Classic British-Made Women's Blazers & Sport Coats — Voted by the Community

The blazer takes its name from a British rowing club. Members of the Lady Margaret Boat Club of St John's College, Cambridge, founded in 1825, wore bright red flannel jackets that became known as blazers. The name later spread to similar club and sporting jackets. Tailored jackets for women also have a long British history. Eighteenth-century women's riding habits were adapted from the man's coat. In the 1870s, John Redfern, who had started out as a tailor in Cowes on the Isle of Wight, made his name with practical tailored clothes for women who rode, played tennis and went yachting. In 1881 he opened tailoring houses in London and Paris. Sports coats and softer, unstructured jackets developed as variations on tailored garments, made with the same methods but cut for comfort and ease of movement. Patterning, cutting, seam finishing and pressing remain the core of jacket making in the UK, whether the finished piece is a structured blazer or a relaxed sports coat.