Navy Japanese Varsity Jacket, Tiger Patch

Navy Japanese Varsity Jacket, Tiger Patch

Deep navy wool carrying a full Japanese picture story. A paisley-filled tiger prowls the left chest in pinks and reds, a TKY crest raises a pink sun over Mount Fuji on the right, and chrysanthemum sprays bloom above each blue-piped pocket. The left sleeve runs 397 in tall varsity numerals; the right reads like a scroll — a rising-sun roundel, a floral panel, graffiti script, and a koi swimming toward the cuff. The back is the centerpiece: TOKYO in bold silver over a blue dragon coiling through cherry blossoms, flanked by circular kanji seals. Steel-blue snaps and navy ribbing pinstriped in light blue keep every edge in the same cool register.

This design language has a proper name. A sukajan — the Japanese souvenir jacket — pairs a varsity-style body with elaborate Eastern embroidery of dragons, tigers, koi, and cherry blossoms, a style born in postwar Yokosuka where jackets were stitched as keepsakes for American sailors. This one runs that tradition over a wool letterman frame instead of satin, trading shine for warmth.

Specifications

Fit & Sizing

Classic letterman proportions — square shoulder, straight body, ribbed waistband at the beltline — chosen so the front artwork hangs flat and the back panel presents like a framed print.

Model reference: Shown on a 6'1" (185 cm), 170 lb (77 kg) model in size Medium.

Order your usual size; there's room for a tee or light knit without disturbing the drape. Set a tape to your chest and read the size chart twice — artwork panels only sit symmetrically when the jacket isn't pulling.

Why This Jacket

• East meets letterman — sukajan dragons and blossoms carried on an American varsity frame
• A tiger drawn in paisley — the chest cat is filled with pattern, closer to woodblock print than mascot
• Pink on navy — the warm-art-on-cold-ground palette that made souvenir jackets collectible
• The sleeve reads like a scroll — 397, a rising sun, blossoms, and a koi in sequence, shoulder to cuff
• Color-matched hardware — steel-blue snaps against navy; even the closures stay inside the palette

Care Instructions

The day this jacket meets a suitcase is the day it needs you most. Wool recovers from hanging wrinkles on its own, but embroidery and patches hold a hard crease once they're folded under pressure — so when you travel, turn the jacket inside out so the artwork faces its own lining, fold it once at the waist, and lay it on top of everything else in the case, never compressed beneath. On arrival, hang it immediately; the wool will relax within hours, and the artwork will never have bent at all.