Tenue de Nimes x Big John – Round Two
by Connor Keller
Having heard from Rene Strolenberg during my interview for Rawr Denim that Big John and Tenue de Nimes would be teaming up for a second time (the first collaboration resulted in my current favorite pair of denim) I have been excitedly waiting for the official release announcement which finally arrived early this week. This time around, rather than only releasing one pair, the duo have combined to produce four options, one pair of shorts, one pair of chinos and two pairs of 5-pocket denim. I’m personally very attracted to the shorts, though sadly the 149 euro price tag is a little too steep for my wallet at the present. The shorts themselves are a lovely irregular yarn spun from white and brown cotton fibres – following which a grey color dye was added, giving the finished product a dusty, welf-yarn look. The chino is a denim base as well, coming from the same ‘Ruri’ denim stock as the original collaborative jean. The fit of the chino is an interesting variant on the typical chino cut, giving the pant a slim tapered fit. The denim itself is washed in what Tenue de Nimes is calling a variation of the ’365 Big Wash’ – a vintage inspired modern-day prewash technique. The first jean, the 1968 features 12 oz Koiai 2 denim which developed by Big John with the intention to resemble deadstock Cone Mills 1968 denim which was first used to develop a fit for the Japanese silhouette. The jean is called the 1968 pocket shape (pocket shape refers to the rounded shape around the thighs and bottoms) and the jean is a tight, tapered fit. The rise is in the middle of the spectrum, not too high or too low. The final jean is named the Kuro - which stands for black in Japanese. The denim is also a 12 oz Kuro 2 fabric, which is first dyed in indigo before being re-dyed black – a technique developed during the 17th century Edo era. The black and indigo combination will result in a black dye fade that ends up exposing the indigo for a dark blue fade. Both pairs of jeans feature red and yellow selvedge. Each come in very limited quantities – 24 each – with Col-Nem front buttons, zip flies and Tenue de Nîmes x Big John indigo leather patches featuring in each. These collaborations tend not to last long, so if you see something you like act fast.
- CK
Images via Tenue de Nimes
