari jacket in Denims.What is your opinion on choice of materials?
    Illustration from the Italians Tailoring books are rarely seen (posted) on Net,appreciate if you could come up with it.

    Nik

    1. Nik,

      A safari jacket in Denim would be certainly one of a kind. Though, If I think of Jeans jackets, they often come with two chest pockets so it might not look so different after all.
      Bear in mind that denim is not very breathable and the dark color makes it feel warmer. So if you want to wear it during the summertime, I would probably recommend you choose a different fabric.

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