Why Japanese Denim is considered to be so good

over the course of the last 10 months my interest in Japanese denim has grown from a curiosity to a bit of an obsession and while there are some people who understand and Revere Japanese denim like I do there are a lot of people who I see in my comment sections on Instagram on YouTube and on Tick Tock who just don't get the hype surrounding Japanese denim in today's video from a bro to a bro or a bro to assist I want to nerd out and talk to you about why I think Japanese denim is so freaking cool or as the title suggests so damn cool for those of you who don't know me my name is Drew what it do it's nice to meet you let's talk Japanese denim you what you wake up in the morning so I put on my big boy pants look I'm wearing a belt I got big boy pants on denim is one of the most historically interesting Fabrics that human beings have ever created let's peel back some of its layers denim as a fabric in fact dates all the way back to the 17th century its precise Origins are commonly debated but most references that I was able to dig up highlighted the southern city of neem France as the birthplace of denim one of the coolest wrinkles about this origin story the origin story of denim is that the more you look into it the more that you realize that the naming convention for what we call Denim today has truly evolved and changed over time neem France was the origin City for dinner and the original manufacturers of this new fabric named it Serge denim meaning a sturdy fabric from neem or a twill fabric from neem depending on the translation early jeans were mostly worn by the working class and were often referred to as blue collar workers due to the blue denim that they decorated their bodies with think of these early workers who wore denim mostly being miners farmers and cowboys but why is denim known for being this iconic beautiful blue color before synthetic dyes were introduced in the coloring of clothing most if not all denim was dyed with pure natural Indigo Indigo dye and the history of indigo is so cool check it Indigo dye can be acquired through a variety of plants but it's most commonly extracted from a miracle plant called the indigo pharah tinctoria tincturia think terria I don't know how to pronounce that the reason why Indigo and indigo pharah is often described as this miracle plan is because all of its beneficial properties it has several immunity benefits if compacted into tea or powder it has antibacterial properties flame retardant properties it is one of the coolest natural entities that we know of in nature when woven cotton fabric is dyed with Indigo the Indigo does not penetrate the cotton Yarns fully instead it sits on top of the denim creating a layer on top of the fabric this explains why raw denim unwashed denim Fades over time and explains the variability in the modern jeans that you wear in terms of the different kind of washes that you can buy from different brands which is something we'll touch on a bit later as well most westerners credit the cultural explosion of denim to the United States and the company Levi's and what founder Levi Strauss and Taylor Jacob Davis did was revolutionize the functionality of denim for workers how you may ask they added metal rivets that helped reinforce the Stitch areas of the most stressed upon part of jeans making their denim the most durable and most usable products for Miners and other workers essentially during the American Gold Rush Levi's were the most popular and most durable pants to wear for those trying to get rich quick quote unquote get rich quick during the American Gold Rush which is a very very popular time where people were moving from East Coast U.S to West Coast U.S you had immigrants coming in and all of these workers needed pants that needed clothes to withstand the harsh conditions of Mining and looking and searching for gold during the 19th century and the 20th century American denim became unfathomably popular it also went through so many different cultural metamorphosis Metamorphoses metamorphosis metamorphosis from U.S soldiers wearing denim during the world wars for the rise of coveralls and overalls to the social acceptance of women beginning to wear jeans and denim to the Hollywood the picture of jeans and who wore jeans and what it meant to wear jeans to Marilyn Monroe punk rock hippies counterculture projectile looms versus shuttle looms hip-hop culture the introduction of synthetic materials low-rise boot cut all these massive cultural moments that we call the 50s 60s 70s 80s 90s and 2000s up until right now where denim is still maybe if not as popular as it's ever been there is so much history and just so much culture that goes into the genes and the denim that we wear today it's almost hard to kind of put it all into a concise understanding because it's had such a diverse and varied history and I'm I've just scratched the the bare surface of it all to me this history is a part of a big reason why I think denim is so cool and we haven't even talked about Japanese denim which is what the title of this video is this is a slogan that I kind of want to coin for myself and it's reflected in my thought process about Japanese Denim and American Denim and it ties into everything let me let me explain okay American denim or Americans made denim popular the Japanese perfected and honored the original manufacturing process of that said denim some people may debate with me in the comment section about that idea that Americans made it cool but like Japanese kind of perfected it and if you have altering or other opinions I honestly look forward to hearing your thoughts down in the comments I always love a good discussion about denim one of the biggest shifts that took place in the manufacturing of denim took place in the mid 20th century in which the US and a lot of U.S companies decided to begin Outsource using their manufacturing to other parts of the world heritage Workwear Brands like Levi's Dickies Carhartt and Lee all made the decision to Outsource manufacturing to become leaner more productive fashion machines in addition the way denim was manufactured actually physically changed during the 1950s denim before the 1950s was mainly produced on what we call shuttle looms now what we call what the industry calls shuttle looms which is a loom that produces denim in such a way that once the fabric is done being created it has a perfectly finished self-edge which is where the term Selvage comes from now selvish denim isn't objectively better in quality than non-selvedge denim but the alternative to denim made on a shuttle Loom is denim made on this new process which was introduced after the 1950s and I believe got its start in the 1960s if I'm if I'm not mistaken on systems or looms that were called projectile looms one of the biggest differences between shuttle looms and projectile looms is the speed and the rate in which you can pump out denim fabric to be made into jeans jackets pants or whatever denim products you want to make making denim with shuttle looms is more times than not slower more methodical and a more careful process than producing something with the projectile Loom the prevailing thought when it comes to Denim heads and fashion historians is denim made on a shuttle Loom or made with a hand Loom is the most traditional way to make Denim and when I say Silver's denim isn't objectively better than non-selves denim I'm highlighting an important distinction here it essentially comes down to the question of what do you value there are some strong arguments to be made that Selvage raw Japanese denim with all the bells and whistles won't necessarily out Last denim or jeans or jackets made with polyester or elastic the benefit the way I see it with silver denim or raw denim is the emphasis on craftsmanship and the honoring of traditional denim manufacturing also sidebar raw denim is just denim that has not been pre-washed before it is sold direct to Consumer the best denim in the world used to be us denim until around the 1950s when U.S manufacturers started to prioritize production volume over craft in order to meet the band around this time a small group of men who revered and loved the traditional way that American denim was produced began to play with this idea of Japanese businesses and fashion companies and fashion brands reproducing American denim with the traditional style of manufacturing with shuttle Looms and guess what that is exactly what happened according to amateura written by W David Marks one of my favorite books of all time about fashion and Japanese Americana check it out if you haven't Ma ruo I believe that's the right pronunciation manufactured the first pair of jeans in Japan in 1965. essentially kick-starting the jeans revolution in Japan and bringing this entire kind of cultural gravitas to Japanese denim manufacturing which has its whole lineage of history and it's it's so so fascinating if you want to learn more about how Japan saved American style and saved American denim I made a video about it earlier this year highlighting W David Marx's book I just kind of reviewed the entire book and talked about my impression and how impressed I was with the book and just talked about Japanese American in general it's up there somewhere in the card or I'll leave it in the description so what you have to understand is from from the 1960s all the way up until 2023 there have been so many Japanese companies and Brands and men and women who have honored that traditional manufacturing of denim prior to the 1950s prior to that shift to projectile looms there are so many brands that have honored that traditional manufacturing and made beautiful amazing natural Indigo just unbelievably cool jeans based off of what they thought was the best which was the old American style of denim and denim manufacturing and they've elevated it in ways that you know it's hard to even quantify within a succinct sentence for me and what I've learned and what I've been studying when it comes to Japanese Americana and Japanese denim the most popular Catalyst for the adoption of westerners to start learning about and getting into Japanese denim comes from a group of five five distinct denim Brands called the Osaka 5 which are five brands that are in part responsible for ushering Japanese fashion into the global conversation of being one of the most dynamic interesting and best producers of fashion in the world these five Brands include Studio de Artisan Warehouse denim Full Count and Evisu I plan on making a new video talking about the Osaka five but for now I also have already made an entire video about them and they'll be linked somewhere either either in the card or in the description I do YouTube guys trust me the card is up here somewhere but for those who want to know the tldr on the Osaka 5 here we go essentially the Osaka 5 are Japan's versions of the most prominent Workwear and Denim and Americana companies that the country had ever seen up until that point I kind of think of them as Japan's version of Levi's Carhart Lee and Dickies in some respects they're cooler in other respects they're not as well known and popular like those other ones are in the U.S still today and of course we're specifically talking about denim so while I did say Americana it's weaved in there but it's specifically Denim and a lot of times jeans each brand from the Osaka 5 has its very own unique properties that they brought to the table whether it be that you know some of them use like Zimbabwean cotton or some of them use a particular cut some of them like popularized one wash denim things of that nature all played a role in why the Osaka 5 grew and popularity in Japan and then why they were able to export Japanese Denim and make it popular in other places like the US of the Osaka 5 I would say Studio de artisan and Evisu are the most popular and most relevant in 2023 I would say for the most part Studio de artesan is still selling out today which is unbelievable and Evie Sue had really big moments in the 2000s and the 90s and I feel like it's come back into popularity a bit with the Y2K aesthetic it's those jeans with the kind of arches on the back pockets really really beautiful jeans while denim warehouse and Full Count are relatively Niche and they're more of a denim heads kind of like do you remember way back when kind of brand they probably some of them are still pretty popular but not as popular as the other two okay I've thrown a ton of history at you but I haven't got to the root of what the title of this video is which is why why I think Japanese denim is so damn cool and I started with history because I think the history of denim and the history of Japanese denim is a big part of why I think it's really really cool most clothing has such a deep and Rich history and for people who only get a live to around the age of 80 years old on average here in the U.S it's hard to understand how much cultural energy a particular item of clothing has unless you peel back the layers of that clothing like even from like stitching Styles and why the fabric is dyed blue why is indigo use why didn't we use like other plants that died in green like the the whole progression of how denim is the way it is now it's just so fascinating and it's not guaranteed just like a lot of things in history it's not guaranteed so I just find it so interesting how you know even in 2023 as someone who's an African-American as well which I'll touch on in a second gets to interact with Denim and cotton and indigo and Japanese Denim and the way I do I just I think the history aspect of it is really really cool and going through the history I didn't even bring up my personal kind of history as an African-American in the U.S I mean it's well documented slavery is a big part of U.S history and a lot of what slaves did is they used to pick cotton right and cotton is the primary crop used to create denim right it's that's what most fabric is made out of when it comes to producing dinner and I think it's kind of cool probably within my family lineage there are those in my forefather or my four mothers groups that picked cotton that were slaves and had to work really really hard to afford me the opportunity to now years and years later talk about denim talk about fabric talk about cotton in a way that benefits me both financially and also benefits others in terms of History I just think it's all weirdly tied together and is really really cool does that make sense hopefully you get you're getting what I'm saying right it kind of makes sense right but okay enough history talk what do I actually like about the products that derive from Japanese denim so in general Japanese denim is referred to by most as the best denim in the world very simply when it comes to something like that I like being able to own and wear and experience aspects of fashion that are considered to be the best and going along with that I like being able to experience things and own things and wear things that are widely considered the best I know when I buy Japanese denim products whether it be jeans jackets or keychains shout out keezy I know that I'm also supporting the production of a slower fashion process a fashion process that is a bit more intentional and deliberate I love that about Japanese Denim and a lot of times I'm referring specifically to salvage denim or raw denim in that respect I also think that both Selvage and raw denim are just really unique well not like really unique more subtly unique but the more you learn about them the more you kind of experience them the more you realize how truly unique they are I love how raw denim and even one washed denim Fades over time based on how the wear uses the particular product it's so personalized in that aspect I love how the denim community at least the one that I've experienced appreciates and really emphasizes wearing the same outfit or the same pair of jeans over and over and over and over and over again I think Japanese Denim and Japanese Silver's denim lends itself to being a more conscious product than other products I also like the fact that like with sneakers or like with handbags or or with other communities denim is a unique community that the average person probably doesn't know about but like I said once you learn about it there are people who really really care about their genes and about their jackets and about natural Indigo and about sustainable fashion and all these things that are implemented within the Japanese denim Community it's just really cool to be a part of and you know how I said that the more you learn about Japanese raw and selfish denim the more you realize that a lot of these Brands really hone in on the details to make their products unique from the rest it's those things that really make it special as well from the rivet designs to the button designs the sugar cane okinawas which is what I'm wearing right now and I've been wearing them for the last 51 days according to the recording of this video these jeans in particular are made with a 50 cotton 50 sugar sugar cane production and that sugar cane actually is I believe it's post uh like use or post-industrial use so that means obviously the crops are used like the sugar cane crops are used for sugar production and then the actual canes and fibers are then rounded up and then made into Yarns and made into Fabric and then put into these jeans which is like really cool it creates this like circular kind of um slower uh regenerative renewable fashion cycle that not a lot of other products are participating in man I'm getting just geeked up talking about dinner man that's that's what that's what that's what's happened to me guys over the last 10 months it has become a true true Obsession it was a curiosity and I'm just enjoying the Journey of learning about denim like I have a full denim on denim outfit right now the this jacket is by um benzac denim developers and collaboration with Bond suits it's a Dutch brand awesome awesome awesome brand this denim in particular is actually Italian sausage denim which is so unique uh you could you could do a whole course on European Salvage denim versus Japanese it's going to be high quality as well anyways what I'm saying is that denim is just so cool it it really is I'm really geeked up right now and hopefully you see a little bit more why I think it's cool as well but there's a couple more things I want to touch on let's get a a word in for today's sponsor Squarespace are you interested in making your very own website for a brand or creative project Squarespace offers a comprehensive amount of features to make the website that you've always dreamed of if you want to sell your products direct to consumer or if you just want to display your body of work Squarespace makes it easy to do that and more currently I'm using my Squarespace website as a hub for all of my content and all my social media platforms and if you needed a sign to help nudge you into creating your first website this is your sign visit squarespace.com drewjoyner for 10 off your first purchase of a website or domain so before we end today's video I want to one touch on the particular pair of jeans that got me into Selvage Denim and then I want to give some products that I personally am a big fan of and ones that I'm just curious about I liked maybe you should try them out maybe if you're looking to get into them like entry level products that kind of stuff after I get into the these first jeans so let's do that the pair of jeans that got me into Salvage denim are the Yoji Yamamoto five panel Japanese Selvage denim jeans now these jeans aren't your typical entry point when it comes to salvage denim while Yoji Yamamoto is a famous Japanese designer he isn't particularly known for his Denim and he is a high-end luxury fashion designer I would also say that the yogis aren't in a traditional fit that you would associate with selfish denim I guarantee you if I walk down the street with these on most denim meds wouldn't necessarily think that I'm wearing Salvage denim unless I flip the cuff up and I showed the Selvage ID but even still most people would be like this isn't your typical Salvage denim jean I kind of love the fact that this pair of pants or these pair of pants for good English that these pair of pants were my entry point because to me at the very least I enjoy kind of standing out right I enjoy being a bit separate from the crowd when it comes to my style my outfits those kind of things and amongst denim meds most of them probably are going to you know look at my trajectory for getting into denim as what they what they experience and I just find it to be unique I love having a personal history and a personal story with a product and I think the yogis really did that for me I love the color of this denim I've been wearing them for like I said these are the ones that got me into it so 10 months now and they have the most prominent fading of any of the jeans except for maybe the sugar canes now but there are some big drawbacks with this particular Gene the first being the cost because Yoji Yamamoto is a luxury or a high-end fashion designer he tends to tax I mean really tax on the products that he is selling the retail price for these jeans hovered around one thousand dollars USD now luckily your boy didn't have to pay that price I bought these in Montreal last year last summer actually and uh I bought them at a 80 discount clip which is a great discount but if you can't find that I would never pay a thousand dollars for these jeans especially when a lot of the other salvaged Japanese Salvage denim Brands go above and beyond where this the pair of jeans from Yoji they just have an interesting fit but I wouldn't say that it necessarily special other than the fact that they have a really modern and trendy wide leg fit regardless these were the jeans that got me into Japanese Silver's denim I wore these jeans religiously once I got them tailored because originally they were a bit big and they were the only size less but I left but I really wanted them so I wore these a ton a ton of ton and I still wear them all the time they're definitely received a lot of compliments and they're some of my favorite jeans of all time in my wardrobe let's end this video off with some jeans jackets denim in general that I'm interested in in the world of Japanese Selvage and raw denim like I said right now I'm on where number 51 for the sugar cane Okinawa jeans and to me these have been an absolute treat to wear there's a shift that happens once you understand your size once you understand what you want in a pair of jeans you can find awesome fitting jeans anywhere you look as long as the brand provides them right so for these what I love about them is that obviously they have a really cool material composition that 50 sugarcane 50 cotton is really really cool while they aren't an ultra wide fit they are very roomy for someone like myself they're technically considered a straight fit and you can kind of see that in the construction of the pants they taper in a little bit but they're straight for the most part right they're pretty good I also love the rise on these pants and so basically is the deciding factor for whether or not things would be comfortable in the crotch area of the Denim and these have a pretty mid to high rise on them which is awesome um what else I just I love the Okinawa so if you're looking into getting into denim I think okinawa's not denim in general but if you're looking into if you're looking to getting into Selvage denim okinawas are a interesting place to start they're a bit expensive they're not Yoji Yamamoto expensive but they you know they have a pretty penny price point on them I would also love to check out the sugarcane Union Stars those look really really cool I love the button details on them it's a bit louder than a lot of I know denim heads or denim folks would like to wear but for someone who considers themselves to be the I don't know I have I can have an eccentric style at times sometimes a subdue but the union Stars by sugarcane are really really cool I talked about these for a little bit these are by Bond suits in collaboration with binzak denim developers this is a really unique modern silhouette for a denim jacket I also love orslow's French chore jackets that they've done not all of them are in like denim some of them are just like a cotton herringbone twill which is also an awesome fabric but I do have one that is denim orslow French chorecoat I'm amazing amazing jacket if that's your style all in all I'm just loving the world of Japanese Denim and hopefully it's not getting too played out I know I some people are commenting and deeming saying that you know Drew like you should stop like it's too much like we don't care about Japanese denim that much but um I really care about it and it's been something that's really consuming me and I've had a fun fun time learning about it and it also has all of these demarcations of sustainability and environmental justice and Consciousness that a lot of products just don't have right whether it be the news Trend or whatever it may be but I think Japanese Denim and selfish Denim and raw denim at that uses less water people are paid fairly oftentimes because of the fact that it's being made in a country that honors Fair wages which is Japan um and yeah it's it's a it's a really really cool product and a really cool fabric once you you learn a bit about it and hopefully I've convinced you that you know whether it's selfish denim raw denims Japanese denim whether it's these things or if it's other things do the due diligence learn about the products you're consuming learn more about what is interesting to you really tune into why you like something why you don't like something and as a result I feel like you'll just be a bit more of a happier more conscious more fulfilled kind of consumer when you wear clothes that reflect your values and also wearing clothes that um you just really enjoy right in that that's just it's just fun it makes life more fun it's it's a part of that romanticization of your life if you love Japanese denim let me know down in the comments I'm kind of rambling at this point so let's end the video as always I'm spreading peace love and positivity in 2023 so that means I'm spreading peace love and positivity to you for me wherever you are in the world have a wonderful rest your day abianto peace yo what is good post Vivid hopefully you guys are having a good day today here's a fist bump for the one time pop thank you so much for oh two times on the one yeah yeah y'all are ready for the two times Bob thank you so much for staying to the end of the video we're bringing the double fist bumps back I don't know why I got rid of them you know the economy was you know it was on I was on a downhill turn and we just gotta pull it back up okay we just gotta pull that thing back up double fist bumper we gotta keep doing our thing all right for the for the Post vid vid question of the day getting Tongue Tied over here for the pvv question of the day are there any genres of fashion that have surprised you that you wouldn't have thought you were going to get into but now that you're into that is my story with Denim and jeans in particular as a young person I used to hate wearing jeans I used to think jeans were uncomfortable you know when I was younger I would buy things at Kohl's at PacSun at h m fast fashion brands and a lot of times I would just find that the the quality of the the denim or the quality of the fabric would you know rub and things would chafe and you would get itchy and just wouldn't be comfortable so I just stayed away from jeans but now I've grown up I understand size I understand fit I understand proportions I understand Fabrics I understand all these things and I really am enjoying denim I really really am you guys and so this is like a love letter to Denim we're gonna you know maybe talk about it here and there a little bit but it'll probably be less and less and less I'll just be wearing it on Instagram and Tick Tock and things like that so and in real life that's so funny people always say I'm Gonna Be You can find me on Instagram well you can find me in real life too okay I'm gonna be outside doing my thing so I'm rambling again but hopefully you guys enjoyed the video we'll see you next week have a wonderful day peace

Channel: Drew Joiner

Views: 92,936

Keywords: Fashion, New Balance, Sneakers, Footwear, Commentary, Japanese Americana, Americana, Fashion Trends, Fashion Commentary, Palace, Streetwear, Gorpcore, 2022 Fashion, 2023 Fashion, Levi's, JJJJound, Menswear, Womenswear, Nike, Adidas, Birkenstock, Loafers, Pick Ups, Fashion Pick Ups, Fast Fashion, Sustainable Fashion, Fashion Hauls, Zara, HM, Shein, Aime, ALD, Fitpics, Denim, Japanese Denim, Selvedge Denim, Raw Denim

Id: sBmCit7ikBs

Length: 30min 57sec (1857 seconds)

Published: Sun Jun 25 2023