Favorite denim brands
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Right now my overall favorite brand other than IH is probably 3sixteen. Not necessarily for the denim alone but for the brand as a whole. Great T's, hoodies, chinos…some cool outerwear, thermals, sweaters...and some Good Art and Viberg collabs as well.
I like their jeans and knits.
I’ve also taken a shine to Momotaro’s and SDA’s shirting — I think they do work wear and military inspired shirts pretty well. I also like some of UES’s shirts but their fits are a little weird.
I still have other denim from brands like Gustin, N&F, Taylor Stitch, Strike Gold, etc, but sadly no IH jeans yet. Hopefully that will change this year
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My denim personality is decidedly unsanforized. The closer to loomstate, the better. A heavy dose of slub gets me every time, too.
PBJ - Top of my list. Hands down, the greatest character of any I've owned. The slim tapered cut works fabulously for me, as well.
TFH - I recently scored my first pair. The Pioneer denim is fantastic. Not crazy slubby, like PBJ, but a good dose. I believe, a great example of just how things were done before projectile looms.
ONI - Love the slub of my 22oz Kabuki Vedge. I also like the character of the secret denim.I will try SDA, someday. At some point, I'd also like to replace my TSG 2109(possibly with the 2105)… The denim is great, but the cut was a monumental failure for me.
I think, @Giles has mentioned the possible development of a new loomstate denim. I'm very hopeful it comes to fruition.
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Besides IH….. Companion, PBJ, The Strike Gold, Mister Freedom, and Roy.
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I will always love Samurai because they were what got me into the whole raw denim game. A well worn pair of 710’s in the 19oz is a beautiful pair of jeans.
I recently got my first pair of PBJ and I am impressed with denim and craftsmanship . Not a 100% sold on the fit though.
Flathead have always been on my radar but dunno if I will ever get a pair.While I like these other brands and I may buy a pair every now and again nothing really hits the spot like a pair of IH’s. If someone said to me you can only ever wear one brand of jeans for the rest of your life, there would be no question it would be IH.
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^This could have been my post almost word-for-word, but I went from PBJ to Samurai and then IH. Way back in the original HWDC, I rocked a pair of Samurai 710’s which I still have, and the denim is beautiful. They’re the closest to IH in my heart, but there’s really no competition at the end of the day.
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I made the mistake of trying on an Oni secret denim type III jacket last year. Best fitting type III I've ever worn. I will buy one one day. Gulp.
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I have jeans from many different brands but my favourites are probably, in loose order:
- Ande Whall (great fit [Buffalo] and construction)
- Full Count
- Warehouse
- LVC
- SDA
I’m also enjoying some Momotaros for winter wear (15.7oz) and have a few pairs of Sugar Cane waiting in the queue.
As for jackets, I have a TCB Type I and Eternal Type II and really like both.
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IH will always be my first love of denim. I have a huge vintage collection of Levi's. Since I live in the South and the heat and humidity are brutal on me in IH, I fall back on some old Levi's.
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IH will always be my first love of denim. I have a huge vintage collection of Levi's. Since I live in the South and the heat and humidity are brutal on me in IH, I fall back on some old Levi's.
I too have some Levi's: but the 14oz IH is worth a look whenever you wear through your lighter ones.
My first selvedge were an excellent pair of Rag & Bone of all things. Really well-made with great details. Decent enough denim as well.
First Japanese, IH. First raw, Strike Gold.
IH and Strike Gold are my favorites I've owned and I really admire Flat Head from afar. Oni is interesting too.
But I really love IH best.
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IH has been a complete game-changer for me over the past few years. I find the 14oz denim about as light as now feels "normal." The 21oz is benchmark and 25oz my favorite. I live in a very cold, wet climate, and far out in the countryside so the heavier denim works brilliantly but for July and August.
It's taken a while to figure out which IH fits work best for me (634, 777) and what doesn't work as well (666)–-but that too is another feature of the brilliance of the brand. With the different fits and care with numbers, Hiraki-san and Co. come close to bespoke without the price point that would come with individualizing each product. I'm finally beginning to understand the materials and numbers better. I think it takes time and experiments that can be costly (And that's what all genuinely better things feel like: you have to figure it out and there are mistakes, sometimes expensive.)
My experiments in other brands now are in much smaller makers (for their concept) and design differences. I have a few PBJ and SDA, both brilliant. Strike Gold looks very cool. I hope to give them a try someday.
Recent weight loss has been dangerously costly. But other than IH, I bought a pair of Roy's for the sheer obsessive care in construction. Worth it, imo. The next time I can find a pair of Ooe Yufukuten, I'm in. But one thing that IH doesn't really do is the older vintage style that comes closer to my childhood. I inherited all my clothes from my older brother until I was an adult. I got late'60s 501s somewhere around in 1969. I stuck with that through the 1980s. Now that I'm officially an old guy, there's such a thing as too vintage looking, too old for an old guy. My version of cool is to look like I'm in my own Marty Scorsese or Coppola movie, but not being cast in a fashion re-enactment. Younger guys can pull off that 1940s/1950s look that doesn't work for me, though I'm far closer to original.
But some of that old look design still resonates to me (and if IH made that, that'd be cool though I get why they don't). Right now Dawson Denim's tapered wide legs and straighter, wide look appeals. Trophy Clothing has got it right with the 1305 Dirt Denim---a really wonderful fabric----and the cut of the Authentic 1504/1505. Wider and straighter is my IH alternative right now. Maybe Full Count or TCB? I'm interested in suggestions for wider and straighter with interesting fabric. Thanks for letting me vent. This quarantine is isolating even for a guy who lives ordinarily in isolation.
