Get On Yer Biker!

For the longest time I have wanted a proper biker jacket. It's one of those items that you can't really get cheap, so I'd consigned it to the "when we get some decent income" pile, along with replacing the burple carpet in the dining room and getting our wedding pictures put into proper albums.

However, as time marches on, the idea of prosperous employment evaporates like a distant dream I might have once had at university, for five seconds, before the country fell to bits . And every time I go out, I look at myself in the mirror and scowl because I know that my outfit could be improved 200% with THAT JACKET. The jacket that everybody thinks I own already, and the only explanation for this is that I must have imagined myself in it so many times that I walk around projecting a psychic image of myself wearing it.

 

The answer can only be a serious rethink of my clothing budget. I spend about £50 every couple of months on clothes at the moment, which tends to go on one item. This is generally something boring that I actually need. If I forfeited that for about six months, I could afford my jacket. Maybe I could get the stuff I need from somewhere else - charity shops, or a clothes swap like the one I went to this weekend. Maybe even making things myself. Is this crazy? I have wanted this jacket for more than six months - more like a couple of years actually - so I'm pretty sure going round in a few holey jumpers until September will be fine. Sam does it all the time.

Anyway, boring realities aside, I would then need to find the perfect biker. And it would REALLY need to be perfect. The ASOS jacket above is less expensive than most, and I like the quilting, but it doesn't have the zippers that make the biker jacket iconic.

This Bench jacket, on the other hand, has the right detailing but without the classic assymetrical zip, so is it more bomber than biker?

This Barney's Vintage number, on the other hand, is getting towards the traditional, and looks worn in enough to be comfortable. It's been featured in quite a few fashion magazines though, which always makes me worry it's too stereotypical and will be yesterday's news in 12 months.

Finally, of course, there is Topshop. We can always rely on good old Toppers to get the trends in, and do them in the way you've pictured them in your head. But is it really value for money? I'm never sure. Safe bet? Bit boring?

Of course there are many more bikers lurking out there on the high street, which is giving me cold feet at spending so far out of my usual shopping range, on an item that may not have much longevity. Should I appease the vegan husband, save the cows and opt for another cheap pleather monstrosity until this trend sinks at last?

Tips please!