There is some debate about its provenance, but most agree that denim originated in Nîmes, France. Originally known as “serge de Nîmes”, the material quickly spread around Europe and across the Atlantic due to its strength and durability. Debunked legend even tells that Columbus’s ships were equipped with denim sails. But regardless of how the material came to the States, it’s an irrefutable symbol of American heritage. Denim covered westward bound wagons during Manifest Destiny and outfitted laborers during the Gold Rush. Despite how we may feel about those histories today, denim was as tough, as durable, and as stubborn as the people who wore it into the wild unknown. In my personal opinion, few other denim brands live up to this heritage as well as Tellason.
Left Field is a brand that embodies the true American spirit. Started in 1998 by Christian McCann, Left Field was built with the vision of making quality clothing that would stand the test of time and stand out from the crowd. Fifteen years later, Left field has gained a notoriety in the American denim industry by doing just that.
The Bread & Butter 2013 winter show saw quite a few noteworthy news on the high-end denim scene. One of such was the launch of the Stockholm-based premium brand Circle of Friends; a combination of decades of know-how, excellent make and fitting, fashion-minded detailing, and one of the most honest and transparent approaches to denim production witnessed so far. Like no other brand out there, the vision of Circle of Friends is to bring together denim professionals from all over the world to share their experience, their attention to detail and their choices of material to make great garments.
This could very well be a citation from my mental denim dictorary of ‘Tellason’: an All-American denim brand from the hometown and birthplace of jeans, San Francisco, that is steadily turning into one of the most successful commercial high-end heritage denim brands. The two founders, Tony Patella and Pete Searson, have been friends for two decades and they have, “always had an affinity for all things well crafted and authentic,” as they put it. After 20 years the apparel industry working for other brands, they felt it was time to take things into their own hands and make something for themselves. I visited the Danish distributor of Tellason to have a closer look af the products.
The guys begin the Self Edge shops in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York are possibly the most focused, enthusiastic, and geeky denim heads in the business. At least if you leave out the Japanese. Their lastest top-of-the-shelf product comes from Roy Slaper, the one man jeansmaker who had a loomstate selvage denim fabric developed by Cone Mills’ White Oak plant – the first time they’ve done that in 60 years.
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