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School is back in session and Meghan Markle is prepared. The Duchess of Sussex, joined by Prince Harry, stopped by The Marcy Lab School in Brooklyn in honor of World Mental Health Day today, and the Archwell co-founder dressed the part.
Markle wore a navy blue letterman jacket with white sleeves and red embroidered text, which was gifted to her in 2020 by the Robert Clack school’s debate team. She kept the rest of her outfit neutral, wearing a black tee and black skinny jeans from Frame. Contrasting the more masculine jacket, the Duchess wore a pair of Mary-Jane heels and accessorized with a slew of gold bracelets and rings.
The varsity jacket is, indeed, an American collegiate phenomenon (lest we forget Meghan is an alumna of a Big 10 school, Northwestern University). It first sprung up at Harvard in 1865 when athletes posed for photos in sweaters emblazoned with an “H.” But by the 1930s, the sporty outerwear became more aligned with what we know it to be today, a warm accessory for athletes. While they had major moments in the ‘50s and ’80s, letterman jackets remain a relevant piece of fashion culture around the world, among celebrities and on the streets.
The look remains popular among celebrities. Taylor Swift wore a letterman jacket when touring her album Red, with a fitting “R” patch, and even Markle’s late mother-in-law Princess Diana put her own spin on the collegiate apparel, rocking a Philadelphia Eagles jacket with a skirt and tights. In repping a school (even if it’s not her alma mater). Meghan Markle joins the grand American tradition of making the letterman jacket her own.
Shop a selection of letterman jackets, below.
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