SHOOTING JACKETS

Shooting jackets should form the cornerstone of your wardrobe. With a plethora of specialist shooting jackets on the market there are few key questions you should ask yourself in order to select the most appropriate clothing for the job in hand. Whilst clearly elemental is the desire to keep warm and dry, the choice of material, weight, style, cut and fit all play an important role. Should you choose tweed, waxed cotton or breathable, thorn-proof or lightweight, whisper quiet, lots of pockets, zips or buttons, a belt or drawstring, a built-in hood, and recently a more flattering ladies cut? With so much choice available, practical first-hand experience can prove invaluable, though both fashion and technology clearly come at a price.

At Davis & Bowring Sporting, we have ‘road-tested’ pretty well every form of shooting jackets and clothing and many such coats deserve merit for different qualities.

Tweed is traditionally the ‘uniform’ of the country-sportsman, coats, jackets, waistcoats, plus fours and caps often with specific patterns for estate keepers, ghilles & laird. The woollen cloth is woven in different weights, and whilst warm, colourful, robust and natural, it tends to soak up water in a downpour, becoming very heavy; though this dilemma has recently been foiled by the addition of a waterproof, breathable liner such as Gore-Tex.

Barbour has long been the dominant outdoor clothing brand, with a range of coats, shooting jackets and over-trousers to suit both shooting and equestrian sport. Their unique waxed cotton kept the water at bay, and coats could be re-proofed when needed. Long coats are especially useful when perched on sodden heather outside the grouse butt !

Recent technical innovation in fabric production has seen a rise of windproof, waterproof & breathable clothing such as Musto, Schöfel, Aigle & Nikwax. Such shooting jackets are both lightweight, and durably practical; often with taped seams, storm zips, pockets with drain-holes, and adjustable peaked hoods. Fleece liners can also be zipped in/out to serve as an efficient layering system, and many of these garments are machine washable.

For a good selection of country shooting jackets, try John Norris of Penrith, S.J. Fawcett’s in Lancaster and The House of Bruar in Perthshire. For a more bespoke approach, obviously Savile Row is the home of London’s finest tailors, and a little further south west, Cordings, 19 Piccadilly sport a splendid ladies department, where style is very much at the forefront of design.