A vent is a vertical slit rising from the bottom hem of a
jacket
A jacket is a garment for the upper body, usually extending below the hips. A jacket typically has sleeves, and fastens in the front or slightly on the side. A jacket is generally lighter, tighter-fitting, and less insulating than a coat, which ...
or a
skirt
A skirt is the lower part of a dress or a separate outer garment that covers a person from the waist downwards.
At its simplest, a skirt can be a draped garment made out of a single piece of fabric (such as pareos). However, most skirts are fi ...
, generally to allow for ease of movement.
[Bookster, a manufacturer of tweed jackets, has illustrations of various features of jackets: {{cite web , url = http://www.tweed-jacket.com/GALLERY%20PAGE/Bespoke%20Options/index.htm , title = Jacket options , accessdate = 2008-09-20]
In the case of jackets, vents were originally a sporting option, designed to make riding easier, so are traditional on hacking jackets, formal coats such as a
morning coat
A tailcoat is a knee-length coat (clothing), coat characterised by a rear section of the skirt, known as the ''tails'', with the front of the skirt cut away.
The tailcoat shares its historical origins in clothes cut for convenient horse riding i ...
, and, for reasons of pragmatism, overcoats. Today there are three styles of vent: the single-vented style (with one vent, either directly at the center or roughly 3 cm to the right); the ventless style; and the double-vented style (one vent on each side). Vents are convenient, particularly when using a pocket or sitting down, to improve the hang of the jacket,
[Antongiavanni (2006). p. 172] so are now used on most jackets. Ventless jackets are associated with Italian tailoring, while the double-vented style is typically British. (This is not the case with all types of jackets. For instance,
dinner jacket
Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal element ...
s traditionally take no vents.)
On skirts, vents are particularly associated with
pencil skirt
A pencil skirt is a slim-fitting skirt with a straight, narrow cut. Generally the hem falls to, or is just below, the knee and is tailored for a close fit. It is named for its shape: long and slim like a pencil.
Style
The pencil skirt may be w ...
s where they may be necessary for free movement, but they may also be added for reasons of style, as they have the effect of exposing more of the legs. The most common style is a single vent of a suitable length at the back of the skirt, but they may be located anywhere.
References
Parts of clothing