Sorry guys, some bad code, some picture issues, and frankly… not enough time has made the Denim Debate being left on the back burner for me. Rest assured we are working on a new iteration of the DD, and it should impress. Please hang tight as we revamp and retool for a better presentation of the best denim brands and their stores…
As we are strategizing the next steps in the Debate, please leave us and helpful comments or ideas you would like to see in the next version!
Thanks,
Ryan
#WhatI’vehadonforthepastyear
Gave these a wash while back in Nashville over Thanksgiving. Gentle cycle, a touch of Bronner’s. Hang dried until damp then wore them the rest of the way to dry. They’re my go-to, continue to fade so nicely and have a ton more wear left in ‘em. Stay tuned.
I’ll get some more info from Emil on the fit and these soon…
Here is some info on the materials and denim:
16oz Japanese blue-line selvedge denim
- Cut and sewn in Leicester, England
- 100% cotton thread
- Deep V yoke adds room in the seat
- Large square back pockets, lined with English selvedge calico, overlap the yoke
- Front pockets angled for ease of entry; pocket mouth will soften and curve with use
- Pocket mouths reinforced with hidden selvedge strips for durability
- Hip-stitched pencil slot in right pocket
- Reverse top-stitched inseam and double-stitched yoke prevent blowouts in the crotch and seat
- 6 belt loops lined with English selvedge calico
- Double folded hems for maximum “rope” fading
- Care label attached to yoke at back, can be removed if desired
- Removable brass waist button is cast in small batches using time-consuming “lost wax” method
- Kick-pressed copper dome rivets
- Finished jeans are dip-dyed by hand in pure vegetable indigo by Woad-Inc. in Norfolk, England
- Dye sourced from Amigos del Anil, an indigo farm in El Salvador (this region is the plant’s native home)
- Though unsanforized, the jeans shrink during the dip-dyeing process
Hi, my name is Alan Javillonar and I write A FinancialStatement-The Jeans: Kicking Mule Workshop Straight Leg 1950 Jean in Raw Selvedge
-The Details:Kicking Mule Workshop, a denim line based in Boulder, CO, produces acollection that blends classic American style with Japanese craftsmanshipand simplicity. Every single exterior stitch found on the jeans is fullyfunctional, with the exception of the signature Kicking Mule Workshop “kick-stitch”. Belt loops reinforced with cording, back pockets lined with Pimacotton, hidden rivets, and chain-stitched hems make each pair of KMW jeansdurable and dependable. Kicking Mule Workshop uses their own exclusivecustom organic Japanese denim, complete with all white selvedge, made inOkayama Prefecture to fashion their products.
Classic fit with slight tapering from the knee down
13.75 oz., left hand twill (“s” twill), 100% organic Zimbabwean cotton, ropedyed in natural indigo woven on old shuttle looms and made in Japan’sOkayama prefecture
Considered Ready to Wear
Satin Nickel Doughnut Buttons
Hand hammered alloy rivets
10.75” Rise, 11.5” @Thigh, 9” @Knee, 8.5” @Leg
Red chain-stitching along waistband and hem
Selvedge detailing on button fly and coin pocket
Deer skin patch
Available @ MORTAR
The Fit: The classic fit is relaxed in the thigh and slightly tapers from theknee to the leg opening. This time around, I’ve really been looking to avoida slim/skinny pant and am really digging these jeans. The silhouette has avery classic work wear vibe with a very generous leg opening (8.75”) thatis perfect for my Red Wing Irish Setters as well as any boot or sneaker. I’veput in about 8 hours of wear and I must say that these are already starting to break in nicely. The jeans aren’t stiff to begin with so I imagine thesepuppies getting real soft…really quick. Since the denim is made from onewash-unsanforized denim that was soaked post- production, shrinking onthese will be minimal. It’s safe to say I’ll be hemming these very soon toavoid the beefy roll I’ve given them in the pictures. These pictures don’t duethe jeans justice and I must say that I’m very pleased with the denim. The13.75 oz denim is heavy enough for our Houston winters as well as lightenough to endure the humidity that comes with our treacherous summers.Can’t wait to put these through the test!
Left Field Basic Straight Slims | 1 Month In
Seriously, these jeans are like a gift that keeps on giving. Every day the fit and feel is better than than it was the day before, despite the fact that both were pretty much perfect from the get-go. It’s like a freaking perpetual motion machine of awesome. I’ve been wearing them nonstop since my last post, short of one or two pant-free Sundays at home. There is already some very nice fading happening in the crotch, particularly the marks caused by the button fly. The wallet indentation is also coming in nicely, as are the creases in the back of the knees. Also of note is how unbelievably soft these things have already gotten. Historically, my experience has been that it takes at least three months (though usually more) for raw denim to feel, well, not terrible. Amazingly, at only a little over 30 days in, these already feel great against the skin. Not to come-off like a total shill, but these really are the best jeans I’ve ever owned.
I bought my Baldwin 77s from Rhode Island’s Wharf way back in June, but didn’t get into the 14oz Cone Mills yellow cone too often until the weather cooled down a bit. Since early September they’ve been my go-to pants. I know a few commenters voiced concern about bias in other posts about the 77, so let me just make it clear that I have no affiliation with the brand, but after getting them hemmed up about 4in, the 77 is looking like the best pair of jeans I’ve ever worn.
A little bit of wear has developed around my wallet, and the knees have stretched and lightened a bit, which I think is more resultant of having been caught in two massive rain storms in recent weeks. The one thing about the jeans that I think could be adjusted a bit is the pocket depth and placement. Their a little low for my tastes, but the depth is amplified by the fact that I wear my jeans pretty low to start with. Not really an issue, but worth noting if you worry about you’d be annoyed by your wallet or phone resting mid-thigh. Not much else to report, but these jeans will continue to be my daily denim throughout the cold season (sometimes with my long johns underneath,) so I’ll be sure to post again after a few more months of wear.
I believe I am at the 11month mark on these now. Did not wear them much during the summer to be sure… and took the chance to wash them a few times to shrink them a bit (if you have been following along on these, I bought them a bit looser than Jean Shop generally recommends). Last update I was talking about a pouchiness that developed around the yoke, but as the waistband and uppers all loosened again with wear that wrinkle seems to have smoothed out -pardon the pun. The washes and hang drys really did not fade the jeans atall. Had not noticed myself but now see that the buttons on the fly are rubbing out the indigo too.
Since my last update my Dope and Drakkar #1198′s have been getting absolutely flogged. In the interest of full disclosure my version of “flogged” may include 50hrs a week in a Herman Miller Aeron, just a heads up. After spending the summer hanging in my closet, the arrival of fall in New England has seen me wearing these usually 7 days a week. After my last update I finally sent the #1198′s to get hemmed. I asked AB Fits to hem them for a little break, but not long enough for a cuff. The resulting inseam ended up at 31.5″ which I’ve been really pleased with. The length is perfect for everything from moccasins to workboots. My wallet and pocket knife continue cause the most drastic fading, though seems and hems are starting to catch up nicely. My pocket knife (a new Benchmade Pesidio) has also managed to put a hole through my right back pocket and chew up the top hem. It’s definitely going to require a repair in the next few months, but with a crotch blowout starting to look imminent I’m holding out to get everything repaired at once. After nearly a year wearing the #1198′s they’re by far my favorite pants.
Thought I’d take some more detailed and better lit photos… so far so good, not much else has changed…
After almost 5 months of wearing my Ooe Yofukutens nearly every day, I washed them at the laundromat and they shrunk to a point that made them uncomfortably tight. Ugh. So, I decided to retire them and I went back to a rotation of some of my older pairs of jeans.
The pictures here show my Studio D’Artisan 25th Anniversary jeans that I bought back in 2005 on a trip to Japan. They were a limited edition of 300 pairs, and they came in a cool box with an awesome banner made from the same denim that jeans are constructed from. Details like exposed dome rivets, the leather patch on the top of the back right pocket with “D’Artisan” written in Wrangler’s classic “rope” font, and a uniquely shaped coin pocket all making reference to some specific pair of Wranglers (I don’t know what year or era).
I’ve worn these jeans on and off for 5 years. They spent about 8 months in the possession of my friend Cathal (owner of Folk), as part of a trade we made. I then traded him a new pair of Real McCoy’s because I wanted my D’Artisans back. These have been repaired in the crotch by our trusted friend Mari (I highly recommend Mari’s services: chainstitchnyc@gmail.com) and more recently I enlisted Chris from Stanley & Sons to give me a hand-stitched knee patch. Once my Ooe Yofukutens became unwearable these jeans quickly rose to the top of my rotation, and it was a lot of fun while it lasted . . .
. . . they have served as a bridge between my Yofukutens and my next pair of Denim Debate jeans — Tender’s SS11 Type 103 Jeans. I recently received a sample pair from William Kroll, Tender’s founder, and I will be sending initial photos shortly.
(And the Ooe Yofukutens have not disappeared for good. I gave them to my friend Quentin, who has been wearing them for a few weeks now. Hopefully we’ll have some photos soon. They should be at about the 6 1/2 month point by now, between the two of us.)
