Into the Woods

I have mentioned here in the past that, on a visit to the Isle of Harris in Scotland in 2019, I got bitten by a bug for collecting Harris tweed jackets (and also some Irish tweed). I stopped collecting jackets (by buying them secondhand on eBay) quite some time ago, not least because I have so little closet space for properly storing them. But I have been on the lookout for a Norfolk jacket ever since.

A full Norfolk jacket (as opposed to a half Norfolk jacket) would have a belt, buckled in front. A half Norfolk jacket has only half a belt (in the back) and fewer pleats. All Norfolk jackets have roomy patch pockets, ostensibly for stashing hunting gear and such. Back in the 1970s, when American companies actually made Norfolk jackets, I had two. Both were full Norfolk jackets. One was of corduroy, from L.L. Bean; and the other was of green cotton moleskin, from Orvis. Hardly anybody makes Norfolk jackets anymore, if at all. But there is a good market for them on eBay. Full Norfolk jackets of any quality will sell for hundreds of dollars on eBay. Half Norfolk jackets aren’t as pricey.

I bought the jacket in the photos from an eBay seller in England. Shipping took about two weeks. It’s Harris tweed, made by Dunn & Co., a British clothing company that started in 1887 but which was on the rocks by 1991. My jacket probably was made in the late 1970s. But, like all Harris tweed, the jacket has the magical property of continuing to look new decade after decade. The jacket has leather elbow patches, a nice tweedy touch that has been out of fashion for about a million years now.

The nice thing about Norfolk jackets is that they’re meant for the country. They’d be suitable attire for hoeing one’s garden or laying brick, not to mention target practice, or just a walk in the woods. I’m old enough and odd enough to get away with wearing one, even though this is 2023. Judging by the brisk eBay market for Norfolk jackets, which seems to have far quicker turnover than tweed jackets in general, I’m not the only one.