The Rise of the Smoking Jacket

[El Presidente]

The rise of the smoking jacket

Simon de Burton 

6 JANUARY 2021

https://life.spectator.co.uk/articles/the-rise-of-the-smoking-jacket/

The fact that we’re being encouraged to go out as little as possible is no reason to allow sartorial standards to slip – and if you plan to carry on celebrating the departure of 2020 by incinerating a few good cigars (which, of course, is refreshingly legal inside your own home) you’ll certainly want to dress the part and don a proper smoking jacket.

Smoking jackets took hold here during the 19th century when the arrival of good quality Turkish tobacco led to a rise in, er, smoking –  which began causing problems long before anyone had considered the health risks. That’s right, people discovered that tobacco smoke makes clothes stink.

For that reason, it became popular to don a ‘robe de chambre’ or three-quarter length dressing gown over the top of one’s regular clothes in the hope that it would absorb the smell before it reached the next garment layer.

 

Initially made from silk, materials such as flannel, wool and velvet began to take over due to their better stench-absorbing qualities, with the latter eventually being considered to be the most absorbent of all –  as well as offering the greatest comfort and the most luxurious look.

Twenty-a-day man (cigars, that is) Edward VII even gave the smoking jacket a royal seal of approval by commissioning a blue silk one in 1865 – but by the dawn of the 20th century the smoking jacket as we know it had emerged.

It was cut more like a conventional dinner jacket but with a slightly more relaxed fit. Made from velvet, it had ornate ‘frogging’ to areas such as the cuffs and front, and a range of fastenings that included conventional buttons, braided toggles or even a tie-up belt.

It goes without saying that, in the British Empire at least, the smoking jacket came with its very own etiquette.

Since it had evolved from a garment intended to be worn exclusively while relaxing at home, it was deemed a bit off to step-out in one – unless, that is, the wearer was going to a party or dinner at a house where he would be staying overnight. If one wasn’t staying but was expecting to smoke, however, the answer was to go equipped with a separate, robe de chambre type gown that could be worn in the smoking room and removed when finished.

No such rules seemed to apply in the Americas, however, where Hollywood style mavens such as Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra and Clark Gable wore them whenever and wherever they damn well liked. Later, Hugh Hefner famously became one of the last bastions of the old-style, robe de chambre smoking jacket after being regularly photographed in and around the Playboy mansion in examples from his extensive collection – which were, in fact, more like ordinary dressing gowns.

Now that every male-orientated magazine and website has assured us that ignoring historic rules, dress codes and traditions is no bar to being considered a ‘gentleman’, the lines between ‘smoking jacket’ and ‘dinner jacket’ have become decidedly blurred (not helped by the French habit of referring to a dinner suit as a ‘smoking’) and the wearing of a velvet jacket to a black tie dinner ‘out’ is considered normal.

Sticklers for old school standards generally wince at the thought, although even most of those die-hards have reluctantly accepted that it’s ok to be seen in velvet at a table away from home. So long as it’s dark blue. And only dark blue.

But since you’ll probably be spending most of your evenings at home for the forseeable future, you can do as you please – and that includes adopting the demeanour of an Edwardian Sybarite while strolling around the house in your smoking jacket, enveloped in a fragrant (until the morning) cloud of Cuban cigar smoke.

You could, in theory, even wear a smoking jacket while puffing on a cigarette – but be careful. Others in the household might think you pretentious…

[Habana Mike]

Required dress for the Hong Kong Havanathon!

[Rhinoww]

So I do love a good “Le Smoking” as they say in France. 
 

AliExpress now has full length options. Better than my crushed velvet blazer. 
 

I may have found presents for my buddies

 

[El Presidente]

 

Is this the one?

 

 

 

I am more the short smoking jacket and underwear type. 

 

Very kalsarikännit.  

[Habana Mike]

I've found a lovely deep blue crushed velvet number with quilted lapels, gold frogs and paisley cuffs. Shall be seeing my tailor tout de suite for a fitting!

[El Presidente]

3 minutes ago, Habana Mike said:

I've found a lovely deep blue crushed velvet number with quilted lapels, frogs and paisley cuffs. Shall be seeing my tailor tout de suite for a fitting!

There are a couple of shots of you shopping for a smoking jacket

[Habana Mike]

Yes but the red adds a pound or two.... Blue is slimming.

[PapaDisco]

They really do work fantastically well.  I did not know that the velvet tux (aka "smoking jacket") was actually intended to function as a smoking jacket.  I've only worn the drape-y style silk or satin version, but man do those units keep your suit underneath fresh as a daisy!  It's no different in functionality than those of us who wear barn coats out to the "smoking" shed.  And the beauty is you can hang these suckers outside under the eaves (barn coat or smoking jacket/robe) and they air out super quick.

I'd always wondered what the solution was for my trousers, but apparently El Pres has the answer to that . . . ?

[El Presidente]

9 minutes ago, PapaDisco said:

I'd always wondered what the solution was for my trousers, but apparently El Pres has the answer to that . . . ?

Undies are optional but you run the risk of a Sharon Stone 

[Habana Mike]

Just now, El Presidente said:

Undies are optional but you run the risk of a Sharon Stone 

Scotsman style!

[PapaDisco]

12 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

Undies are optional but you run the risk of a Sharon Stone 

Sharon Stone I can live with, ? but some sort of 'man-spreading-au-natural' ... not so much! ?

[Fuzz]

4 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

Undies are optional but you run the risk of a Sharon Stone 

No walking over air vents or manhole covers for you...

[RichUK]

I picked this up from my tailor just before Christmas, a very ostentatious treat to myself for my cigar lounge at home, absolutely wonderful to wear though.

[Nino]

Not exactly a "proper" Smoking jacket, but I had a couple of these made in Shanghai at the tailor for use while smoking cigars ...

 

[Zaxeiler]

The author would certainly turn their nose up at this...I have a specific hoodie I always wear when I smoke. A smoking hoodie I suppose...

[SirVantes]

7 hours ago, El Presidente said:

Undies are optional but you run the risk of a Sharon Stone 

Sharin' stones, more like

[Drguano]

9 hours ago, El Presidente said:

There are a couple of shots of you shopping for a smoking jacket

A stylish looking fellow!

[IanMcLean68]

9 hours ago, El Presidente said:

Undies are optional but you run the risk of a Sharon Stone 

That sounds very Spanish to me El Pres! I've heard you mention before during some Sydney get-together or another, about how your kids back in the day had to get used to you wandering around the house naked ??

[Rhinoww]

20 hours ago, El Presidente said:

There are a couple of shots of you shopping for a smoking jacket

Not fair. I snorted out loud. 

[El Presidente]

11 hours ago, IanMcLean68 said:

That sounds very Spanish to me El Pres! I've heard you mention before during some Sydney get-together or another, about how your kids back in the day had to get used to you wandering around the house naked ??

I was in the habit of waking up and  wandering into the kitchen at 2am for a drink of water wearing nada but a T shirt. 

One day I forgot that my daughter had her friends over for a slumber party. 

They weren't asleep 

[Rhinoww]

21 hours ago, Habana Mike said:

I've found a lovely deep blue crushed velvet number with quilted lapels, gold frogs and paisley cuffs. Shall be seeing my tailor tout de suite for a fitting!

Every year (before COVID) I went to vegas w buddies to gamble on March madness. One year maybe five years ago I hosted the communal hotel suite w a buddy. We both got blue crushed velvet blazers as part of our loungewear. They were quite the hit in the casino floor and did the job of keeping the smell of cigars at bay. 
 

and yes @El Presidenteat roughly $70 us delivered to my home quite the value for full length. Probably more appreciated by my wife that the blaze orange insulated bib overall and hunting jacket in use in the winter. 

[MigsG]

I enjoyed this article. I’ve always been intrigued by the notion of owning a smoking jacket. 
 

Like @Zaxeiler I have smoking hoodies and a smoking wool coat for winter. Maybe it’s time to go for a bit more luxury.

[Baccy]

7 hours ago, El Presidente said:

I was in the habit of waking up and  wandering into the kitchen at 2am for a drink of water wearing nada but a T shirt. 

One day I forgot that my daughter had her friends over for a slumber party. 

They weren't asleep 

Yep, when you're half asleep and staggering around the house there are no rules, lol. Of course when you realize there are strangers in the house, it's quite a jolt. Fight or flight kicks in?

[LLC]

I have a heated jacket


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[Habana Mike]

2 hours ago, LLC said:

I have a heated jacket


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Milwaukee? I've one of those. Amazing when called for!