Жилет и его история: от моды до функциональности

Sleeveless upper body garment

A waistcoat (UK and Commonwealth, '/w//eɪ//s//(//t//)////k//əʊ//t/ or '/w//ɛ//s//k//ə//t/; colloquially called a weskit) or vest (US and Canada) is a sleeveless upper body garment. It is usually worn over a dress shirt and necktie and below a coat as a part of most men's formal wear. It is also sported as the third piece in the traditional three piece male suit. Any given waistcoat can be simple or ornate, or for leisure or luxury. Historically, the waistcoat can be worn either in the place of, or underneath, a larger coat, dependent upon the weather, wearer, and setting. The term vest derives from the French language veste "jacket, sport coat", the term for a vest waistcoat in French today being gilet, the Italian language veste "robe, gown", and the Latin language vestis. Variations on this include that he forgot to fasten the lower button when dressing and this was copied. It has also been suggested that the practice originated to prevent the waistcoat riding up when on horseback. Undoing the bottom button avoids stress to the bottom button when sitting down; when it is fastened, the bottom of the waistcoat pulls sideways causing wrinkling and bulging, since modern waistcoats are cut lower than old ones. This convention only applies to single breasted day waistcoats and not double breasted, evening, straight hem or livery waistcoats that are all fully buttoned.

Waistcoats worn with lounge suits (now principally single breasted) normally match the suit in cloth, and have four to six buttons. Double breasted waistcoats are rare compared to single but are more commonly seen in morning dress. These may either match the colour of the morning coat or be in a contrasting colour, commonly buff, dove gray, or powder blue.

The waistcoats worn with white and black tie are different from standard daytime single breasted waistcoats, being much lower in cut (with three buttons or four buttons, where all are fastened). The much larger expanse of shirt compared to a daytime waistcoat allows more variety of form, with "U" or "V" shapes possible, and there is large choice of outlines for the tips, ranging from pointed to flat or rounded. The colour normally matches the tie, so only black barathea wool, grosgrain or satin and white marcella, grosgrain or satin are worn, although white waistcoats used to be worn with black tie in early forms of the dress. Waiters, sometimes also waitresses, and other people working at white tie events, to distinguish themselves from guests, sometimes wear gray tie, which consists of the dress coat of white tie (a squarely cut away tailcoat) with the black waistcoat and tie of black tie.

The variant of the clergy cassock may be cut as a vest. It differs in style from other waistcoats in that the garment buttons to the neck and has an opening that displays the clerical collar. In the Church of England, a particular High Church clerical vest introduced in the 1830s was nicknamed the "M. B. Waistcoat" with "M. B." standing for the Mark of the Beast.

In the Girl Scouts of the USA, vests are used as an alternative to the sash for the display of badges.

Waistcoats, alongside bowties, are commonly worn by billiard players during a tournament. It is usually worn in snooker and blackball tournaments in the United Kingdom.

The predecessors to the waistcoat are the Middle Age era doublet (clothing) and gambeson.

Various types of waistcoats may have been worn in theatrical manners such as performances and masquerades prior to what is said to be the early origins of the vest. The justacorps frock coat was copied from the long zupans worn in Poland and Ukraine, the necktie or cravat was derived from a scarf worn by Croatian mercenaries fighting for King Louis XIII of France, and the brightly coloured silk waistcoats popularised by King Charles II of England were inspired by exotic Indian and Persian attire acquired by wealthy English travellers. On October 7 of the year 1666, King Charles II of England revealed that he would be launching a new type of fashion piece in men's wear. Samuel Pepys, the diarist and civil servant, wrote in October 1666 that "the King hath yesterday in council declared his resolution of setting a fashion for clothes which he will never alter. It will be a vest, I know not well how". This royal decree provided the first mention of the waistcoat. Pepys records "vest" as the original term; the word "waistcoat" derives from the cutting of the coat at waist level, since at the time of the coining, tailors cut men's formal coats well below the waist (see dress coat). An alternative theory is that, as material was left over from the tailoring of a two piece suit, it was fashioned into a "waste coat" to avoid that material being wasted, although recent academic debate has cast doubt on this theory. During the 17th century, troops of the regular army – and to some degree also local militia – wore waistcoats which were the reverse colour of their overcoats. It is believed that these were made by turning old worn out standard issue overcoats inside out (so that the lining colour appeared on the outside) and removing the sleeves. The term "waistcoat" might therefore also be derived from the wastage of the old coat. During the 17th and 18th centuries, men often wore elaborate and brightly coloured waistcoats, until changing fashions in the nineteenth century narrowed this to a more restricted palette, and the development of lounge suits began the period of matching informal waistcoats.

After the French Revolution of 1789, anti aristocratic sentiment in France (and elsewhere in Europe) influenced the wardrobes of both men and women, and waistcoats followed, becoming much less elaborate. After about 1810 the fit of the waistcoat became shorter and tighter, becoming much more secondary to the frock coat and almost counting as an undergarment, although its popularity was larger than ever. With the new dandyism of the early 19th century, the waistcoat started to change roles, moving away from its function as the centrepiece of the visual aspect of male clothing, towards serving as a foundation garment, often with figure enhancing abilities. From the 1820s onwards, elite gentlemen—at least those among the more fashionable circles, especially the younger set and the military—wore corsets. The waistcoat served to emphasise the new popularity of the cinched in waist for males, and became skin tight, with the overcoat cut to emphasise the figure: broader shoulders, a pouting chest, and a nipped in waist. Without a corset, a man's waistcoat often had whalebone stiffeners and were laced in the back, with reinforced buttons up the front, so that one could pull the lacings in tight to mould the waist into the fashionable silhouette. Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, had a reputation for his tight corsets and tiny waist; and although he lacked popularity during his early reign, men followed his style, and waistcoats became even more restrictive. This fashion remained throughout the 19th century, although after about 1850 the style changed from that of a corseted look to a straighter line, with less restriction at the waist, so that the waistcoat followed a straighter line up the torso. Toward the end of the century, the Edwardian look made a larger physique more popular—King Edward VII having a large figure.

Waistcoats are popular within the indie and steampunk subcultures in the United States. Vests are often worn both open or closed, over dress shirts and even t shirts. Non formal types of waistcoat have been used in workers uniforms, such as at Walmart prior to 2007, and as high visibility clothing (usually the bright "safety orange" colour). During the 2018 FIFA World Cup, the manager of the England football team, Gareth Southgate, was often seen wearing a waistcoat. British retailer Marks & Spencer, the official suit provider for the national team, reported a 35% increase in waistcoat sales during England's first five games at the tournament. Fashion search platform Lyst also reported that online waistcoat searches increased by over 41% during the course of the World Cup. Part way through the tournament, the Museum of London announced that it hoped to acquire Gareth Southgate's waistcoat in order to display it as part of its permanent collection of historic clothing. In the run up to England's semi final match against Croatia, the blood cancer charity, Bloodwise, encouraged fans to take part in 'Waistcoat Wednesday' to help raise funds for the charity, while also supporting the England team.