Canadian Varsity Jackets

[guygardner]

Anyone have any of these? Quite different from the American style wool + leather jackets we often see. Here are a couple. U of Ottawa jacket with Lightning zippers and a Wilfrid Laurier jacket from '93.

 

[ton312]

Love that first one. Really cool! These and the shawl collared Canadian curling sweaters are super cool! Don't see them very often.

 

[AllanP]

I could be wrong but this is like an Engineer thing. Engineer faculties in most major Canadian universities still issue these leather jackets. I see them all the time on the street here in Toronto, not sure about the quality though.

 

[guygardner]

The Laurier Jacket is Honours Economics, '93. I know the Engineering faculties have weird rituals with their jackets though.

 

[guygardner]

Love that first one. Really cool! These and the shawl collared Canadian curling sweaters are super cool! Don't see them very often.

Thanks, I like the cut of these older jackets too.

 

[Doctor Damage]

That black WLU jacket brings back memories. I was at UofW in the early 1990s and lots of people, mostly engineering students but others too, bought those jackets in first year. I was in geography and a friend of mine got one and wore it all four years. I liked them but was reluctant to get one since I didn't know if I'd graduate on time (the jackets had the graduation date on the sleeve) so it seemed to be tempting fate to buy a jacket in first year under the assumption that you'd actually graduate, ha ha

 

[MisterCairo]

I have an all-leather black jacket from McMaster in Hamilton, Ontario, and a Melton-leather law school jacket from Western in London. Pics when I can get the time.

I agree, the engineers almost had a uniform like rule about the jackets at both universities.

 

[MisterCairo]

Should have mentioned, Mac grad in '94, Western Law '97.

 

[Doctor Damage]

I agree, the engineers almost had a uniform like rule about the jackets at both universities.

Funny story: During the same time I was in UofW my best friend from high school went to Queens, which had a big engineering school too. All the engineering students wore the leather jackets but it was looked down on to have a brand-new, unworn jacket so the first years would try all sorts of things to get some "wear and tear" on their shiny new jackets. My friend wasn't in engineering but one time he was driving his car and some engineering students put their jackets down on the street in front of him to drive over, which was a fairly common way to damage the new jackets a bit. However, they didn't reckon with my friend, who was driving an old 320i BMW and he did a burn out on their jackets, which was a bit more "wear and tear" than they had in mind, ha ha