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Brian Sacawa is the Founder of He Spoke Style and one of the original men’s style influencers.
More This site contains affiliate links from which we may earn a commission.The essential odd jacket
While there is no denying that a navy blazer is the blazer one must own, there comes a time when you’ve got to branch out and spread your sartorial wings. And a gun club check jacket is just the ticket.
With a name like gun club check, you’ve got to assume that there’s a story behind that name. And you certainly wouldn’t be wrong. Originally called The Coigach, the pattern came from the Ullapool area in the western part of Scotland. Sometime around 1874, an American shooting club adopted it as their uniform and it henceforth became known as gun club check.
Traditionally, the pattern consisted of black, a reddish-brown or rust, gold and forest green all connecting and intermingling. Like any pattern it appears differently when viewed closely or from afar. Today, gun club check appears in a variety of different color schemes, which is great news for us.
| WEARING | HSS x MAB jacket and pants, Peter Millar shirt, Drake’s pocket square, Oliver Peoples sunglasses, Patek Philippe watch, Baudoin & Lange loafers | PHOTOGRAPHY | by Rob McIver Photo
From a styling perspective, gun club check could be considered a “Goldilocks” pattern. If you think a puppytooth is a little too small and a tartan too big for your tastes, a gun club check splits the difference in size.
Getting back to our friend the navy blazer for a second. Obviously, there is nothing more versatile than a navy blazer. But sometimes you might want to “say something” that your venerable navy blazer is incapable of expressing. Or maybe you want to appear “dressed down”–or possibly even a little more fun?–while still wearing a jacket. All of those are areas in which the gun club check sport coat excels.
Patterns, especially those with multiple colors, can be difficult to pair. Two guidelines to remember. First, whenever you’re dealing with a busy pattern, let it shine as the “hero” piece and keep the rest of your outfit simple. And second, pair it with pieces that are complementary. As you can see that my jacket is a combination of brown, blue, light tan and grey, it looks perfectly at home with a denim button-up and chocolate brown linen trousers.
Thanks for reading.
Stylishly Yours,
Brian Sacawa
He Spoke Style
Brian Sacawa
Brian Sacawa is the Founder of He Spoke Style and one of the original men’s style influencers. Since 2013, his goal has remained the same: to provide men the advice and inspiration they need to dress well, develop their personal style, and gain more confidence. Brian’s interest and passion for men’s style and luxury watches has led to his writing for The Robb Report, The Rake, and Sotheby’s and he has been quoted on menswear in publications such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Today.com, Brides Magazine, and the Huffington Post. He lives in the woods north of Baltimore with his wife, Robin, kitties Nick and Nora, and German Shepherd/Collie mix Charlie.
