Looking for info on “Top Stitch” – sheepskin/Irving-style jacket (Made in UK)

[Rick Dalton]

Hi everyone,


I came across a sheepskin jacket for sale — kind of an Irving/shearling-style piece — with the label:
“Top Stitch – Quality Sheepskin and Leather Garments, Made in U.K.”
There’s also a smaller tag that says “Genuine Sheepskin – Made in Britain.”


I’m considering buying it, but I can’t find any information about this Top Stitch brand.
Was it a small British maker from the 1970s–1980s, or something more recent?
Any background on the company, production period, or the general quality of their sheepskin jackets would be super helpful before I decide.


Thanks a lot in advance!

 

[RDS]

I’ve not come across this particular jacket maker before so don’t know the age however it might be what is known as a ‘white label’
That is to say something that is sold by a retailer with their own branding and logo but which is actually made another company.
These type of ‘Irvin’ style sheepskin jackets are fairly generic and pretty common, so it’s possible that they were all made by just 1 or 2 UK manufacturers but with a variety of different retailer labels attached.

It’s obviously difficult to make a judgement on quality based on just photos, but it looks to be OK and I guess it will all come down to price and whether you believe it to be good value.

 

[Rick Dalton]

I’ve not come across this particular jacket maker before so don’t know the age however it might be what is known as a ‘white label’
That is to say something that is sold by a retailer with their own branding and logo but which is actually made another company.
These type of ‘Irvin’ style sheepskin jackets are fairly generic and pretty common, so it’s possible that they were all made by just 1 or 2 UK manufacturers but with a variety of different retailer labels attached.

It’s obviously difficult to make a judgement on quality based on just photos, but it looks to be OK and I guess it will all come down to price and whether you believe it to be good value.

Thank you do much. What price would be fair in your opiniom? Is there any way to judge quality from a far? Maybe some questions I could ask?

 

[Peter Mackin]

If your looking for a comfortable warm jacket and not worried about it being accurate,go for it if the price is right. My aviation leathercraft jacket is well made,warm and has pockets..its a fantastic jacket.the purists don't like them.but then I hate broken grain sheepskin.its all about personal choice.

 

[RDS]

I’d agree with all that and unless an accurate representation of a wartime RAF jacket is a must then these sheepskins can offer pretty good value.
Personally, I found my AL Irvin jacket too warm in all but the coldest of weathers (it wasn’t exactly ideal in the wet, either) and as the opportunities to wear it were pretty limited ended up selling it.

As for a fair price that’s really down to the buyer, however as auctions are one of the best ways to find out an eBay search for both the asking and sold prices of ‘sheepskin flying jacket’ ‘Irvin jacket’, ‘RAF jacket’ or combinations thereof would probably give a good idea of the price range they sell for.

 

[Rick Dalton]

I’d agree with all that and unless an accurate representation of a wartime RAF jacket is a must then these sheepskins can offer pretty good value.
Personally, I found my AL Irvin jacket too warm in all but the coldest of weathers (it wasn’t exactly ideal in the wet, either) and as the opportunities to wear it were pretty limited ended up selling it.

As for a fair price that’s really down to the buyer, however as auctions are one of the best ways to find out an eBay search for both the asking and sold prices of ‘sheepskin flying jacket’ ‘Irvin jacket’, ‘RAF jacket’ or combinations thereof would probably give a good idea of the price range they sell for.

That’s really helpful, thank you.
Out of curiosity — when you had your Aero Irvin, did you ever try wearing it just over a T-shirt in winter? I’ve heard they can be too warm unless it’s absolutely freezing, so I wonder if that worked at all for you, or if it still felt too hot except in very cold weather.


Also, I’m wondering how the jacket I posted above compares to an original RAF Irvin — are the differences mostly in the finishing details (zipper, seams, etc.), or is the overall cut and pattern noticeably different? I’m particularly interested in the cut of the collar, since that’s one of the main features that define the look for me.


The cut is really what matters most to me — I’ve always liked the proportions and silhouette of the original Irvin design.


And one more thing — the jacket I posted seems quite similar to the one Tom Hardy was photographed wearing (a sort of modern variation on the RAF Irvin). Do you think mine is close to that style, or is it just superficially similar?

 

[Peter Mackin]

Bang on with everything rds said..Im in Scotland,horrible winters. Too much rain also..but when the temps go into the minus the ALC is my go to jacket, i never wear any sheepskin in the rain.my Monarch is for when it's not as cold. That jacket is on an entirely different level.
Ps.wearing just a tee shirt with any sheepskin is fantastic. Especially the heavy jackets. You certainly dont need to layer.

 

[Rick Dalton]

Bang on with everything rds said..Im in Scotland,horrible winters. Too much rain also..but when the temps go into the minus the ALC is my go to jacket, i never wear any sheepskin in the rain.my Monarch is for when it's not as cold. That jacket is on an entirely different level.
Ps.wearing just a tee shirt with any sheepskin is fantastic. Especially the heavy jackets. You certainly dont need to layer. View attachment 735180

Amazing jacket! I found noble house for a decent price. Not sure about the pocekts design and quality.

 

[Peter Mackin]

You will love the pockets lol.i don't use the pockets on the monarch but on the ALC i wouldn't be without them.

 

[Rick Dalton]

You will love the pockets lol.i don't use the pockets on the monarch but on the ALC i wouldn't be without them.

Someone already bought that one (
I guess I’ll have to lay off the shopping spree for a while — it’s just too frustrating.

By the way, do you think the original one I posted (the Top Stitch, made in the UK) is better or worse than the Noble House jackets?

 

[Peter Mackin]

On a freezing cold day i would wear either one ..I only care about my comfort. The Goodwear was bought to enjoy and baby, it wont be used in anger.i wanted to see if Goodwear lived up to the hype. Its my watching tv with the windows open jacket

 

[MrProper]

when you had your Aero Irvin, did you ever try wearing it just over a T-shirt in winter?

I have three Aero Shearlings and I wear them when the temperature drops below 5 degrees Celsius and I love them. I don't wear much underneath. Often just a merino shirt.
The good thing about shearling is that it provides dry warmth without getting too hot, unlike synthetic fibres, for example. And in the worst case, I just open the zip briefly.
However, you shouldn't wear the jackets when you have to exert yourself, because then you quickly get too hot.

 

[RDS]

Someone already bought that one (
I guess I’ll have to lay off the shopping spree for a while — it’s just too frustrating.

By the way, do you think the original one I posted (the Top Stitch, made in the UK) is better or worse than the Noble House jackets?

Of the two I would say the Top Stitch one is definitely the better jacket and based on the photos would certainly avoid the Noble House offering. The sheepskin on that jacket looks pretty cheap, almost pleather (artificial leather) like, and the fleece would probably be more at home on a teddy bear.

I’ve not handled any Noble House jackets but believe they don’t have a particularly good reputation, either in quality of workmanship or materials. Of course I’m more than willing to stand corrected if anyone has first hand experience.

 

[Rick Dalton]

Of the two I would say the Top Stitch one is definitely the better jacket and based on the photos would certainly avoid the Noble House offering. The sheepskin on that jacket looks pretty cheap, almost pleather (artificial leather) like, and the fleece would probably be more at home on a teddy bear.

I’ve not handled any Noble House jackets but believe they don’t have a particularly good reputation, either in quality of workmanship or materials. Of course I’m more than willing to stand corrected if anyone has first hand experience.

Thank you for your reply. It turned out that both jackets are still available.. The Noble House jacket is brand new and the seller is willing to accept an even lower price than for a vintage Topstitch, but I prefer the Topstitch — the leather on the Noble House looks like cardboard. I’m a bit confused because I don’t know enough about these jackets, but I really want to buy a good Irving jacket. What could I realistically buy in Europe for up to $500?

 

[Rick Dalton]

I have three Aero Shearlings and I wear them when the temperature drops below 5 degrees Celsius and I love them. I don't wear much underneath. Often just a merino shirt.
The good thing about shearling is that it provides dry warmth without getting too hot, unlike synthetic fibres, for example. And in the worst case, I just open the zip briefly.
However, you shouldn't wear the jackets when you have to exert yourself, because then you quickly get too hot.

Thank you, it’s very informative. I was actually hoping to wear it in temperatures below 5°C, just throwing it over whatever I have on. If it works well like that, it would be the perfect winter jacket for my region.

 

[RDS]

Thank you for your reply. It turned out that both jackets are still available.. The Noble House jacket is brand new and the seller is willing to accept an even lower price than for a vintage Topstitch, but I prefer the Topstitch — the leather on the Noble House looks like cardboard. I’m a bit confused because I don’t know enough about these jackets, but I really want to buy a good Irving jacket. What could I realistically buy in Europe for up to $500?

As mentioned earlier Irvin or RAF style sheepskin flying jackets are pretty common and searching on eBay and keeping an eye on what comes up for sale isn’t bad way to find out more about them and what they can sell for.
Also, take a look at the Vintage Leather jackets forum. Despite the forum name those on there have a real interest in military jackets, sheepskins included. For many of their members historical accuracy is an important part of their hobby. So, things like pockets on an Irvin reproduction might be frowned upon and they will also tend to favour the high end manufacturers, such as Eastman, however the forum should still be a pretty useful resource.

Finally, don’t dismiss secondhand jackets by just only looking at new ones. Because heavy sheepskin flying jackets don’t always get a lot of wear really good pre-owned examples can be found. I think it should be possible to pick up a much better quality used jacket for a similar price, or less, than a new but inferior one such as that from Noble House in your photo above.

 

[Rick Dalton]

A little interesting observation — on eBay I found practically the exact same jacket as the Top Stitch one I posted (some of the pictures might even be the same) and it is made in Pakistan. The commentsalso mentions that the fur is synthetic.


Wow, you really have to be very careful when trying to buy this type of jacket. I’m glad I can discuss it here and get some advice before making any decisions.


Here’s the link for reference: https://www.ebay.pl/itm/29754798839...CpzD0kl/oAUo7uoqna+Ly6Gg==|tkp:Bk9SR4rhh4K5Zg

 

[RDS]

Yes, one thing to be aware of on eBay and elsewhere are the shady traders.
These shysters use underhand tactics by ‘stealing’ images from legitimate sellers and businesses to use on their own sites and listings. Invariably, the item you end up receiving from them will be greatly inferior and look nothing like the one in the ‘stolen’ images.
Although not foolproof one way of not being taken for a ride is to look at the backgrounds in all the images of the items they are selling. More often than not these are all different.

As always it pays to have a healthy dose of scepticism when buying anything online which looks to be too good to be true.

 

[Zoro]

A little interesting observation — on eBay I found practically the exact same jacket as the Top Stitch one I posted (some of the pictures might even be the same) and it is made in Pakistan. The commentsalso mentions that the fur is synthetic.


Wow, you really have to be very careful when trying to buy this type of jacket. I’m glad I can discuss it here and get some advice before making any decisions.


Here’s the link for reference: https://www.ebay.pl/itm/29754798839...CpzD0kl/oAUo7uoqna+Ly6Gg==|tkp:Bk9SR4rhh4K5Zg

The problem goes also the other way. While it is possible that Top Stitch is a bogus fake (aka synthetic) shearling, it is also possible that Top Stitch is a legit jacket and you've found a seller claiming to sell it with bait and switch tactics, using pictures of the real thing to sell you the fake one. This is more common with brands with a bigger name, such as Schott.

This said, the specific listing you've shared states the following in the description:

Authentic Design — Inspired by the classic WWII RAF bomber jackets.
100% Genuine Sheepskin Leather — Durable, flexible, and long-lasting.
Thick Faux Shearling Lining — Provides exceptional warmth and comfort.
Heavy-Duty Front Zipper — Smooth and reliable closure.
Adjustable Straps & Buckles — Custom fit around the waist and cuffs.
Spacious Pockets — Practical for carrying essentials.
Versatile Style — Perfect for casual wear or outdoor adventures.
Premium Craftsmanship — Double-stitched seams for enhanced durability.

The seller surely plays with this. They are upfront but they are upfront in a sea of letters that most people don't read.

 

[Rick Dalton]

The problem goes also the other way. While it is possible that Top Stitch is a bogus fake (aka synthetic) shearling, it is also possible that Top Stitch is a legit jacket and you've found a seller claiming to sell it with bait and switch tactics, using pictures of the real thing to sell you the fake one. This is more common with brands with a bigger name, such as Schott.

This said, the specific listing you've shared states the following in the description:

Authentic Design — Inspired by the classic WWII RAF bomber jackets.
100% Genuine Sheepskin Leather — Durable, flexible, and long-lasting.
Thick Faux Shearling Lining — Provides exceptional warmth and comfort.
Heavy-Duty Front Zipper — Smooth and reliable closure.
Adjustable Straps & Buckles — Custom fit around the waist and cuffs.
Spacious Pockets — Practical for carrying essentials.
Versatile Style — Perfect for casual wear or outdoor adventures.
Premium Craftsmanship — Double-stitched seams for enhanced durability.

The seller surely plays with this. They are upfront but they are upfront in a sea of letters that most people don't read.

Yes, but the original seller who is selling the Top Stitch jacket (with some of the same pictures in his listing) claims that it’s a vintage piece bought in England at an air show... and I was so close to buying it…
I can’t believe it… maybe the Irving jacket just isn’t for me — I clearly don’t have enough knowledge to navigate this! I was lucky to catch this.