Is the Evisu journey entering turbulent waters. The brand which arguably started the Japanese denim phenomen in the West has lost of of it’s credibility in recent years with many denim and fashion fanatics reminiscing about the good old days. Let’s hope the brand can reclaim some of it’s old start quality. Here’s the lastest offering:

Evisu Deluxe tailoring is inspired by Japanese naval details, such as the shaped patch pockets, a high-buttoning reefer jacket, sailor collars, and wide-legged cuffed trousers. We’ve exclusively used fabrics woven in Osaka Japan by Takisada Mills (Est Nagoya 1864, four years after Kanrin Maru’s maiden voyage), including a soft herringbone fabric woven from cotton and bamboo. As usual all canvasses are fully handstitched under the collars and all buttons and linings are hand stitched.

Our Evisu Heritage is inspired by Tairyouki (big fish flags). These are brightly coloured flags that Japanese fishermen fly from their boats when they have a good catch, to show the families on the shore that they’ll have a good dinner. Each village will have their own flags, decorated with different fish and sea creatures, waves, rising suns, and celebratory kanji. Ebisu, the budhist god from whom we derived our name , is usually depicted with a fishing rod and fish, so he is sometimes also shown on Tairyouki. This season Evisu Heritage is also inspired by a deeply researched homage to another great jeans brand- Lee. The HD Lee Mercantile Co was founded in Salina, Kansas, USA in 1889. Our denim maniac followers and others amongst you who don’t get out much will spot a lot of subtle Lee references and details.

In Spring 2009, Evisu Heritage uses four newly developed selvage denims, including No13 LEFT, a Japanese woven close reproduction of the early denim used by Lee from the 1910s onwards. Jeans cut from to13LEFT denim have the leather patch sewn on the left side of the waistband. The focus is on fit, fabric, production and detailing.