Perfecto Style Moto Jacket for Ladies (need suggestions & advice!)

[Aloysius]

These are nice. Vanson are now about the same priced as a Schott in the UK, sometimes les depending on where you buy. Different strokes for different folks an aw that, but I'm much more impressed by the Vanson of the two.

My point had nothing to do with what one might consider more ‘impressive’ in general, but the more critical matter of whether it looks like a Perfecto, which it doesn’t (and why should it?) Vanson jackets are interesting in their own right but this is clearly a hybrid of multiple styles.

Interesting it's cut to the men's side while being a jacket designed for the ladies. I wonder if that's Joan J's influence.

A lot of cross-zips (and other casual jackets) fasten left over right in the women’s versions as well, even back in the 'Golden Age'; if anything it was the default for double riders. You’ll never see it the other way around, though.
You’ll notice that Schott has women’s Perfectos that fasten in both directions.

You can see it in this 40s/50s era Buco catalogue photo, in which the ladies DR fastens left over right:

The knockoff Suzi Quatro had nothing to do with it!

 

[jacketjunkie]

You should look at the Johnson Leathers jacket someone linked in the Deals-thread, JL are criminally underrated, it would still be the best mc jacket for the money for considerably more than the 139 USD seller is asking.

 

[AliceP]

The 137W came today! Shipping took forever.

I am... a little torn and ultimately less than impressed.

What I like about it:
- The weight and leather thickness is fab. I think I prefer the naked cowhide because the shine of steerhide isn't my thing.
- The styling is obviously the original and classic.
- It's comfy and easy to wear/style.
- I can move my armssss! haha
- Fit is nice and relaxed.

What I didn't like about it:
- Not a strong dislike per se as I was expecting worse but the synthetic/nylon quilt liner was actually a non-issue and fairly lightweight but it did feel a bit cheap.
- The cutting and construction of this jacket was not as precise as I'd like it to be.
- The zippers on the side pockets! You have to zip up to open vs zip down and those zippers were lightweight and flimsy and hard to grip compared to the rest.
- One of the epaulets on the shoulder lays flat and the other likes to bunch up. For a defining, stylistic detail such as this, it should be less obtrusive.
- The stitching on the right armhole vs left armhole has obvious quality differences. This is what bothers me the most. One is nice and smooth; the other is bunchy.

I don't think I'm going to keep it tbh. I reached out to Thedi Leathers and they are able to make a Perfecto-style jacket with a cotton lining and (add elbow patches!) but I am not 100% sure about going this route yet because the communications have been somewhat lagged and it needs to be more of a final decision since it will be custom. Also, production time is understandably lengthy. Alas, back to the drawing board.

 

[Aloysius]

Thedi is an incredible maker but they definitely would not be my port of call for having a Perfecto type jacket made, personally. Their stuff is fantastic– it's just that it has a very well defined house style. The end product, while very high quality, would likely look even further from what you're looking for than the Vansons posted earlier.

I would suggest first trying the PER71W, though do make note of how this jacket and the PER71W fit you because it'll be useful in your further explorations of leather jackets, haha.

If the PER71W doesn't work, my recommendation would be to contact Carrie at Thurston Bros (US dealer for Aero, Thedi, and Vanson) about having an Aero Ladies Motorcycle jacket made with the front details of the Motorcycle Jacket (despite the plain name, this is actually Aero's repro of the Perfecto). The finishing at Aero is going to be considerably nicer than Schott (iconic though they are) and you'll have your choice of materials, lining, and details. (For example, you can even get a quilted lining with a cotton front instead of nylon.)

So it'll fit like a woman's jacket should fit, but have all the Perfecto details you like. In fact, I expect they could even do a front like the Rag & Bone jacket you liked, though I feel like if you got that you'd still be wanting one with the classic Perfecto front. Thurston also used to be a Schott dealer, so she'll definitely understand what you're after.

The perks of the Thurston approach is they send you a stock version of the jacket first, to see what your size is (and what, if anything, needs to be longer or shorter), then they place your order for one specced exactly like you want. They also put you in their own queue, so you usually have a much shorter wait than ordering directly. (I'm in the middle of this process myself.)

 

[Canuck Panda]

 

[Aloysius]

View attachment 365497

I agree that this could be a great deal, but since she’s figuring out sizing and looking for a different pocket design, I don’t think it quite works.

(but if it were a men’s jacket in my size I might jump on it. Similar to the J-107 RIP)

 

[AliceP]

Thedi is an incredible maker but they definitely would not be my port of call for having a Perfecto type jacket made, personally. Their stuff is fantastic– it's just that it has a very well defined house style. The end product, while very high quality, would likely look even further from what you're looking for than the Vansons posted earlier.

I would suggest first trying the PER71W, though do make note of how this jacket and the PER71W fit you because it'll be useful in your further explorations of leather jackets, haha.

If the PER71W doesn't work, my recommendation would be to contact Carrie at Thurston Bros (US dealer for Aero, Thedi, and Vanson) about having an Aero Ladies Motorcycle jacket made with the front details of the Motorcycle Jacket (despite the plain name, this is actually Aero's repro of the Perfecto). The finishing at Aero is going to be considerably nicer than Schott (iconic though they are) and you'll have your choice of materials, lining, and details. (For example, you can even get a quilted lining with a cotton front instead of nylon.)

So it'll fit like a woman's jacket should fit, but have all the Perfecto details you like. In fact, I expect they could even do a front like the Rag & Bone jacket you liked, though I feel like if you got that you'd still be wanting one with the classic Perfecto front. Thurston also used to be a Schott dealer, so she'll definitely understand what you're after.

The perks of the Thurston approach is they send you a stock version of the jacket first, to see what your size is (and what, if anything, needs to be longer or shorter), then they place your order for one specced exactly like you want. They also put you in their own queue, so you usually have a much shorter wait than ordering directly. (I'm in the middle of this process myself.)

Thank you for the suggestions! I am going to weigh these options and look further into them. As for the Schott PER71W, ah, I wish I could say that I have a lot of confidence in Schott's quality but after reviewing this recent order, I think I am strongly leaning toward going with a higher-end maker because the price difference isn't that much more yet I think the enjoyment I'll get will be.

I know that Thedi has a certain aesthetic but I've found their Perfecto-style jacket to be quite spot on and charming. My mom (yes, I still run through style stuff with my mom. No shame here!! haha) said that Thedi's design is way more elegant when I showed her the comparison pics. (She is rarely ever wrong, so...) What I appreciate about Thedi's designs is there is a certain softness of character about them, in part due to the leather but also the small and subtle details as well. Fits more with my personality. And I like that they used veg-tanned leather.

I did end up finding one or two specimens of that Rag & Bone jacket in the wild on shop-your-closet sites. The fit is a total gamble; it was designed to be "slouchy-chic" and it has burgundy elbow patches and a shiny finish. All cool things in and of themselves but all together... just slightly over-baked for me personally.

I didn't think I'd be going down a rabbit hole in search of the perfect jacket but I am appreciating the process nonetheless. =)

 

[AliceP]

View attachment 365497

Thank you so much for finding this!! So inspiring and helpful to know that there are very good used/vintage deals to be found!! I would definitely spring for this if it were not for the brass hardware. I can't pull off brass hardware.

 

[Marc mndt]

Thedi is an incredible maker but they definitely would not be my port of call for having a Perfecto type jacket made, personally. Their stuff is fantastic– it's just that it has a very well defined house style. The end product, while very high quality, would likely look even further from what you're looking for than the Vansons posted earlier.

Skip the studs and you have a perfect basic women's perfecto, without the well defined house style.

Photocredits @red devil

 

[AliceP]

Here's an example of the Thedi. It just looks so soft and inviting.

 

[Aloysius]

Thank you so much for finding this!! So inspiring and helpful to know that there are very good used/vintage deals to be found!! I would definitely spring for this if it were not for the brass hardware. I can't pull off brass hardware.

It’s actually not even used I believe! Just how Aero lists non MTO stuff. This is the jacket I linked above, so you can totally have it specced in all nickel.

 

[AliceP]

Skip the studs and you have a perfect basic women's perfecto, without the well defined house style.

View attachment 365498
Photocredits @red devil

Yep, that's pretty nice. Those zippers look like they would slide like butter.

 

[AliceP]

It’s actually not even used I believe! Just how Aero lists non MTO stuff. This is the jacket I linked above, so you can totally have it specced in all nickel.

Whattttt. Okay, I am definitely going to investigate. Thank you!

 

[Marc mndt]

View attachment 365497

About Aero for the ladies:

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...ets-does-the-ladies-wear.103146/#post-2768046

 

[Aloysius]

Here's an example of the Thedi. It just looks so soft and inviting.

Wow, besides the belt loops they’ve really toned down the Thedi-ness. If you go this route, reach out to Thurston about this because it’s a faster track, and they will hook you up with a fit jacket.

 

[TooManyHatsOnlyOneHead]

you can go through Carrie at Thurston Bros to order a Thedi. And that will take out the communication delays of dealing with Greece directly. And I think you'll find the pricing to be about the same or pretty close.

And I agree with your mom There's nothing like Thedi out there right now. It's vintage sheik high end just straight out cool.

 

[MrProper]

What I appreciate about Thedi's designs is there is a certain softness of character about them, in part due to the leather but also the small and subtle details as well. Fits more with my personality. And I like that they used veg-tanned leather.

If you can stand the wait... you can also pick veg tanned leather at Aero and the pocket setup is selectable.
I am very happy with my Ridley made of Vicenza leather.

Should Aero not be eliminated, you can see here a few examples of Crosszips. They are men's models, but you can still see the different detailing options.
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/aero-ridley-j106-repository-thread.101995/

 

[Aloysius]

Alexandra of Thedi in a perfecto type jacket:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bk2DAnNn-uX/

I was genuinely surprised because almost every Thedi I’d seen looks cool but in an almost steampunk costume way— the boss himself dresses like that after all. I didn’t know they made things this simple.

 

[AliceP]

About Aero for the ladies:

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...ets-does-the-ladies-wear.103146/#post-2768046

Thank you for the head's up! =)

 

[AliceP]

If you can stand the wait... you can also pick veg tanned leather at Aero and the pocket setup is selectable.
I am very happy with my Ridley made of Vicenza leather.

Should Aero not be eliminated, you can see here a few examples of Crosszips. They are men's models, but you can still see the different detailing options.
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/aero-ridley-j106-repository-thread.101995/

Yours looks fab on you and you wear it well! It's so inspiring to see perfect fits and beautiful leather finishes.