We have renewed our denim pants (2022.5.17)
Thank you for your support, this is Fukukawa from Danjo Denim. We have also renewed our denim pants, so let me explain the main changes we have made. By the way, points 1 to 4 overlap with the changes made when we renewed our denim jackets .
*The price is increased by 100 yen for each item sold, so the original price is 15,200 yen (as of 5/17), but since we have stopped accepting orders for a while, we will be selling it on our official website until 6/7 at the price of 14,200 yen (before orders were stopped). If you wanted to order but couldn't, we would appreciate it if you would reconsider.
①We changed the fabric
- Before renewal: Okayama Prefecture 12.5 oz. left twill cotton 100% double width denim
- After renewal: 13oz right twill 100% cotton selvedge red edge denim from Okayama Prefecture.
First, I changed from left twill to right twill because I made a denim jacket using both right twill and left twill fabric and checked the color fading after wearing it for two years.I noticed that the right twill had uneven color fading in spots, which suited my preference, so I went with the right twill.
Below is the difference in color fading between right-hand twill denim and left-hand twill denim for denim jackets.
The denim jacket on the right side is made of right-hand twill fabric, and the left side is made of left-hand twill fabric.
Double-width denim is standard width (approximately 150cm). The width of the renewed selvedge denim is about half that, approximately 80cm (single width).
The back is double-width fabric, and the front is single-width selvedge denim.
Selvedge denim is woven slowly on an old loom, which gives it an uneven surface and a richer texture when faded, which also suits my taste.
Also, for someone like me who makes one garment at a time in a small workshop, a single-width roll (about 20kg) requires less cutting load than a double-width roll (about 50m) which weighs nearly 40kg. With double-width rolls, you need a work table of that size to spread out the fabric, and it's difficult to stack multiple pieces together (^_^;)>
I can still do it physically now, but I'm not so sure if I'll be able to carry 40kg of raw material without strain when I'm 70 years old...
In addition, selvedge denim has selvedge edges, so there is no need to overlock. Not only does this eliminate the need for overlocking, but by utilizing these selvedge edges in the pattern, it also eliminates the need to cut one side when cutting.
In addition, regular denim is thick in itself, so it gets thicker as you sew it. This thickness also affects the silhouette. Using selvedge edges gives you the opportunity to reduce the thickness of the fabric.
By the way, the cost per meter of selvedge denim and standard denim is almost the same. However, since the width of the fabric is roughly halved, the amount of fabric required doubles. Therefore, the cost of fabric doubles.
②The color of the upper thread was changed.
- Before renewal) 30 count spun yarn dark blue
- After renewal) 30 count spun yarn Light navy blue close to gray
Left: before renovation, right: after
Until now, we've used dark blue thread to blend in with the denim fabric, or rather, to make the thread less noticeable, but as the denim fades, the dark blue becomes more noticeable. Some people think that's a good thing, but we wanted to keep the design as simple as possible, so we used a color similar to faded denim so that it would blend in with the fabric even when faded.
Unwashed denim sewn with thread before (top) and after (bottom) the renewal.
The image shows denim that has been faded sewn with thread before (top) and after (bottom). The fabric is different from unwashed denim. Also, the camera adjustments make the thread stand out, but even with the naked eye, it is clear that the color of the renewed denim blends in better with the fabric.
The reason I chose navy blue is to avoid using too many colors. When coordinating clothes, using too many colors makes it difficult to achieve an overall sense of unity. Of course, there is personal preference, but I want to maintain balance, so I want to keep it to three colors or less. However, if I use two colors for the pants, that leaves me with just one color (black and white are achromatic, so they don't count as one color). Instead, if I stick to one similar color for the pants, I can choose two colors for the remaining items, which gives me a wider range of choices, such as what shoes to wear. Incidentally, for the same reason, I generally use plain silver for metal fittings such as buttons.
However, we understand that some people may have requests such as "I would like golden brown thread" or "I like red so I would like red thread." In that case, you can change the color of the upper thread as an option, so please feel free to request it.
3) The manufacturing date and month are now indicated on the woven label.
- Before renewal) Manufacturing date and other information are written on embroidery and leather patches
- After renewal) Woven labels are used to indicate the date of manufacture, etc.
Until now, we have used a home embroidery machine to write the manufacturing date and size (e.g. Jan. 2021 M) on pocket flap fabric, and a laser engraving machine to print on leather patches. However, with embroidery, there were some issues that needed improvement, such as the stitching being visible on the back of the fabric, data entry taking some time, and small print being difficult to read.
From now on, we will use woven labels, which are letters woven into the fabric, to indicate the model number, size, (sleeve or hem length) adjustments, manufacturing date and month, and fabric. Using woven labels has advantages such as not needing to input data and being able to write in a small space. However, it takes time to arrange the woven labels and costs to create the woven labels themselves. I don't think there are any other brands that do this... I can't say for sure, as I haven't seen clothes from all over the world... By the way, I have arbitrarily named these woven labels "Dunjo Names."
④I made the buttonholes male and female.
- Before the renewal) Creating buttonholes using a buttonhole machine
- After renewal) Create original buttonholes using a bar tacking machine
When making buttonholes on denim items, a special buttonhole sewing machine is usually used. However, we have decided to make the buttonholes using a "bar tack sewing machine," which is a machine that is originally used for reinforcing stitches.
The new bar tacking machine allows you to specify the stitching shape by creating a program. Following a suggestion from a sewing machine shop I regularly use, I tried programming the buttonholes to be in the shapes of "♂" and "♀" for men and women.
Photos of the test on white fabric. From the top: "male", "female", and "general shape".
It's hard to tell, but does it look like a "male"?
Bar tacking machines usually don't make holes automatically, so we have to make them by hand. This takes more time than sewing with a buttonhole machine. I don't think there are any other brands that do something so inefficient... I think. Please think of it as a unique style that can only be achieved by sewing each garment individually.
⑤The rear pocket is integrated into the yoke.
I tried to make the back pocket less noticeable by tucking it into the yoke (the part above the buttocks). This is quite a difficult thing to sew, but I thought it would look neater, so I gave it a try.
By hiding the back pockets, the look changes from casual to more dressy and makes your buttocks appear higher.
⑥The adjuster hardware has been changed.
The metal fittings on the waist adjuster have been changed. Below is the before picture.
And below is after the change.
From one line to two lines. You can also choose the color as an option. If you change the color of the button, you can unify the colors by changing the adjuster as well.
⑦Two buttons are placed side by side
Until now, there was only one button on the top of the zipper. In fact, regular jeans only have one button. We decided to add two buttons side by side.
The reason for this is that with just one button, the tension on the waist fabric would have to be supported by just one button, which would concentrate the force on that button and cause the fabric around the button to deform.I thought that with two buttons, the tension could be distributed, which would prevent the fabric from deforming.
With regular jeans, the belt tightly binds the waist, but my jeans don't have belt loops, so the pulling around the waist is inevitably concentrated on the buttons.
I was a little worried that having two buttons instead of one might make the buttons stand out a little, but having two means I can use both the male and female buttonholes, so I came to the conclusion that it's fine (in my opinion).
8. Eliminated the overlocking process
The overlocking process is the process of sewing the edges of cut fabric together using an overlock machine to prevent them from fraying. Below are some jeans sewn using an overlock machine (something I sewed a long time ago).
However, my ideal would have been to hide the edges of the fabric without using a lock, if possible. So I changed the design to hide the edges of the fabric without using a lock. Below is the pants (back side) after the renewal.
What do you think? Doesn't it look a bit neater? By using rolled stitching and selvedge fabric, we've eliminated the overlock process.
⑨The decorative stitching on the placket has been changed.
The decorative stitching on the placket is a half-moon shaped stitch near the zipper, but regular jeans look like this↓.
I tried it like this below (I colored the thread yellow so it's easy to see).
These are the main changes made in the renewal. There is still a possibility that I will make further changes in the future, but I think that I am satisfied with the current state of things.
With the motto "Making men and women look cool with denim," we hope to continue creating cool products that suit each and every customer. We appreciate your continued support.