Think a Navy Blazer Is Too Stuffy for You? Think Again.
There are few garments in the pantheon of the classic wardrobe more storied than the navy-blue, gold-button blazer. A proper blazer says you belong somewhere. Or it used to. All of which might make it tricky to wear in a modern context. Unless, of course, you take your cues from this story.
But first, the background. The blazer originates, according to one of many legends, with a British ship called the HMS Blazer in 1837. The captain, convinced that his scrofulous crew were in no fit state to welcome Queen Victoria onboard for an impending visit, fitted them out at his own expense with short blue-and-white-striped “reefer” jackets with gold anchor buttons. The blazer as we understand it has been a familiar part of Royal Navy uniforms ever since.
Nautical roots are also front and centre for another leading theory, although in smaller boats. Reportedly, the rowing crews of St. John’s College, Cambridge donned brightly colored red jackets from around 1830 to distinguish themselves from the other college crews. Here it was the bright color that gave rise to the term blazer.
Whatever the truth, the blazer—midway between formal and casual but dressier than a sport coat—became a staple of sporting clubs, schools, regiments, and universities. To this day, it is still synonymous with inclusion and, critically, exclusion; you either belong or you don’t. In The Talented Mr. Ripley, we first encounter the title character wearing a navy blazer with a Princeton badge on the pocket. For Ripley, it’s a meticulously crafted language of belonging, albeit a portentously fake one.
You’d be amazed how hot under the collar people could get back in the day over such effrontery. A friend long ago inherited his father’s golf-club blazer minus one of its gilt buttons. His tailor politely refused to replace the button for him without proof of membership. It’s snob value that has driven fashion’s long-standing passion for the classic blazer.
We live, or so we like to hope, in more egalitarian, more inclusive times. Dress codes have relaxed to the degree that you can pretty much wear a blazer with anything. In fact, though you’ll hardly be buttonholed in the street by a red-faced old gaffer for wearing gilt buttons to which you are not entitled, going fully buttoned-up à la King Charles might appear a tad try-hard.
Instead, think casual. Treat the blazer as a sideways nod to propriety and keep things relaxed with all the rest. Try pairing yours with shorts, like New York fashion mainstay Thom Browne. Or toss it on with a pair of jeans, a move that we—along with Austin Butler and none other than Ralph Lauren—fully endorse. You can even throw it over a vintage tee or sweatshirt, a very effective way to enjoy the best of both worlds. Just don’t get too fancy or foppish. Done right, your blazer will make you look downright respectable—even as you’re flipping a cheeky finger at snobbery and convention.
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