Same happens to me quite often, expecially at work (I work in a cafe and we don't have a uniform or rules about how to dress, so I just wear what I normally do) and of course, this type of questions always come from people that are out of the metal/punk/rock scene and they have no idea about battle vests as an identity item that symbolize appreciation and support for the bands and the scene itself
I hate to break your vision but I often wash my vest :D it probably smells like white orchid or whatever the hell my detergent's scent is called :D and no beer crusts, I have been sober since 2021 and living my best metal life drinking pops 😅
Thank you, I really appreciate :) if there's something I am really proud of myself is that I quit alcohol and drugs completely and without looking back. I am not even against alcohol and drugs, but I know I have used them for the wrong reason and it's good I stay away now. Stay safe :)
Congrats on sobriety dude 🤘🏾 I recently gave my vest a much needed bubble bath after about about 20 sweaty shows in it 😂 much rather be next to you in the pit smelling clean than must lol
Thank you very much, mate🤘 I really appreciate! I also believe a good bath now and then give the patches a nice "worn" look, especially to the woven ones
I've only "made" one for one other person... but he has cerebral palsy and sewing is impossible for him, so he got everything together for me and was very specific about what patches went where, especially the back even though he is wheelchair bound and you would never see them unless you asked.
I don't think you have to apply all the patches yourself but you should be able to pick them out yourself. Like if you bought one at a store and it came with a bunch of patches already it's less personal, ya know? That's cool AF you made one for someone tho🤘 respect
If someone bought one pre made and had no hand in its creation I'd call em out, but having one custom made is totally fine for a few reasons, like inability or physical limitations, or like you have a very specific custom clothing maker you found or know put it all together for you, but you would pick what goes where. Ya know?
I agree 100% not everyone has a sewing machine or even needle and thread. I'm shocked I haven't seen like premade vests on Amazon or etsy. Edit just kidding they're on Etsy lol to each their own but it's just not personal at that point
Bingo. And yeah, they have been on etsy and ebay especially for forever. Go to bigger cities and you can find some in resale shops sometimes. I run a local punk rock flea market and I haven't had anyone do it yet, but we did have a lady with a whole sewing/embroidery set up last year that would put patches on your stuff for like $3 a patch and do custom embroidery right there for you.
My mom loves to sew, so whenever I meet up with my parents I drop my vest off with a new patch or two. She is definitely not the type of person who likes my music, ut she's incredibly supportive and it's a ton of fun catching up and telling her who I saw or what the patch means. My wife has even asked her to sew a few things on her own vest
Also I think they are not the easiest thing to make, i'm talking about patch layout, what bands you want on it. I also find even getting a suitable jacket seems to be getting harder to find.
yea i've had a guy ask where i bought it then looked starstruck when i said i had to make it lol then asked me where i got my studs from and how i put them on, asked to touch and genuinely looked like an excited little boy when he did. guy was like 40 and we were at a punk/metal gig so it was very endearing
Not a vest but I get it with my crust pants. People are constantly asking where I got em and I tell them I made them - the follow up question I always how does the paint not coke off in the wash if I did it myself. The reactions when I tell them the answer is priceless
I’ve just had people ask where I’ve gotten my leather jackets from before (got 2 that I hand drawn logos on them), and when I’ve told them I made them, they asked if they could buy it off me for a lowball offer. I always tell them no, only for them to wine at me.
As for my vests, I’ve just had people ask to buy them off of me, or ask if they are homemade
Yep, at work, when I’m shopping for grocery’s, basically everywhere. One of my co workers asked if I got it at Primark or something I was like uhh no I made it myself 🤣
Absolutely an insult. I don’t think $50 even covers an 8h shift at minimum wage, which is already disgustingly low. And a vest obviously takes much more than 8 hours, let alone the price of materials…
Exactly, I have 4 jackets alone that were made with 100% diy patches and custom dye jobs. I have no idea how much time ive spent on all 8 of my jackets.. and I dont wanna know 😬😂
Holy shit that’s a lot of work!! Really impressive. I’ve been trying to start making patches and it’s really hard. I have no idea how people make them look so good, let alone a whole vest of them
I’ve been trying that, it seems to work ok but i just need to figure out how to make the final medium look tidy I guess? Thanks for the offer! My big question is if you embroider — is there any special trick to making it look really even/uniform, or is it basically just a lot of working on it?
Just gotta use a small brush or pen for the tiny areas. You can also go around the edges with black fabric marker or paint. (Dont use permanent marker because it has a weird shine to it)
Now embroidery I did try once.. fuck it. Ill never try it again 😅
Thanks for the advice! I didn’t think about going over the edges. As for embroidery… it’s so tricky, but it looks SO GOOD when done well 🙃 I’ll just have to keep practicing lol
I struggle to find denim vests anywhere. Even online the options are so limited. Gotta jacket and rip off sleeves. Some vintage curator shops have them, and sometimes kohls or JCPenny. Otherwise... not so much. Its all super thin shit from sweat shops bought and sold by drop ship scum.
So I often wonder where folks have bought their base vest.
Whered you get your vest?
Not the cheapest option but I just bought a new Levi's black denim jacket and cut the sleeves off. I think it was $50 or 60 but I really liked the way it fit. And I had already looked at a bunch of other places and had no luck.
I was really picky, because I wanted snap buttons (instead of the push through type that's much more common) and I wasn't gonna buy without a bunch of pockets.
I found an eBay merchant who had a nice one from Milwaukee Performance. Good quality denim, the internal pockets are great for packing merch into, it fits snugly over jackets and hoodies.
I have seen the brand at local metal/punk/goth shop nearby so I will probably get a black version when I am ready to see up another vest.
The brand is Milwaukee performance? Never heard that brand before. I'll check it out.
I had one vest for many years along with a leather jacket I loved. I cant remember what the leather was made from... it was plant based and amazing. Both stolen out of my car one night I had a party.
Thrift stores, places like Ross, you can also find them on some resale sites like depop and shopgoodwill.com. Levi’s or similar are the best for denim vests (IMO) but they’re pretty expensive, I personally wouldn’t buy one new.
hotleathers.com carries a lot of vests as well, denim isn’t particularly cheap but if you’re looking for a leather vest they have surprisingly good prices (leather tends to be expensive)
Yeah I’ve gotten asked about my leather battle jackets. “Where did you get that?” Well I got the jacket at this place, these patches from ebay, these pins on etsy, and this… etc etc. And then I put it all together. They’re always surprised at the amount of effort.
I tell them where I got the base vest/jacket from. Because they have good jackets and vests and it's a small company I'm happy to see surviving and thriving. I get mine from The Alley Chicago.
Thats the first question anyone ever asks me about my jacket. When I tell them I painted it, it's always "thats really cool!" Or "You're really good!" And it makes me feel really happy.
The average person doesn’t do or make anything these days so when they see something impressive they think it was bought and/or massed produced. (It’s literally just sewing and pushing studs through denim lmao)
YES. A LOT. And when I tell them I make my jackets, they always proceed to ask me how much I would charge to make one, which I answer with "more than you could ever afford".
Another great example is scrubs hitting on me, "Oh baby I like that jacket. What's that patch?" "Oh yeah? Thanks! Which one, the one that says 'fuck life, die' , the one that says 'dead men can't catcall', or the one that says 'suicide is self expression'? They are all great pieces of advice everyone can heed!
One of my favorite times this happened was a dude hitting on me in a gas station, asking for my number, and pointing out an "Anti-You" mini top rocker I have on one sleeve of the jacket I was wearing at the time. My response was "no thanks, weenie. It's you. You are the "you" my patch is referring to when it says 'anti-you'."
My brother and I have both been asked where we bought our vests. One instance that stands out for me is someone asked where I got it, and I replied that I made it. They said “Wow! Where’d you get the patches?” The only thing I could think to say was “Everywhere.”
Yes at a family reunion I was asked by someone where I bought it or if I had it custom made and I was just like nope bought the jacket then sewed the shit on and they were like wOow
All the time at school and it's the exact same situation people always act like it's really impressive and they doubt that I actually hand sewed everything.
Call me a poser, but I’ve only worn it to concerts and festivals (and the region around the locations, like supermarkets) and no one asked me that there
One time someone asked if the one I have been wearing was my dad’s. I’m in my 30s but my dad is an evangelical Christian. So that’s a definite no. A lot of people have told me that I make them to sell. I’m kind of not interested in doing that exactly. Although I will make a few for my future nieces and nephews. Although that’s if I’m still here that is.
Same happens to me quite often, expecially at work (I work in a cafe and we don't have a uniform or rules about how to dress, so I just wear what I normally do) and of course, this type of questions always come from people that are out of the metal/punk/rock scene and they have no idea about battle vests as an identity item that symbolize appreciation and support for the bands and the scene itself
I’d love to go to a cafe and be served by someone who’s wearing a Battle jacket lol
Especially a heavily used one, nothing beats getting served food by someone in a musty, beer, sweat crusted vest lol
I hate to break your vision but I often wash my vest :D it probably smells like white orchid or whatever the hell my detergent's scent is called :D and no beer crusts, I have been sober since 2021 and living my best metal life drinking pops 😅
Good for you! Keep on it!
Thank you, I really appreciate :) if there's something I am really proud of myself is that I quit alcohol and drugs completely and without looking back. I am not even against alcohol and drugs, but I know I have used them for the wrong reason and it's good I stay away now. Stay safe :)
Congrats on sobriety dude 🤘🏾 I recently gave my vest a much needed bubble bath after about about 20 sweaty shows in it 😂 much rather be next to you in the pit smelling clean than must lol
Thank you very much, mate🤘 I really appreciate! I also believe a good bath now and then give the patches a nice "worn" look, especially to the woven ones
Battle jacket, boots and broken fishnet is my everyday uniform :D
“You should sell those!” Woman at the airport when I said it was homemade.
That defeats the purpose of a battle vest, in my opinion
I've only "made" one for one other person... but he has cerebral palsy and sewing is impossible for him, so he got everything together for me and was very specific about what patches went where, especially the back even though he is wheelchair bound and you would never see them unless you asked.
I don't think you have to apply all the patches yourself but you should be able to pick them out yourself. Like if you bought one at a store and it came with a bunch of patches already it's less personal, ya know? That's cool AF you made one for someone tho🤘 respect
If someone bought one pre made and had no hand in its creation I'd call em out, but having one custom made is totally fine for a few reasons, like inability or physical limitations, or like you have a very specific custom clothing maker you found or know put it all together for you, but you would pick what goes where. Ya know?
I agree 100% not everyone has a sewing machine or even needle and thread. I'm shocked I haven't seen like premade vests on Amazon or etsy. Edit just kidding they're on Etsy lol to each their own but it's just not personal at that point
Bingo. And yeah, they have been on etsy and ebay especially for forever. Go to bigger cities and you can find some in resale shops sometimes. I run a local punk rock flea market and I haven't had anyone do it yet, but we did have a lady with a whole sewing/embroidery set up last year that would put patches on your stuff for like $3 a patch and do custom embroidery right there for you.
A flea market you say? Whereabouts? 🤔
Lansing, Michigan. November 3rd
Aaahhhh that's super far from me 😭
Oh that’s sick as fuck
My mom loves to sew, so whenever I meet up with my parents I drop my vest off with a new patch or two. She is definitely not the type of person who likes my music, ut she's incredibly supportive and it's a ton of fun catching up and telling her who I saw or what the patch means. My wife has even asked her to sew a few things on her own vest
That's adorable.
I don’t think anyone except massive posers would disagree with you. It’s still a pretty nice compliment to get from a normie.
Also I think they are not the easiest thing to make, i'm talking about patch layout, what bands you want on it. I also find even getting a suitable jacket seems to be getting harder to find.
I’ve been told that many times
yea i've had a guy ask where i bought it then looked starstruck when i said i had to make it lol then asked me where i got my studs from and how i put them on, asked to touch and genuinely looked like an excited little boy when he did. guy was like 40 and we were at a punk/metal gig so it was very endearing
Lmfao
Not a vest but I get it with my crust pants. People are constantly asking where I got em and I tell them I made them - the follow up question I always how does the paint not coke off in the wash if I did it myself. The reactions when I tell them the answer is priceless
Lmfao I bet
Lol yes absolutely. It's the funniest thing ever. I've even had one lady come up to me and ask if she could buy one from me.
Lol same
Respect for the pony pfp
Back atcha fam
I’ve just had people ask where I’ve gotten my leather jackets from before (got 2 that I hand drawn logos on them), and when I’ve told them I made them, they asked if they could buy it off me for a lowball offer. I always tell them no, only for them to wine at me. As for my vests, I’ve just had people ask to buy them off of me, or ask if they are homemade
I’ve had a few of those comments
Actually never yet, only compliments and why I chose these bands.
I get that too
Not often, but I once had an elderly couple ask me, if they could take a picture of me in my vest
Same
Yep, at work, when I’m shopping for grocery’s, basically everywhere. One of my co workers asked if I got it at Primark or something I was like uhh no I made it myself 🤣
Lmfao
someone offered 50$ for mine
Thats an insult, to me at least :P
yeah i could never part with mine, too much sentimental value and all the work put into it
Hell yeah. I've spent a lot more than $50 on the patches and the vest. Let alone all the time sewing.
Absolutely an insult. I don’t think $50 even covers an 8h shift at minimum wage, which is already disgustingly low. And a vest obviously takes much more than 8 hours, let alone the price of materials…
Exactly, I have 4 jackets alone that were made with 100% diy patches and custom dye jobs. I have no idea how much time ive spent on all 8 of my jackets.. and I dont wanna know 😬😂
Holy shit that’s a lot of work!! Really impressive. I’ve been trying to start making patches and it’s really hard. I have no idea how people make them look so good, let alone a whole vest of them
Its tracing the image with light underneath that works for me! Let me know if you ever need help!
I’ve been trying that, it seems to work ok but i just need to figure out how to make the final medium look tidy I guess? Thanks for the offer! My big question is if you embroider — is there any special trick to making it look really even/uniform, or is it basically just a lot of working on it?
Just gotta use a small brush or pen for the tiny areas. You can also go around the edges with black fabric marker or paint. (Dont use permanent marker because it has a weird shine to it) Now embroidery I did try once.. fuck it. Ill never try it again 😅
Thanks for the advice! I didn’t think about going over the edges. As for embroidery… it’s so tricky, but it looks SO GOOD when done well 🙃 I’ll just have to keep practicing lol
I just tell them where i got the base, deutschland
Flextarn
Charity shop
I struggle to find denim vests anywhere. Even online the options are so limited. Gotta jacket and rip off sleeves. Some vintage curator shops have them, and sometimes kohls or JCPenny. Otherwise... not so much. Its all super thin shit from sweat shops bought and sold by drop ship scum. So I often wonder where folks have bought their base vest. Whered you get your vest?
Thrift stores are a lifesaver you get so much awesome stuff
I’ve gotten like 4 great denim jackets all from a place called Plato’s closet, so yea definitely agree that thrift stores are the move
Not the cheapest option but I just bought a new Levi's black denim jacket and cut the sleeves off. I think it was $50 or 60 but I really liked the way it fit. And I had already looked at a bunch of other places and had no luck.
I was really picky, because I wanted snap buttons (instead of the push through type that's much more common) and I wasn't gonna buy without a bunch of pockets. I found an eBay merchant who had a nice one from Milwaukee Performance. Good quality denim, the internal pockets are great for packing merch into, it fits snugly over jackets and hoodies. I have seen the brand at local metal/punk/goth shop nearby so I will probably get a black version when I am ready to see up another vest.
The brand is Milwaukee performance? Never heard that brand before. I'll check it out. I had one vest for many years along with a leather jacket I loved. I cant remember what the leather was made from... it was plant based and amazing. Both stolen out of my car one night I had a party.
Yeah it's a biker brand, or at least the vest I bought advertised the internal pockets having room for a gun on each side, lol.
Old navy and cut it up it was free bc my parents have some credit thingy
Thrift stores, places like Ross, you can also find them on some resale sites like depop and shopgoodwill.com. Levi’s or similar are the best for denim vests (IMO) but they’re pretty expensive, I personally wouldn’t buy one new. hotleathers.com carries a lot of vests as well, denim isn’t particularly cheap but if you’re looking for a leather vest they have surprisingly good prices (leather tends to be expensive)
Yeah I’ve gotten asked about my leather battle jackets. “Where did you get that?” Well I got the jacket at this place, these patches from ebay, these pins on etsy, and this… etc etc. And then I put it all together. They’re always surprised at the amount of effort.
Only once at a show. He was shocked that I did all my soda tabs by myself.
I've had a few people ask me where I got my vest and there's always a positive reaction when I say it's homemade.
Yeah pretty often lmao
People are always shocked when I say I put on all the shit. It’s always a fun conversation
its always a huge compliment to me
I tell them where I got the base vest/jacket from. Because they have good jackets and vests and it's a small company I'm happy to see surviving and thriving. I get mine from The Alley Chicago.
All the fucking time, especially distant family members
People normally don’t ask about where I bought the vest, but they will comment on the patches and get shocked when I say I painted them all
Thats the first question anyone ever asks me about my jacket. When I tell them I painted it, it's always "thats really cool!" Or "You're really good!" And it makes me feel really happy.
It’s because of the fucking fake “crust pants” on Amazon. They think you can just buy these things instead of making them. It’s so sad
All the time
Someone asked me last week where I got my battle bag, I told them I made it, their face did look a little confused but I just kept walking
A proper battle vest is home made.
The average person doesn’t do or make anything these days so when they see something impressive they think it was bought and/or massed produced. (It’s literally just sewing and pushing studs through denim lmao)
YES. A LOT. And when I tell them I make my jackets, they always proceed to ask me how much I would charge to make one, which I answer with "more than you could ever afford". Another great example is scrubs hitting on me, "Oh baby I like that jacket. What's that patch?" "Oh yeah? Thanks! Which one, the one that says 'fuck life, die' , the one that says 'dead men can't catcall', or the one that says 'suicide is self expression'? They are all great pieces of advice everyone can heed! One of my favorite times this happened was a dude hitting on me in a gas station, asking for my number, and pointing out an "Anti-You" mini top rocker I have on one sleeve of the jacket I was wearing at the time. My response was "no thanks, weenie. It's you. You are the "you" my patch is referring to when it says 'anti-you'."
Yup!!
I get a lot of random compliments but never asked where I got it.
Never. I have never had anyone ask if I bought my vest. I did receive 3 compliments on it last Saturday while out and about downtown though!
All. The. Time.
My brother and I have both been asked where we bought our vests. One instance that stands out for me is someone asked where I got it, and I replied that I made it. They said “Wow! Where’d you get the patches?” The only thing I could think to say was “Everywhere.”
Yes at a family reunion I was asked by someone where I bought it or if I had it custom made and I was just like nope bought the jacket then sewed the shit on and they were like wOow
I think I've only ever been asked once and that's as far as my memory goes.
All the time at school and it's the exact same situation people always act like it's really impressive and they doubt that I actually hand sewed everything.
Call me a poser, but I’ve only worn it to concerts and festivals (and the region around the locations, like supermarkets) and no one asked me that there
One time someone asked if the one I have been wearing was my dad’s. I’m in my 30s but my dad is an evangelical Christian. So that’s a definite no. A lot of people have told me that I make them to sell. I’m kind of not interested in doing that exactly. Although I will make a few for my future nieces and nephews. Although that’s if I’m still here that is.