I’m probably not the only denimhunter who’s into vintage motorbikes too. To me, denim clothes and old bikes are in fact part of the same mind set and culture, they’ve stood the test of time and they don’t have to prove themselves or change every other day; we love them for what they are. When I’m on my bike (a ’79 Kawasaki Z650) I want to feel safe, but at the same time I want to be me. I care about what I wear, how it feels and how I look – also when I get off the bike. No one really likes to wear a pair of tight-fitted leather pants on a hot summer day, you want to wear denim!
Philadelphia is not only known for it’s rich history, but also it’s culture. A culture that once included many factories and garment manufacturers has since disappeared leaving Philadelphia with a void, and old-fashioned garment makers like Norman Porter is filling this void. A three man denim and leather goods operation run by denim lovers Michael and David Stampler and John Mahaffey, Norman Porter makes simple, well-made, no-frill, heritage inspired products that are built to last a lifetime.
Antwerp may not be the first place that springs to mind when you think of Harley’s, motorcycle charters and denim. However, between the two of them the founders of Eat Dust, Keith and Rob, have decades of experience with denim and the denim industry. Along with this they combine a solid friendship, a passion for motorbikes, good music and the eternal search for a good time. This all gets poured into Eat Dust resulting in a collection of garments and accessories that exude authenticity and originality. Keith and Rob were kind enough to take some time to have a chat and give us an in-depth look at where the brand is coming from and where it is headed.
High quality accessories are popular with denim lovers. Our search for quality handcrafted products and heritage brands often leads us to the discovery of beautiful products made with true passion and dedication. Recently, I made such a discovery when I encountered the breath-taking handcrafted leather goods from Hollows Leather out of Minneapolis, Minnesota. The man behind the name and the company is Nicholas Hollows who’s also quite the denimhunter himself. I asked him a few questions about his passion.
With 102,000 square metres of manufacturing space, a weekly cotton consumption of 1.1 million kilos of raw cotton, and a production capacity of 2.3 million square metres of denim each week, the Mount Vernon Mills denim plant in Trion, Georgia is one of the largest manufacturers of denim in North America. Watch the short documentary presented by Americana Classic Vintage of Stockholm here.
As with most consumer products of our time, denim is going green. One of the most polluting production steps of conventional denim manufacturing is pre-washing and distressing. Make no mistake, we preach to the choir that our salvation lies in dry denim, still we recognise the demand for pre-washed jeans. Levi’s call theirs Waste<Less, Nudie has it as part of the brand’s DNA, and now one of the biggest jeans suppliers to the Asian mainstream, Danish-based Jack & Jones, is also introducing a sustainable denim collection that lowers the use of water and energy and reduces the impact on the environment.
Founded by John H. Harvey in a log cabin in the eastern Wisconsin mountains in 1932, buried along with Harvey in 1979 and rediscovered in 2003 by a curious hiker, Clip & Rope has undergone quite some development since the brand was relaunched only some 18 months ago. For the spring 2013 season they take it even further with the introduction of rubber-soled sneakers and pre-treated leather boots. Here’s a preview of what to expect.
Need to carry all your favourite dry denim home for Christmas? This is the perfect bag for the job. Designed to carry plenty of cargo, this classic mid-sized Filson duffle bag is made of 18 oz. 100% Japanese selvage denim and the traditional natural coloured bridle leather straps. Plenty of pockets to keep all your belongings save. Like any other Filson bag it’s made in USA.
Last week, our Dutch friends at the Amsterdam Red Wing Shoes store announced this amazingly beautiful 11″ Engineer boot formerly exclusive to the Japanese Heritage collection – now available at European Red Wing Shoe stores. The styles is allotted 8268 and the leather is an oiled tanned extremely light Abilene Rough-Out in an almost white colour tone. Additionally, the 8268 has steel toecap and a heavy-weight Neoprene Cord sole just like the 2972 and the classic 2268. Have a closer look at it here.
Our good friends over at Norse Projects has captured the essence of what we’re all striving for when they say that, “the mark of true luxury is not in the grand gesture, but the simple things done well.” It’s an interpretation of other almost cliché-like sayings as “the devil’s in the details,” or “less is more.” But the fact is that it’s the truth. The Worker N.Y. bag brand is another example of the simple things done well. Created by native Italian, Christian Guernelli, who moved to the Big Apple and became inspired by the history, beauty, and energy of the city, Workers N.Y. is a contemporary translation old-world, high quality gear. Each bag is handmade in the US of durable, waxed cotton duck canvas sourced from New Jersey and high-quality leather sourced from California. We asked Christian a few questions.
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