When it comes to the world of nice denim, it might be the most common question that gets asked: how do I get great fades on my jeans? For many, this is the whole reason they spend a little extra to buy selvedge jeans: the sturdier, old fashioned kind that’s made on shuttle looms. This … Read more
If you’ve been into denim for any amount of time you will most certainly have dabbled in (or at least be aware of) the deep, dark world that is Japanese selvedge denim. Known for producing most of the finest selvedge denim and jeans in the world, Japan is home to many denim brands that pride … Read more
Launched in 2016 in Okayama, where most of Japan’s legendary denim is crafted, Tanuki has catapulted to popularity on the denim scene, achieving serious notoriety in a seriously short span of time. Some will say Tanuki translates as ‘raccoon,’ but it actually means ‘raccoon dog,’ a real animal that looks like its name and has … Read more
Full Count is an enormously esteemed denim company founded by Mikiharu Tsujita in 1992, and it’s so respected that it’s one of the Osaka 5, a group of older, ultra influential brands that includes Denime, Evisu, Warehouse & Co, and Studio D’artisan, which I’ve also reviewed. The company is named, by the way, after the moment in … Read more
Founded in 1997 by Toru Nogami, Samurai Jeans was launched a fair amount of time after the Japanese denim scene kind of debuted in the 1970s, but while that’s when it started it really exploded in the 90s. That’s when Nogami-san starting out making cuts inspired by vintage Levi’s jeans, and they expanded into a … Read more
Pure Blue Japan, or PBJ, or is a beloved Japanese denim company that was founded in 1997 and is based in the Japanese denim capital of Okayama, right between Hiroshima and Kyoto. Note that it is not the same company as Japan Blue, or Blue Blue Japan, this is Pure Blue Japan and perhaps more … Read more
It’s no secret that Japanese denim can be pricey, often over $300 a pair, but what makes this so? Before we can determine if these jeans are ‘worth it’ (a wildly relative concept), we first have to understand what Japanese denim is, and what sets it apart from the ubiquitous cheaper options, which may at … Read more
Heavy ass denim. That’s the specialty of the cult Japanese denim brand Iron Heart. After 20 years of working in Japan’s garment industry, Shinichi Haraki established the brand in 2003 and today it’s headquartered in Hachioji, just outside of Tokyo. Iron Heart specializes in smooth, tough, slow fading denim that has its roots in Japanese … Read more
Believe it or not, stretch selvedge is a thing. I took a trip to New York’s denim mecca Blue in Green to see what kind of unusual offerings they had this season, and I was treated to this unique, almost sea green colored denim from the secretive Japanese brand Oni. Meaning “demon” or “ogre,” Oni … Read more
We’re branching out at Stridewise with our new series on raw denim — because if you know anything about rugged boots, it’s that nothing goes better with them than some tough, raw denim. So today I’m looking at a pair of Studio d’Artisan G-003 jeans. They’re not fresh off the rack; I picked them up … Read more