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Norfolk Jacket

herringbonekid

I'll Lock Up
Messages
6,016
Location
East Sussex, England
i've only seen them in photos and illustrations, not in real life:

ScreenShot2013-10-01at170545_zps13c966ec.png
 

herringbonekid

I'll Lock Up
Messages
6,016
Location
East Sussex, England
more info just in from the owner:

-it has a centre strap at the back ending at the belt.
-it has a centre vent, with pleats either side facing the vent.
-it has pivot sleeves.
-it is a three piece plus four suit !
 

herringbonekid

I'll Lock Up
Messages
6,016
Location
East Sussex, England
Mr Purple, that's a very rare jacket and waistcoat you have.
is the lining velvet ? and any idea what country it was made in ?

my estimate at date would be around 1910-15, going by the fancy buttoned yoke and height of buttoning.
 

Oldsarge

One Too Many
Messages
1,440
Location
On the banks of the Wilamette
I just published a comprehensive Norfolk Jacket guide with a bunch of historic details, which might be of interest to some of you. It discusses the full Norfolk jacket, half Norfolk jacket and the Norfolk suit. You can read it here.
View attachment 451

And quite a good article it is. I have long held a passion for the half Norfolk and will eventually have Mearsbespoke make one up for me. It has all the advantages of the full Norfolk without that tedious belt. Belts on jackets are a nuisance, IMO, whether Norfolk or safari. Probably not this year, unfortunately, but I shall have one!
 

Mr. Purple

New in Town
Messages
42
Location
Stockholm, Sweden
Mr Purple, that's a very rare jacket and waistcoat you have.
is the lining velvet ? and any idea what country it was made in ?

my estimate at date would be around 1910-15, going by the fancy buttoned yoke and height of buttoning.

Yes, Herringbonekid, that's my impression, too. It does have a styling I've never seen anywhere else. There's no labels anywhere and therefore no way to be certain of its country of origin, though a clue might be the scribbled note - in Swedish - which came with it when I bought it (in the late 90s) in a Stockholm shop: "Used during spa visits in the Alps in the '20s". My guess is that it was made to order (a bit earlier, as you suggest) either here in Sweden, or in Switzerland/Austria/Germany. The owner probably didn't write the note himself, most likely he had passed away and his widow or child put the note in one of its pockets.
The lining is similar to velvet but shaggier and softer, resembling the fabric found on upholstered furniture of the time. It certainly looks like owls, but they're so stylized it could be some sort of insect(?)
The extra decorative buttons (corozo?) is something that sets it apart from most other Norfolk jackets I have seen.
 

Mr. Purple

New in Town
Messages
42
Location
Stockholm, Sweden
it was a very experimental time and they were trying out many things, some of them a bit over the top.
Thank you! And I agree - much as I love to see those vintage pics, this one from 1909 does look a tad too cluttered for my taste. My own jacket is borderline, I guess! Apart from the 4-buttoning front, there's two cuff buttons and eight more (four front, four back) with no apparent function.
Interesting, too, that the 1909 trousers are full-length. Mine did come with the same, but the trousers were too short for me. They also, astonishingly, differed in shade just enough to render them useless as an ensemble...:(
 

herringbonekid

I'll Lock Up
Messages
6,016
Location
East Sussex, England
rather nice RRL norfolk:

RRL_NORFOLK_zpse514c682.jpg


i didn't see this jacket when i was in the RRL shop in London recently.

one thing about the Norfolk strap which goes to the shoulder seam (as above) is that if you did them on the vert - perfectly parallel with the vertical stripes - they would end up looking / \.
to avoid that the straps have to be cut going slightly \ /... which is a pain for pattern matching. the RRL one above is well done.
 

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