Just got a nice little mailer from our footwear friends over at Volta. Last week they opened a DOPE pop up store in Soto with a party to remember, heck, even the Police made a guest appearance! The whole shenanigans was for the launch of their latest creation….

the STRADA

DOPE right? I’m even gonna throw a lil bonus pic of the STRADAs being complimented by some nice selvage denim…you know i’m obsessed with the stuff…

Volta have a totally sick site too, always a bonus. I usually skip over those boooooooooring site intro’s but this one for some reason I watched twice….heck yeah I like it. Sorry for the partial agression, it’s hard not to be when Drake - Over is on in the back.

Believe.

Who loves Superdenim?

I do! That online store is one of the dopest niche stores around and they’ve just settled down into a sweet little bricks and mortar location situated in the heart of York, just around the corner from the Minster. Now there’s tons of hype around what the boys are doing there on forums already, but we’re real buying fans here at RISE and we wanna’ say our piece too!

Hide and Seek brands like Studio D’Artisan, The Real McCoy’s and Mister Freedom are just some of the brands we’ve been dying to see stocked on UK shelves more frequently and we’re excited to see what else The RS is looking to bring in.

Go see for yourself!

The Rugged Standard

First Floor
19 High Petergate
York
YO1 7EN

It’s not a lie. I love Denim. Exclusively, jeans.
I have dreams about them, not actually dreams, but more future goals as to one day my involvement with something to do with jeans. Who knows? Maybe bring out my own brand or something! However, keeping on the purpose of this lil’ feature, I promised myself that I’d delve into my very narrow perspective in the world of jeans and dig out my top 10 selection that either transcend time, or are generally beautiful ‘garms’ for this new era of 2010 I am privileged to enter into.

Fits I generally go for are slim straight/ or a slim tapered fit and I’m a huge fan of the raw denim scene but i made the effort to slip in some others ranging in the low to mid end price range. I could have included the classics in there…but WHY? Just let this expand your knowledge base a lil so you keep your eyes open for those ‘wonder’ finds like I have and remember, jeans have gotta fit YOU! If they don’t fit well or mold to your shape then you can forget it, they wont work.

In order for masses of people not to bombard our inbox with hate mail towards me on my choices know this.

It’s an opinion, based on fact.

….and I’m bias.

Don’t worry, it’s not a countdown.

(1) Edwin SEN Raw Selvage 10oz Slim Fit Denim Jeans (Bought from ASOS at £38 rrp. £109.99)

One of the most lightweight and beautifully crafted pairs of Raw Selvage jeans I own. Featuring a straight slim fitting leg and high rise, zip fly with contrast orange flash and stitching, cinch back and then the cherry is really the selvage detailing on the coin and rear pockets. mmmmm. Typically there’s the leather patch on the side also with enough showing that if you slapped on a belt, you’d still see the tab…for all those who are truly vain. The denim really does feel lush.

(2) Blue premium raw selvage ‘TOKYO’ slim straight fit jeans by St.George by DUFFER (Bought at Debenhams at £18 rrp. £60)

NOW, these were a FIND! Seriously Debenhams selling Japanese Selvage Denim for £18?! The fit was totally what i was looking for to do some experimenting. Being straight, the leg opening was slightly wide for my liking, so a few adjustments (taking 2″ off the leg opening width and a slight taper from the knee) and they fit and feel like a high quality Raw pair of 501’s! They’ve even been mistaken for a pair. Button fly, rear white duffer leather patch, Selvage detailing on the coin pocket, 5 pockets, purple tartan hemming and pocket linen and I’m laughing! 4 months in and the wear is showing nicely! The photo above is slightly deceiving as the rise is comfortably high and not hugging as it does suggest.

(3) Meltin Pot REDUX Organic Limited Ed. Jeans (Bought from TK MAXX at £8 rrp.120+)

Meltin Pot had a new 15 piece organic collection hitting the shops called Redux in 2009. Each pair of the extremely limited edition jeans are dyed and washed with natural products such as wood, coal, jam, earth and yoghurt. The style of the jeans is inspired by the workwear of the 1930s and also apparently the Bauhaus artistic movement. There’s the ‘gumf’. Another pair of rare beauty. The finish even feels organic due to the most random ingredients used to do so. The thing I love is the super high rise making the crotch sit low (screams ‘ghetto’) AND has original bracer rivets as illustrated above…however i never wear bracers, so they just look cool. The fit is slim with a large taper to the leg so it hugs any hi-top footwear. In fact i doubled the turn ups on them to reveal a nice ’selvage-esque’ light blue edge on the seams. All in all a top 10 favourite find, and I havn’t seen another pair yet.

(4) LEVI’s DNA Seasonal Slim Tapered Hot Road Red Tab Jeans (Bought from End Clothing at £89 rrp. £115.00)

When these first were unveiled I knew I ‘needed’ a pair. Through some strange circumstances I actually got to try on a test pair and loved the feel in them and the pre-worn (GASPS) look worked perfectly. A year passed and I didn’t see them anywhere. Then I moved to the North East and something happened. I don’t know what happened exactly but I found them and I couldn’t let the moment pass without leaving with a pair. There is a few alternatives in the DNA range but the Seasonal Hot Road slim and the straight leg alternative are personal favourites. Denim history is apparently what you’re investing in. Levi’s went the full way to remake the classic Levis Red models with exaggerated features on stitching, oversized pockets and detailing, tags and buttons.

The wash is dark and also slightly fades to your natural contours after extensive wear as the bluevine was highlights fading areas like the knees. Again, definitely a pair to invest in if you admire the unique look and don’t want to be caught wearing the same pair as someone else.

Leg openings on the Seasonal’s are the widest in my top 10 collection, sitting nicely over a pair of all stars (covering the top 2 eyelets on a pair of 9’s) and hug nicely on the calf and side of the thighs when the weight is on the hips and not the waist. If you ever see them definitely have a try.

(5) Humor Santiago Jeans (Bought at £45…can’t remember where.. rrp.£95)

DEFINITELY, a favourite when it comes to the (currently ‘in’) carrot shaped jeans. No one does it better!

I first noticed Humor on a trip to Holland years ago and then Denmark almost 2 years ago when I saw a trend of brightly coloured tees with the classic headphone symbol slammed on the shoulder. Scene kids with the Santiago’s and Hummel Stadil Kicks and I thought, “this is so gonna catch in the UK”

Oh and it has! Humor have a mega exciting range coming to shops like Ark (Leeds),Yakuza (Sunderland) and UNION (Newcastle) and I salute them for embracing the Danish influx of influence upon the UK fashion scene.
Raw washed denim jeans from Humor with a rounded carrot leg shape. These cool new jeans feature a contrasting seam throughout with a button fly and panel crotch. I love how the button fly is half covered showing part of the contrasting white buttons and the glorious top button logo. The front of the jeans feature two pockets with one hidden coin pocket whilst the back of the jeans feature two large u shaped pockets. The classic Humor logo is embroidered on the rear waistline in the form of a patch. It is also embossed onto the buttons of the fly, eyelets at the back and a logo tag is attached to the rear right pocket. White eyelets also feature at the jean pockets. They’re intended to gather slightly at the top of a pair of hi-tops and for the crotch to sit real low. Nice.

If you’re interested they’re currently on sale at XILE

(6) Nudie Thin Finn Dry Organic Ecru Embo jeans (Bought at £42.50 rrp. £110)

The thing with Nudie jeans however is they really employ the ‘each to his/her own’ philosophy and so my opinion on this matter really is mine…based on fact. For the fit, I prefer these than the silver detailed Nudie Jeans Co Lab Bengt 16 Dry Indigo (avg. £140) or the Nudie 14oz Masa ‘made in Japan’ jeans (avg. £140) as a Nudie style (both currently sold at Oi Polloi). 10.75 oz denim from Turkey is a light but acceptable weight, especially when summer comes round, heavy weights can become a chore rather than a ‘wearing in’ pleasurable experiment. I had some major disappointment in acquiring these from Coggles, but i found it in my heart to forgive them (seeing as how there store is beautiful and their Marketing Director Rob is a quality guy) and got my hand on a pair. Worth it? Always.

Info?
Mid rise anti-fit five pocket organic cotton jeans in dark dry stretch denim (so 2% lycra is in there). Low yoke with skinny leg cut. Contrast stitching and white embroidery at back patch pockets instead of the classic contrast stitching. Signature logo leather patch at back. Zip fly.

(7) DR.DENIM Raw Selvage ‘Terrance’ 14oz Jeans (Bought at JOY Leeds at £18 rrp. £90)

Ok so if you don’t know, nor have ever heard of Dr.Denim firstly go over and check out Darryl de Necker’s Blog.

That should tell you all there is to know about the European gang.

These are most likely to be my most underrated jeans that i own. Premium Selvage denim that molds beautifully to the wearer and keeps some weight behind it. The ‘Terrance’ is my favourite fit, simple in design, ergonomically sound, weighty and bearing a deep indigo shade that many of my others are not close to. And for only £18 at joy, again, sever lol’ing was had as they feel more expensive, look more expensive, boy even taste more expensive than most.

Simple in design, and again not a common pair of jeans. you should also check out their website, it’s pretty boss.

(8) Trousers London ‘Trousers 6′ (rrp. £169)

I like our friends over at Trousers London. I like their vibe. I like their ethos. The important thing however is I like their denim.

One of my favourite and consistent brands has (of course for me) hit the nail on the head again with Trousers 6.

‘A sleek and streamlined skinny jean in organic denim with jaunty check lining’ and jaunty of the highest degree it is indeed.

100% Raw Organic Denim, Silver coloured metal-ware bearing the Trousers London motif, slim fitting, limited edition (so limited, each pair carries a unique ID number) jeans that are REAL high quality, so high, I’m not sure I want to wear them but simply frame them. I mean just look at those front pockets son! Maaaaaan. So much indigo I can smell it through the jpg. Nice taper, Nice slim, contour hugging fit, nice contrast stitching, nice seam curvature…just plain nice.

For funsies, the jeans are presented with their own Trousers London cotton carrier bag.

(9) A.P.C New Standards (donated! rrp.£110)

….They win every time…in context of wear that is, not denim comparison.
APC New Standard, a slim, regular-fitting jean. Standard to low rise, narrow hugging leg, very slightly tapered from the knee, giving a fairly narrow hem.

The Facts: Button-fly, 5 pocket style in dry red selvage denim. First button is engraved A.P.C. Paris pres du Luxembourg.

The common knowledge about these bad boys, is that they stretch….significantly. More in width then length. I mean I’m a size 32″-33″ waist standard, yet I slid into a size 30″ and could move. I prefer these over the other models such as New Cure (just didn’t feel right!) and Petite Standards (suffocated my calf’s). They’re a slightly wider cut yet still slim and fitted on me but again, it depends really on how much you size down.

Most of the Raw enthusiasts boast owning a pair….I can see why. However, still broaden your horizons my children.

(10) The Hundreds ‘Curson Denim’ (donated! r.r.p $138.00)

I guess if you really want  a pair you wont see anywhere else go state side. The Hundreds are one of my favourite collaboration brands, yet this pair of their exclusive jeans is a beauty. Ever seen gold and silver selvage lining? Well you have now! A slim fitting cut with silver hardware and gold trimming, a black jags patch on the left waistband (Americans….) and gold and silver signature jags embroidery over the left back pocket. Really I havn’t seen anywhere else boast the same trimmings…unless you want to go really extreme and shell out on a pair of Red Monkey Jeans. I like simplicity and ‘crispness’. These do just that. The size above is slightly big on the model, i prefer to size one down so they hug a little on the leg yet leave breathing space.

Like you care.

So, who’s happy?

BELIEVE.

In a market where exclusivity and innovation are proclaimed daily, true attention to detail can be something that is a lot harder to find in the fashion market. Trousers London product screams innovation, true exclusivity and also possibly exemplifies that special quality of attention to detail. With strong links to the world of architecture, a can-do attitude that defies the difficulties of breaking into the fashion world, and product that isn’t out of place next to Vivienne Westwood, and Karl Lagerfeld, Trousers London are making waves across the world. Four creatives with no previous industry links, Latvian pride and some English spirit, an un-heard of mix, out of which one of the most exciting and progressive denim labels around has risen.

Please introduce yourself, and what your role is at Trousers London.

My Name is Arturs and I’m one of the directors and founders of the Trousers London brand. I mainly deal with production and design issues, but being in a small company means that we all get to do everything, all of us get to design just as much as sell and promote.

What are the varied professional backgrounds of the team and how have these professional backgrounds shaped the brand?

We come from the fields of Architecture, Advertising, Business, Design and Social Media Marketing, the diversity of the team and collaboration of skills has definitely been our strength and helped in our progress.

The diverse backgrounds of the team were fundamental in the early development of the Trousers London brand. We have been largely self-sufficient in our creativity, there’s rarely anything that we need to outsource and if we do, it is through a collaboration and sharing of skills. This allows us to be more in control and enjoy the creative aspects of the business, so everything from the logo to photography to stitching is exactly how we imagined it to be. Architecture as a mode of 3D design influenced the birth of our design-lead denim brand. The brand has a strong web-presence and brand identity, which was made possible by the Advertising and Social Media Marketing background of the founders. The team consists of Me and Angel – both architecturally trained, Kaspar a media specialist and Marek who’s in advertising. The first three are based in London and are currently the main ‘’back-bone’’ of the brand. As we are not from the conventional schools of fashion, we have our own self-taught approach to the process of fashion design, marketing and promotion, which allows us to have a distinct, balanced and original approach, reflecting the progressive nature of the brand.

How did you guys meet, and end up coming to the decision that you could or should start a denim label?

Angel is my wife and Kaspar and Marek are old friends. Being designers by nature we always viewed clothing with a critical eye. The decision to start a denim label came about when the guys found it increasingly difficult to purchase denim that suited their tastes and we all began discussing, “what if we made our own jeans?”. We mulled it over for a while and scribbled down our ideas then decided, why not! We booked our first Trade Show space and this deadline set the wheels in motion.

Were there any other ideas on the table, or was it always denim? And if so why.

Denim was always the focus and interest of our little group. We knew there were other, less challenging, options but we never wavered from our original inspiration. Jeans were the item of clothing we wore more than anything else in our wardrobes, we really love our denim and it would be really exciting if we could wear our own. Jeans for us were the new Trousers, and hence the name was born.

What are the challenges of marketing a solely denim based line?

Presenting ourselves at a level which can compete with the established names in premium denim and creating consumer confidence in a new brand. Also, competing with the heritage denim brands and creating our own unique brand story. However, there are benefits from being focused on one specific product. We are able to explore patterns, fits, materials and production in a greater depth and the focus on denim prevents the designs becoming diluted resulting in a higher quality product and expertise.

Do you think there is any chance of limiting yourselves? What if you wanted to expand in the future, and move on from just doing trousers?

We do not think we are limiting ourselves. Currently the focus is to create a specialism in high-quality, directional men’s denim. From here we see that we can grow initially toward associated accessories such as belts and bags and from there to other garments. We perceive this growth as organic and a natural progression rather than a false and forced expansion. The name “Trousers London” at first glance may sound quite specific to trousers, but we do not view this as a barrier, we view the word “Trousers” more as an expression of “wearing the Trousers” meaning “being in charge”.

Would this kind of move challenge your integrity?

Any growth of the brand to encompass other garments and accessories would be conducted with the same attention to design, detail, quality and sustainability as the denim collections we produce. However, we would like Trousers London to be known for their distinctive denim as the core of the brand.
Format: Are there certain countries where the brand is stronger, and have you seen this change since the early stages of the brand?

The Japanese market is always ahead of the times, and as a pioneering brand, Trousers London is no exception to the rule. Our largest market is still the country of the rising Sun and also the many fun and funky people found elsewhere in the World, sometimes in the most unexpected of places.

Also, the UK market is starting to recognize Trousers London as a serious player in premium denim with the recently added stockists in London. This year we plan to expand our presence beyond London thanks to the growing interest from buyers across the country.

Where do you see yourselves sitting in the vast denim market, and why is your production and the brand unique?

There is a unique combination of people, ideas and experiences that are the foundations we are building upon. The aesthetics and 3D proportions of our designs are largely influenced by architectural design methods and our branding is a reflection of tradition and our origins.

The brand is unique in the way we are producing limited edition batches of jeans, each individually numbered with a view to creating a community from the wearers of TL. The approach to denim is as a collectable artwork of one-offs or limited edition runs. Trousers London is a premium brand with a sustainable outlook. We use only Organic denim for our jeans and production is carried out within the EU hence supporting the European economy and its fair working practices. Many European producers are having to fold due to fierce competition from the Asian countries and that is a real shame. Transparency in the supply chain is becoming a deciding factor for consumers.
Although higher prices may reflect our choice to manufacture closer to home, we believe that for the discerning customer, the quality and good conscience represented by a garment “made in Italy” using organic materials outweighs the money saved by purchasing a mass-produced item churned out of the sweatshops in the Third World. As a relatively new premium denim brand we believe that having a sustainable outlook should be a foundation and not an afterthought when building a brand. However, we believe that “design” should lead the way and endeavour to subtly recreate a garment that has become a staple in society and in doing this we make our statement and take a baby step towards seeing the world through fresh eyes and not taking the small things for granted.

With these presumably slightly costly morales, how are you moving forward in a climate dominated by recession?

Recession is like a season, which passes and then returns with a vengeance about the time when you’ve forgotten how it was the time before. I think brands who develop in these tough times are forced to be more cautious and calculated in their approach but as the economy regains momentum, as it eventually will, those brands emerge stronger, more stable than before and well equipped to withstand any subsequent recession. As a new premium brand, we are risk-takers in these times and ask those who follow us to do the same. We view the brand as a leader in the denim market and see that a direct consequence of risk is progress.

Where do you see yourselves in 2 years time?

I tend to be more interested in where we see ourselves right now in the present. I constantly look at the brand and recognise all the areas that need to be enhanced, what needs to be added or taken away. We all clearly know the position we want Trousers London to be in, whether it will take a year, two or more is not always up to us to decide. But as long as we keep up with those day-to-day improvements and don’t forget the ultimate aim, it’s as if we were already there.

And finally, where can we purchase Trousers London?

TL can be purchased from us directly on our online store www.trouserslondon.co.uk/shop – Here we offer one-off styles that are not currently available elsewhere, so it is always the best place to purchase our jeans, unless you have one of our stockists near by.

Our current list of stockists is available at www.trouserslondon.co.uk/where-to-buy, these are an expanding collection of high-end boutiques in Japan, UK and elsewhere.

Words by Tom Bracewell for FormatMag

Our good friends who run the brand Trousers London came all the way up to Birmingham and payed us a visit last week. TL is one of the most forward thinking denim labels around at the moment, with the potential to explode over the next few seasons. They dropped off the first load of stock at the store, and then we spent the rest of the day hanging out, planning to take over the world, learning how to freeze and febreeze jeans to get them clean, and drinking stella.

Although there are no pics of their product in this post, you can head over to their website and take a sneaky peak. They can also be found stocked in mr fredricks here in Birmingham which may be a lot closer for all you midlanders.

Here are some random snaps from our great day.

mr fredricks

Inside mr f’s during the refurb

Sewage leak roadblock pain in the ass

£249 selvedge levis x selfridges limited to 100 pairs, reduced to £49. And freeze and febreeze inside knowledge.

planning

thinking

arguing

Ranui

WTaps have dropped a new label on us called RATS. The first release from the new brand is a pair of Raw Selvedge Denim jeans, and they look pretty hot. These denim are comprised of 15oz. selvedge, and also have a pair of either devil, or rats tails embroidered on each back pocket. There are two colour options available for these bad boys.

According to The Hundreds feed, Nick Tershay from Diamond Supply Co. is ‘Big Nick Tershay’ but i don’t feel that we know Nick or Diamond Supply well enough to call him that…so we’re just gonna go with Mr Tershay. So…

Mr. Tershay of Diamond Supply Co. has thrown up a few sneak-peek pics of the up and coming denim from Diamond Supply. What they are calling the ‘Mined’ Denim jeans, we can see very little but of what we can see…they look sweet. Lots of time and effort has obviously been put into them, and i’m sure we’ll be seeing more soon. [thehundreds]

There were a few highlights of The Clothes Show which took place at the NEC a few weeks back now, and one of them was the Monkee Genes stand. Of all the stalls there, Monkee stood out as one of the only truely fresh, authentic brands…and to be honest one of the only stands that actually looked like they enjoyed their product.

Monkee Genes are designed in England by the Road team, who have over 25 years experience of the fashion trade, and in 2006 felt the time was ripe for something new and exciting. Monkee Genes exists to dispell the boredom in the jeans market, offering a vibrant and youthful alternative. Innovative fits and style lines, in top of the range fabrics, classic denims with a retro twist and luscious sateen in pop art inspired colours. Quality of fit and make are high on our schedule, in a world of cheap and disposable fashion manufactured without soul or identity, Monkee Genes offers an antithesis. Their ethos is to manufacture with conscience and without sweatshop labour. Simple. True to what they are, loving what they do, and producing some amazingly fresh threads.

The first affordable organic jeans with the Soil Association organic standard and the Global Organic Textile Standard / “G.O.T.S”. You need to get down with the Monkee magic.

No Blood. No Sweat. No Tears.

Original Fake have blessed us with images of their Glow in the Dark Denim. These fine denim jeans will release under Original Fake’s Fall/Winter 2008 Collection. Original Fake always seem to pull off great products everytime they have something to release. The back pockets feature the signature Original Fake/KAWS Companion X’s, are unwashed, and rock glow in the dark ink on the pockets. These jeans are offered in indigo or black. These very impressive jeans are avaiable at L’Intrus now. [thehundreds]

 


Any designer knows the proverb “the devil is in the details”.  This notion was certainly on the minds of  3sixteen’s Andrew Chen and Johan Lam before designing their first entry into denim.  The pairs essentially picked apart some of their favorite pairs and incorporate those same element onto the upcoming 3sixteen SL series.


Comprised of raw selvedge denim from Japan, each was then cut and hand sewn here in the US - to give the designers an on the site involvement in every crucial steps of the production process.  Finally, custom crafted rivets in gunmetal and a special leather patch with laser-engraved 3sixteen logo.  To secured the best possible selection for this all important element.  They worked closely with Portland-based Tanner Goods to obtain a 3 oz natural tan cow hide, which will aged naturally through the years the denim is worn.


Available in indigo (SL-100x) and black (SL-200x), both will arrive at 3sixteen retailers worldwide end of this month. [freshness]