This custom leather jacket startup makes any jacket you want, starting at $350 - here's what the design process is like and how my jacket stacked up

• The Jacket Maker is a startup reimagining the leather outerwear market, beginning with affordability.
• Starting at $350 a piece, you can chat with brand designers who will work step by step to design the leather jacket of your dreams.
• We tried the service, and after months of use and consulting one of lower Manhattan's finest tailors, we're smitten. Here's how it works.

Custom leather has, at least to us, always seemed a lavishly out-of-reach prospect. Where do you even start? Who does that? And would I have to refinance my student loan debts, or sell my car to get a leather jacket designed and tailored to my liking? Well, it turns out that the answer is The Jacket Maker, a UAE- (and purportedly USA-) based startup offering custom leather (and wool) jackets, blazers, and coats in just about any shape, size, or color you like.

Now, a leather jacket is a touchy piece of apparel, and it's something we all have to choose carefully based on a lot of things - not that there are any rules, but it can be a daunting task one way or another: You're investing hundreds of dollars in a highly personal item, and you probably want to get it right, whatever that may mean to you.

The process

The Jacket Maker put me in touch with a design consultant who first asked me whether I wanted to work with one of the brand's (countless) existing designs, or if I wanted to work with him to drum something up from scratch. I already had the usuals, and just wasn't all that interested in another generic leather jacket. After all, this was going to be a custom piece and the sky was the limit.

I'd always wanted a captain's trench coat, something with a little length (usually pricey in leather) that would keep me warm in winter, sort of like what Captain Haddock would wear in the cartoon Tintin. No, I haven't grown up and I never will. Next subject.

Watson, my design consultant, and I went back and forth: How many buttons? A button for the lapel? A belt? No belt. And so on. I have an email chain of dozens of emails between us.

We narrowed it down to a leather pea coat of sorts, and Watson sent over four mockup designs.

I chose the one above, which I deemed to be a more classic, timeless design. Maybe I was wrong, but this was my dream, not yours, and not Watson's (though I was glad to have his steerage). At any rate, he was there, ever so graciously and patiently, at my side through the entire process.

Next, we went for the leather type and finish: "Cowhide Dark Brown Oil Pull Up" was the final decision, and that was a natural one, because it looks just like the old oilskins from back in the days of Ahab. Done.

Finally, I was told to go to the best tailor I could find and have the following measurements taken: chest, natural waist, lower waist, shoulders, sleeves, height, and weight. I went to Perry Tailoring (160 Broadway, New York, NY 10038) in Manhattan's Financial District. He, after all, has consulted editorial matters for Gentleman's Quarterly and The New York Times. He also handles alterations and custom clothing for many a New York City glitterati.

I sent off Perry's measurements, and a package arrived in the mail within a month.

Initial thoughts, and notes from the tailor

The first thing I did was toss the coat on and head back across the street to Perry. The first thing he asked me was how much I'd paid for the coat. I wasn't going to tell him. He was going to have to guess. He went over the coat meticulously at his work table. He said it was very fine leather, and for all intents and purposes, I couldn't find much better quality. Not that good quality leather has to be all that expensive in the first place, Perry pointed out; it's just that fast fashion will often cut extreme corners to cloak you in the cheapest possible thing so that it's sure to fall apart and have you returning for another one next season.

He asked for the price again. My lips remained sealed. I wanted to know what he thought it was worth. We got to the hemming and the lining. The hemming was good and sturdy, but the threads, he said, at least the ones used on the buttons, were cheap, and it showed. He wagered $500, citing the cheap threading on the buttons, but reemphasizing how nice the leather was. And while he wasn't too far off with his guess (a jacket like this runs $450 from The Jacket Maker), he explained that, as we all probably know somewhere deep down inside, a designer's insignia does not make leather any higher quality than when it was stripped from its first and rightful owner. You'll get what you pay for with this brand, which is a lot more than we can say for many others.

I went back and emailed Watson, who gave me two options: Send the jacket all the way back to the production facility, in Pakistan where it was made or have my tailor fix it and they'd reimburse me. I went back to Perry, who charged me $25 to reinforce them with sturdier thread. The Jacket Maker followed through and sent over $25. All in all, some slightly sub-par stitching on the buttons was an easy fix, and no big deal considering the price and general quality of the jacket.

The lining was pretty standard, though we could have done a little better. Not that it's bad: It's the same quilted Bemberg (a regenerated cotton lining meant to mimic natural silk) that I've found in top-quality leather from the likes of John Varvatos.

The bottom line

If there's a leather jacket you've always dreamt of owning, but can't afford it from the designer brand that developed it, The Jacket Maker is a way to emulate it, custom-tailored to you. It may not have the Schott or Varvatos tag, but it also won't come with the associated price tag, and it'll fit even better. If it doesn't, The Jacket Maker will make it so.

I wore this jacket all winter and spring. I was caught wearing it in both blizzards and torrents, but thanks to the oil pullup finishing and thick cowhide, it doesn't show.

In our opinion, a good leather jacket starts in the $300 to $400 range. But there are only so many styles out there on the racks, and sizing can be tough. The Jacket Maker works closely and carefully with you to suit your fit and style, whatever that may be. I might have spent a good deal more (try three times what this jacket would cost) purchasing the one that initially got me thinking at the Varvatos store.

Pros: Affordable, limitless possibilities with custom tailoring, excellent and attentive customer service

Cons: Stitching on buttons may be inferior to rest of the stitching

Shop The Jacket Maker for your next custom leather jacket, coat, or vest, here

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