Living With Just One Denim Jacket

Most people come to the denim scene through jeans. That’s where it starts—and where it should start. But once you’ve spent enough time wearing denim, you realise that jackets play a different role altogether.

A denim jacket is more … identifying. For brands, it’s often where they show their personality most clearly. And as a wearer, it’s the piece people actually notice first. It sits higher, closer to the face, so it’s more “visible”.

You don’t rotate through jackets the way you do shirts or jeans—you live with one. At least that’s what I think you should do. And that’s why choosing the right one matters so much.

My Benchmark: The Jacket I’ve Worn for 15+ Years

When I talk about choosing the right denim jacket, this is what I’m measuring against.

I bought my Levi’s Vintage Clothing Type I in London in the spring of 2009, at the old Cinch store. That was almost two years before I started Denimhunters.

It was unwashed and unsanforized, and it shrank more than I expected. I went for a size small. In hindsight, that was a mistake—I should’ve bought a medium. I can still wear it today with a tucked-in T-shirt, but with the mid-rise jeans I wear today, it sits quite high.

Still, I’ve worn that jacket on and off for the better part of two decades. And long before I started working on my own brand, this was an inspiration for me; a true wearable heirloom for me. Because that’s what a great denim jacket can become.

A Quick Guide to the Main Denim Jacket Styles

I published a new guide this week that breaks down the main denim jacket styles—the ones everything else is built on.

It’s not a deep historical rabbit hole. It’s a practical overview of the classic archetypes: Type I, Type II, Type III, chore coats, and the Western styles from Lee and Wrangler. Where they come from, how they differ, and why those differences matter when you actually wear them.

If you’ve ever looked at a jacket and thought, I like it, but I’m not sure it’s me, this guide should help clear that up.

One Jacket, One Year

What I’ve put into my Type I happened over more than 15 years. On and off. Different seasons. Plenty of washes. Real life. But you could get surprisingly close to that in a single year.

The catch is you’d have to really wear it. Every day, or close to it. Not just when the weather’s perfect or when it fits the outfit. That’s where jackets are different from jeans. You feel the commitment much more quickly.

I didn’t wear my Type I like that. I lived with it over time. But seeing what some people manage to do with a jacket in twelve months has made one thing very clear: it can be done.

If the idea of committing to one jacket for a full year sounds appealing, there are organised challenges built around exactly that—Redline Rally being the obvious example. It’s not for everyone, but it’s a good reference point for what’s possible when you stop rotating and start committing.

Top Picks: 3 Jackets I Could Live With for a Year

Below, I’ve rounded up my top 3 picks of denim jackets that I could wear for a full year—day in, day out.

The main thing I’m looking at isn’t extreme fades or technical specs, but fit and weight.

Most of us spend a lot of time indoors, and a jacket that’s too heavy, too stiff, or too restrictive quickly becomes annoying.

For me, a year-long jacket needs to be something you can comfortably wear all day, most days—not just when the conditions are perfect.

#1: LVC Type I

If I had to start anywhere, it would still be a Type I. It’s short, square, and honest. You can wear it as a shirt, and layer it under a winter coat.

The obvious reference here is the Levi’s Vintage Clothing 1936 Type I. It’s made from relatively lightweight selvedge denim, which is a big part of why it works so well. You can wear it year-round without feeling overdressed in summer or underprepared in spring and autumn.

It’s raw and unsanforized, so it will shrink and shape itself to you. That’s part of the deal—just be realistic about sizing. I wasn’t.

The jacket is currently available at Cultizm.

Hinoya also stock the jacket, but it’s currently sold out. They do stock other excellent Type I–style jackets, which you can check out here.

#2: Tellason’s Coverall

Compared to the cropped Type I, Tellason’s Coverall sits at the other end of the spectrum—and that’s why it also makes sense as a year-long jacket.

The extra length makes it more forgiving, and easy to live with day to day. The unlined versions are what you should go for, and while the 16.5 oz. is tempting, I might opt for the 12.5 oz. one. It’s substantial enough to take real wear, but not so heavy or stiff that you feel trapped in it indoors.

The chore coat cut also makes it incredibly versatile. It works over a T-shirt, but it really shines once you start layering—flannels, sweatshirts, knitwear. And because it’s designed as a practical jacket first, it doesn’t fight you when you actually use it.

It’s no coincidence that the Coverall shows up again and again in long-term wear projects. It’s comfortable, durable, and easy to rack up wear days in—which is exactly what you want if you’re committing to one jacket for a full year.

#3: Indigofera Fargo

The last jacket I’ll put forward is the Indigofera Fargo.

I own it in two versions—one in their black Gunpowder fabric, and one in their 16 oz. No. 2 denim. On the latter, I made a familiar mistake and went too small, getting a size S. It was a good deal and the last one left, so I took a chance.

What makes the Fargo work so well for a year-long commitment is that it’s effectively a shirt. It sits somewhere between a trucker and a chore coat: longer than a Type I or III, but still clean and structured. It’s designed as a layering piece, which makes it far easier to live with indoors than a heavy, stiff jacket.

In the lighter denims, it’s easy to wear across seasons. Substantial enough to feel like a proper jacket, but not so heavy that you’re constantly taking it off once you step inside. (That’s obviously a dealbreaker when you’re talking about wearing the same jacket most days of the year.)

Indigofera’s detailing is restrained but distinctive, and the Fargo has a clear identity without shouting about it. If you want something that feels a bit different from the usual Type I–II–III rotation, this is a very strong option.

Franklin & Poe stock Indigofera, and they have a few Fargos worth a look.

Want More Jacket Options?

Those three are my personal short list—jackets I could genuinely imagine living with for a full year.

If you want to see what else is out there, we’ve built a much longer list of raw selvedge jackets in this guide. It’s a proper roundup of the best-looking, most fade-friendly options across the classic styles, plus a few modern curveballs—so you can find the one you’ll actually want to keep reaching for.

Check out our denim jacket buying guide here.