LZeitgeist
Member
Whoohoo!
Sherman, set the WABAC machine to approximately 20 years ago...
Before I learned of Wested, I made a special trip from Raleigh, NC to Disney/MGM Studios in Florida to purchase a Disney/Cooper 'Indiana Jones' jacket from the only official source I was aware of, the Adventure Outpost shop next to the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular. Price, $350, not including $37(!) park entry fee and gas for the trip.
I wore this jacket pretty much every day for 10 years, 'weathering' it naturally as life happened to both it and me. Used it for Indy costuming every chance I got (especially after acquiring a David Morgan 12' kangaroo-hide IJ whip in early '95). Over the years, to my eyes, the deeply weathered leather appeared just as Indy's jacket would have after decades of traversing the globe through any and all conditions.
I can't explain the mixed feelings I had when I learned that a Wested jacket, made by the same hands that made the originals, would cost me roughly $250, custom-fit to my measurements. But I could not justify the cost, and the weathering would start from Day 1 all over again - why bother?
Fast-forward to 6 years ago, when I met my wonderful wife. One look at the jacket that had seen me through the years, and the term 'hairy eyeball' never had so much meaning. Given an outside perspective, the (admittedly cheap), unknown leather had become dry, flaky, grey and homely rather than weathered and rugged as my biased vision had seen. It hung in the closet, dejected and unworn except for twice that I dressed up as Indy, including the prize-winning time Jacquelyn joined me as Elsa Schneider.
Fast-forward again to yesterday, when, after scrimping and saving for 6 months, and a year of research of options, choices, problem avoidance and leather samples, I finally placed my order for a Wested 'Raiders' IJ jacket. Final price with shipping is about what I paid for that old Disney/Cooper jacket, but barring difficulties or mis-sizings, it will be worth it to have my favorite jacket conforming itself to me over the new 20 years.
Crossing my fingers for no speed bumps in the process between ordering and receiving...
Sherman, set the WABAC machine to approximately 20 years ago...
Before I learned of Wested, I made a special trip from Raleigh, NC to Disney/MGM Studios in Florida to purchase a Disney/Cooper 'Indiana Jones' jacket from the only official source I was aware of, the Adventure Outpost shop next to the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular. Price, $350, not including $37(!) park entry fee and gas for the trip.
I wore this jacket pretty much every day for 10 years, 'weathering' it naturally as life happened to both it and me. Used it for Indy costuming every chance I got (especially after acquiring a David Morgan 12' kangaroo-hide IJ whip in early '95). Over the years, to my eyes, the deeply weathered leather appeared just as Indy's jacket would have after decades of traversing the globe through any and all conditions.
I can't explain the mixed feelings I had when I learned that a Wested jacket, made by the same hands that made the originals, would cost me roughly $250, custom-fit to my measurements. But I could not justify the cost, and the weathering would start from Day 1 all over again - why bother?
Fast-forward to 6 years ago, when I met my wonderful wife. One look at the jacket that had seen me through the years, and the term 'hairy eyeball' never had so much meaning. Given an outside perspective, the (admittedly cheap), unknown leather had become dry, flaky, grey and homely rather than weathered and rugged as my biased vision had seen. It hung in the closet, dejected and unworn except for twice that I dressed up as Indy, including the prize-winning time Jacquelyn joined me as Elsa Schneider.
Fast-forward again to yesterday, when, after scrimping and saving for 6 months, and a year of research of options, choices, problem avoidance and leather samples, I finally placed my order for a Wested 'Raiders' IJ jacket. Final price with shipping is about what I paid for that old Disney/Cooper jacket, but barring difficulties or mis-sizings, it will be worth it to have my favorite jacket conforming itself to me over the new 20 years.
Crossing my fingers for no speed bumps in the process between ordering and receiving...