In clothing

Clothing

Clothing refers to any covering for the human body that is worn. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic and is a feature of nearly all human societies...

, the term double-breasted refers to a coat

Coat (clothing)

A coat is a long garment worn by both men and women, for warmth or fashion. Coats typically have long sleeves and are open down the front, closing by means of buttons, zippers, hook-and-loop fasteners, toggles, a belt, or a combination of some of these...

 or jacket with wide, overlapping front flaps and two parallel

Parallel (geometry)

Parallelism is a term in geometry and in everyday life that refers to a property in Euclidean space of two or more lines or planes, or a combination of these. The assumed existence and properties of parallel lines are the basis of Euclid's parallel postulate. Two lines in a plane that do not...

 columns of buttons or snaps; by contrast, a single-breasted

Single-breasted

In clothing, single-breasted refers to a coat, jacket or similar garment having one column of buttons and a narrow overlap of fabric. In contrast, a double-breasted coat has a wider overlap and two parallel rows of buttons....

 coat has a narrow overlap and only one column of buttons. In most modern double-breasted coats, one column of buttons is decorative, while the other functional. The other buttons, placed on the outside edge of the coat breast, are either decorative (non-functional) or functional, allowing the overlap to fasten reversibly, right lapel over left lapel. To strengthen the fastening, a functional inner-button, called the jigger, is usually added to parallel-fasten the over-lapped layers together from the inside.

Suit jackets and blazers typically have one to four rows of buttons (each row containing two buttons), one or two of the rows functional – the others are decorative. Each fastening method is identified using “number-on-number” terminology; the first number is the total number of front buttons, the second is the number of fastening buttons below the lapels (i.e. the second number also is the number of corresponding buttonholes). Six-on-two and six-on-one (as shown in the picture on the right) are the common button stances, but others exist. Stylistically, double-breasted suit jackets usually have peaked lapels

Jacket lapel

Jacket lapels are the folded flaps of cloth on the front of a jacket or coat, and are most commonly found on formal clothing and suit jackets. Usually they are formed by folding over the front edges of the jacket or coat and sewing them to the collar, an extra piece of fabric around the back of the...

, and fasten left lapel over right lapel as usual for men's jackets.

The original double-breasted jacket has six buttons, with three to close. This originated from the naval reefer jacket. Because shorter men may find that six buttons overwhelms their shorter torso, a four or six button configuration in which only the bottom one fastens may be a better option. The four-button double-breasted jacket that buttons at the lower button is often called the "Kent", after the man who made it popular - the Duke of Kent.
Double-breasted suit jackets were popular from the mid-1930s until the late 1950s, and again from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s. Today, double-breasted jackets are not as popular, and it is difficult to find them at many retail clothing stores; however, they continue to be produced for and advocated by the high-end menswear lines of Joseph Abboud

Joseph Abboud

Joseph Abboud is an award-winning Lebanese American menswear fashion designer and author.-Family:The Abboud family was a working-class Christian Lebanese family that started out in the South End of Boston and later moved to the Roslindale section of Boston. Abboud's mother, Lila, was a seamstress...

 and Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren is an American fashion designer and business executive; best known for his Polo Ralph Lauren clothing brand.-Early life:...

, as well as by bespoke tailors such as Thomas Mahon

Thomas Mahon (tailor)

Thomas Mahon is an English master tailor, noted for outfitting the British Royal Family and for his popular blog, English Cut-Early Life, Education and Apprenticeship:...

; they have also seen a small comeback in European and American youth fashion, albeit in a slimmer, more modern cut.

Moreover, the overcoats – Pea coat

Pea coat

A pea coat is an outer coat, generally of a navy-colored heavy wool, originally worn by sailors of American and European navies. Pea coats are characterized by broad lapels, double-breasted fronts, often large wooden or metal buttons, and vertical or slash pockets...

 and trench coat

Trench coat

A trench coat or trenchcoat is a raincoat made of waterproof heavy-duty cotton drill or poplin, wool gabardine, or leather. It generally has a removable insulated lining; and it is usually knee-length.-History:...

 – are traditionally double-breasted; the single-breasted versions being civilian interpretations of a military fashion. Due to the double-breasted jacket's construction, it is usually not recommended to wear a double-breasted lounge suit unbuttoned, unlike the single-breasted jacket, which can be left open or unbuttoned. This is because the large amounts of overlapping fabric on a double-breasted jacket tender to gather at the sides when unbuttoned. There are, however, formal jackets which are designed to be worn unbuttoned, with a vest: These are designed to avoid the perceived unsightly gathering (see Tailcoat

Tailcoat

A tailcoat is a coat with the front of the skirt cut away, so as to leave only the rear section of the skirt, known as the tails. The historical reason coats were cut this way was to make it easier for the wearer to ride a horse, but over the years tailcoats of varying types have evolved into forms...

).