There are so many jeans in the world.
It's hard to know what to choose, and cheap jeans are often poorly made...
But I don't understand the vintage details of jeans!
I don't know what the right choice is!
If that's you, then we recommend the brand caqu, which we've just started carrying.
caqu is a Japanese denim brand created by a designer who spent many years gaining experience in the design and production departments of a major jeans manufacturer.
With the desire to create "truly good jeans" packed with artisan techniques, they started with two items: a straight-leg and a boyfriend-fit, both with selvedge details based on vintage designs.
While their appearance is exactly like vintage jeans, the brand's characteristic is its feminine and beautiful silhouette, which vintage jeans lack.
They've meticulously analyzed the history of vintage denim and its production lines to faithfully reproduce it, while also achieving a modern, beautiful silhouette and processing balance.
These jeans are the result of meticulous craftsmanship.
We've received two styles from caqu's vintage denim series.
When talking about caqu jeans, Levi's 501 is inseparable.
Levi's 501 is a classic when it comes to jeans, and caqu jeans are also based on them.
＜ The History of Jeans ＞
I'll omit a detailed look into the history of Levi's, but around 1850, laborers' clothes would quickly tear from work, and these poor workers were troubled by it.
The founders of Levi's, Levi Strauss, and his business partner, tailor Jacob Davis, set out to solve this problem.
They created work pants reinforced with rivets in the pockets, and these became popular.
From there, they patented the design and began mass production, and in 1870, jeans made from indigo-dyed denim were created. That was the prototype of jeans.
Since then, they've undergone various changes to meet demand, and the 501 jeans were born.
Gradually, not only laborers but also the influence of movies led jeans to become a must-have fashion item for rebels, as a form of defiance against wearing working-class clothes.
From there, well-known brands began releasing collection jeans, establishing them widely as a legitimate fashion item.
This is a rough history of jeans.
And caqu, which we are now carrying, produces modern jeans based on the Levi's 501, which is the prototype of jeans.
This time, I'd like to introduce two points in the making of caqu jeans that I found particularly interesting.
＜ About the Wash Process ＞
First, the wash process is essential for making vintage jeans.
When jeans first became popular in Japan, people only saw used military surplus, and had never seen raw denim.
So even when production started in Japan, new raw denim didn't sell well because it wasn't familiar.
Then, someone dared to wash raw denim in a washing machine and sell it as new, and it was a huge hit!
From there, jeans with a deliberately worn-out, vintage-like wash process became popular.
So, in fact, Japan is at the forefront of the world in this wash processing technology.
Among them, caqu performs a more elaborate wash process.
There are three basic elements to the wash process.
The first is what's called "whiskering," which forms when the legs bend.
Generally, this is often done by placing the jeans on a corrugated board and applying machinery.
However, caqu creates whiskers by hand-folding each pair and using sandpaper by hand.
Since this is the same principle as the fading that occurs when actually wearing them, it creates more realistic and distinct, beautiful whiskers.
The second is shaving.
Shaving refers to wide areas of wear.
For example, areas like the thighs, knees, and backside, where friction causes the color to lighten.
This is generally done efficiently by using a machine called a sandblaster to spray sand and remove color.
However, astonishingly, caqu also performs this process by hand with sandpaper.
While machines cause uniform fading, doing it by hand allows for a slightly mottled, natural fading expression.
The third is shade.
This refers to the overall fading of the jeans.
A process is applied to make the entire garment appear slightly faded, as if it had been washed.
Typically, objects like pumice stones are placed in a washing machine and tumbled with the jeans to achieve fading.
Of course, this method is most efficient for mass production, but astonishingly, caqu performs even this process by hand with sandpaper.
While conventional methods result in uniform fading, doing it by hand allows for a realism that cannot be achieved by machine.
＜ About the Silhouette ＞
While based on Levi's 501, the weakness of vintage jeans lies in their silhouette.
In the past, because they were workwear, efficiency was prioritized, and patterns were created to minimize fabric waste from a single piece of cloth.
This inevitably led to a somewhat unfashionable silhouette.
Perhaps that was cool in its own way, but it's a bit disappointing for women whose body shapes change as they get older.
Therefore, caqu researched the history of these patterns, and also researched the body shapes of Japanese women, and spent over a year creating a base pattern.
To prevent awkward wrinkles in the crotch, to avoid a bulky waist, and to ensure the backside doesn't have excess fabric.
Two styles of jeans created this way have arrived.
This is the wide tapered type.
It has a slightly cleaner look towards the hem, while the thigh area has a relaxed silhouette.
Despite its roomy silhouette, it offers a neat fit without excess fabric around the waist or hips.
・caqu Modern Classic
This is the slim straight type.
It's a tight, fitted design that creates a beautiful line.
It looks great paired with a tunic, and of course, it's also stylish when worn tucked into a T-shirt!
・caqu Modern Pencil
So, I've gone on at length about caqu and jeans.
Things that are hard to understand in writing are actually demonstrated in the YouTube video, so if you want to deepen your understanding, please watch that as well!