Less bulky than a worker jacket and more delicate than a traditional denim jacket, the carpenter jacket will be the hero of your spring wardrobe.  Lightweight and roomy, it’s the perfect layering piece to partner with loose summer dresses, denim and tailored separates.  The length is versatile too – whether cropped or hip-length, it isn’t limiting in the same way that a trench can be.

The enduring appeal of utility means it’s never really out of fashion and it emerged as a major trend on the international catwalks. Proenza Schouler showed neat black and cream leather iterations, styled with leather knee-length skirts and flat pumps; Gucci offered a longline beige style with platform loafers; Coach showed a hybrid blazer-utility jacket in light beige; Dries Van Noten showed oversized slouchy four-pocket carpenter-style jackets and Lemaire had a black overshirt-style jacket with contrast stitching and matching loose-fitting lightweight trousers.

LA-based British designer Kitty Cooper founded her eponymous label in 2021 and her debut collection focuses on clothing that transcends trends and embraces simplicity, timelessness and versatility. The collection includes a cream carpenter jacket that works with everything from ankle-grazing skirts and dresses to straight-leg jeans and sweatshirts. 

Carpenter jackets are all over the high street too, including M&S’s four-pocket ecru denim style, John Lewis’s lightweight overshirt options in khaki and indigo and Sezane’s cult Will jacket, which comes in various shades of monochrome, neutrals and more playful prints and in denim, wool and suede fabrics.

Lisa Illis, head of womenswear design at M&S, says: “The carpenter jacket serves as a great transitional piece and a style our customers will love for its versatility. Ideal for layering with knitwear during the colder months then, come spring, the perfect throw-on-top layer – great for the very changeable British weather. We have launched a brand new denim utility jacket which nods to the carpenter jacket styling in a fabric we know our customer loves to wear. I’d pair it with a mid-wash carrot-shape jean for a chic double-denim take or throw it over a relaxed midi dress for easy day-to-night dressing.”

Images: courtesy of brands