When people come to me, I always like to ask a lot of questions. If you have something you want in mind, it isn’t always easy to articulate what that is, especially when the idea is quite vague.
Translating Oliver’s idea was a aprticular challenge. Because he had already owned a much loved green cotton jacket, worn to destruction and eventually lost. He asked me to design my own interpretation of the previous jacket with some added functionality, as he rides his bike a lot.
The main detail I added was an inverted pleat into the back, which meant I could keep the cut quite slim as the pleat opens to allow his arms to reach forward to the handle bars. The skirt part also has a matching pleat that opens around the saddle. On the sleeve cuff I attached a small tab with extra snaps and the collar is engineered with small stand to help it sit up just the way he likes.
When he came to pick it up, he put it straight on and wore it out the door. It was exactly the jacket he wanted.
