A letterman jacket, sometimes referred to as a letter jacket or varsity jacket, is a timeless way to highlight your proudest high school achievements and unwavering school pride. You can show off special awards you’ve earned through athletics, academics or activities and track your progress over time with special inserts that sit on top of your chenille letter. This tradition spans generations and goes all the way back to 1865!

It is said that this tradition began in 1865 at Harvard University. The best players on the baseball team added a large “H” to their grey sweaters to distinguish themselves — and they had to continue to play well to keep their “letter.” These were known as “letter sweaters,” and as the years went by, other Ivy League schools started to get in on the tradition. Today, letterman jackets are used to recognize outstanding high school students with remarkable achievements and celebrate their school pride.

The chenille letter is traditionally worn on the left chest, right over the heart.

Each school has their own criteria for earning a letter — to see if you have lettered, please check with your school’s activities department. Once you have confirmed that you’re eligible to purchase an official letter jacket, you can customize and order one online or work with your Jostens representative to place an order. 

We make it easy to customize your letter jacket — our online builder will walk you through every step of the process. You’ll add your school’s letter, embroider your name, add the patches you’ve earned on the sleeves and design the back side of your jacket. If you prefer to work directly with your school’s local Jostens rep, you can reach out to them anytime to start an order.

Your school will decide what the base jacket looks like (colors, garment style/details, what the chenille letter looks like) and how many jacket options they will offer. You get to add the patches you’ve earned, add custom embroidery (most students have their name stitched onto the chest) and select any upgrades you would like. We offer over 100 different letter jacket patches — there’s one for almost every interest and achievement. 

Letter jackets may not be available for all schools; patch and customization options vary by school. 

A typical base letterman jacket starts around $200. Each add-on, like your school’s chenille patch, an activity patch, a sports patch or custom embroidery, will have its own individual cost — so will upgrades like leather sleeves. 

We understand that a custom-made letter jacket is an investment, so we offer a variety of ways to pay for it. Families can pay up front with a card, Apple Pay, Cash App or PayPal or spread out the cost with a buy now, pay later option like Afterpay, PayPal Credit or PayPal Pay Later.  

Full details here.