Carhartt’s Detroit Jacket has become the reigning (sometimes controversial) king of workwear: tough enough to handle the actual blue collar work it was designed to tackle, but worn by Hollywood heartthrobs and hunted down in vintage shops across America. Carhartt’s signature Dearborn canvas—a brawny cotton that can block a lake-effect winter gale and shrug off a quick slide under a Ford F-150—is the star, with a corduroy collar, zip chest pocket, and an of-the-moment boxy-and-cropped fit filling out the ensemble cast. The Detroit jacket is functional, flattering on almost everyone, and brings just the right amount of f–k around and find-out attitude. It’s also everywhere.
For the longest time, I resisted the siren song of the Detroit jacket, having my feed saturated by citified Carhartt bros. But when designer labels from all across the spectrum (and globe) started making their own homages, I cracked. The Detroit had gone from insider, to obvious, to oversaturated, and then back to a sweet spot: so ubiquitous as to have become a staple. So I bought one.
Well, okay, confession: I bought Carhartt’s Work in Progress (WIP) version of the Detroit…which costs about twice as much as the mainline version. I can already see the side-eyes coming my way. But hear me out: the Detroit made by Carhartt’s higher-end, more fashion-forward sublabel hits just the way I want.
The mainline Carhartt Detroit jacket, dropped in 1954 and still going strong, is typically blanket-lined (sometimes quilted) and even comes in a stretch option. The sizing is straight out of the ’50s, from when massive Cadillacs with tailfins roamed the Earth, and ranges from small to 5XL (plus tall versions). But the small, which I need, made me look like a kid in his Dad’s work coat. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a bad jacket. But “hand me the 5/8ths wrench, champ,” isn’t the look I’m going for.
So yeah, I grabbed the spring version of the Work in Progress Detroit—a size small, black, unlined, but still a hefty 12-ounce cotton canvas. The WIP Detroit still brings that old-school Carhartt toughness with the boxy silhouette, but the sizing (XS to XXL) matches up with modern sizing. The winter one (the OG Detroit, in Carhartt WIP’s words) is thicker (13.5 oz.) and quilted for warmth, but I love how mine layers easily. The collar lies flat even when zipped up, and with a hoodie underneath, it’s cozy without feeling suffocating.
Omar Atwan
Omar Atwan
More than that, the WIP Detroit’s details—think garment dyes, stone-washed denim, and finishes that actually feel considered—stand out against the mainline’s (understandably) basic styling. The WIP Detroit also skips the scratchy liners and mystery synthetics. It’s just pure, comfortable grit.
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