History of the Souvenir Jacket: How to style the Sukajan
The Sukajan jacket combines rebellion and culture with a vivid punch. Its use of silky fabrics with natured embroidery, its sporty silhouette and popularised dragon motifs, creates one of the most distinctive designs from Japanese history. What’s not to love about that?
Often forgotten but instantly recognised, the Sukajan is a true Japanese staple. But where did it come from? Rich with culture, Sukajan was born in the city of Yokosuka. It was created by local Japanese merchants sold in street stalls and post exchanges for American soldiers during the post war period of WWII. The soldiers were after souvenirs to bring back home to America, hence the Sukajan’s nickname: ‘The Souvenir’. With this, the Japanese workers came up with a brilliant design, an American baseball jacket combined with embroidered Japanese iconography, a clever merging of two cultures.
Typically, a lightweight reversible bomber with raglan sleeves, it was common for the jackets to feature different Southeast Asian iconography embroidered on the chest, back and sleeves. The designs could feature Mount Fuji, cherry blossoms, tigers, dragons to more Americanised designs of military maps, eagles, and fighter planes. This fusion has created one of the most distinctive and vibrant of military designs.
The designs themselves were commonly embroidered on acetate due to silk shortages, however, they were also embroidered on whatever was handy. Sometimes that would be a flight jacket or other times left over parachute silk or nylon. In today’s market, the Souvenir has been rebirthed by Tailor Toyo. Their predecessor, Kosho & Co, claim to be the originators of the Sukajan and were the main supplier, boasting a 95% market share by the 1950s.
Into the 1960s, amongst a time of anti-war protests, the Sukajan became a symbol of rebellion and non-conformity. US veterans formed motorcycle gangs wearing Souvenir’s and embroidered flight jackets gaining a reputation for criminal activity. Back in Japan, the Sukajan began carrying a similar message. Lower-class teenagers used the jacket as a kick up at the Ivy look that was popular in Japan at the time.
The Sukajan has stayed alive in the mainstream eye thanks to pop culture. Featuring in films such as Buta to Gukan, This is Spinal Tap and more recently Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive. The 2011 film stars Ryan Gosling as the protagonist, a stuntman and getaway driver who sports a quilted ivory Sukajan with an embroidered scorpion on the back, further cementing the Sukajan’s bad boy image.
Tailor Toyo today proudly keeps the jacket alive with their authentic and timeless recreations of Sukajan’s past. The embroidery on Sukajan is, as you can imagine, highly technical. With artisans using a special manual sewing machine rather than an automatic, allowing the wielder to have full control of the design. The Tailor Toyo x Kosho & Co. Special Edition reversible jacket is made from acetate featuring reproductions of the original zippers, 100% wool rib (purposefully uneven for authenticity), and houndstooth cotton pocket lining.
But how do we style such a vibrant and iconic jacket? Pretty easily actually. We at Son of a Stag recommend keeping it simple, letting the jacket speak for itself. The slim silhouette of the jacket is best paired with a wide legged denim, soft cotton hoodie, a leather boot, and a beanie to finish. A timeless look for a jacket worthy of its space.
