Women’s Bush Jacket
The Women’s Bush Jacket was was originally sold as the Tropical Bush Jacket in Summer 1985 (in Ivory only), renamed the Women’s Bush Jacket in Spring 1986 in Ivory and then sold Fall 1987 in Khaki only. It seems the first versions were lightweight cotton twill and the 1987 version is mediumweight pre-washed cotton. Otherwise they appear to be the same garment.
From the 1987 catalogue: “The classic bush jacket, uncompromisingly authentic and unstintingly civilized. The rugged mediumweight twill is pre-washed and softly brushed on the inside to both protect and cosset. Wide shoulder and lapel facings ensure smooth lines and prolonged wear; concealed shoulder pads ease the strain of luggage straps. Meticulously wrought in all details: buttoned cuffs, bellows and breast pockets, leather-covered button-ff belt buckle. Full-cut to leave room for layering, it’s a jacket that makes you long for new continents to explore.”
Pics from the collection of Kimberlee English Anderson. Khaki 1987 Bush Jacket.
OK, baffled … I have a BR mill valley jacket, khaki tan (not greenish and not ivory) that appears identical to the one pictured here, only …. sleeves are unlined. Label looks just like Kimberlee’s above. Also the original buckle was leather-covered like the one above, not the “horn” version (I had to replace the buckle recently, leather disintegrated). If it’s the Bush Jacket it lacks the “half lining” — there’s a fairly big lining piece below the collar but it’s not a half lining mentioned in the copy. Fabric also has much more of a “twill” texture than Kimberlee’s appears to have. ???????