Magic number: Mikiharu Tsujita and the Full Count 1108

 

I've always considered Full Count jeans, in particular their 1108 model, some of the finest vintage-stlyle jeans to come out of Japan. Perhaps there have been periods when they've been overshadowed by some other makers, who promise heavier slub, or super-heavyweight fabric, or denim that starts to show wear within the first few weeks; yet Full Count seem to have mastered two very difficult arts, of finding fabric that ages beautifully, to give the look of the denim from the 40s and 50s, and to design unique, distinctive and flattering cuts.

 I happened upon one of Full Count's classic designs when I was looking for a classic 60s cut; I wanted something carrot-shaped, with a distinctive taper, that I could wear short, well proud of of shoes. A friend turned me on to the 1108; a brilliant interpretation of that classic shape.   The 1108 has that distinctive '60s carrot shape, but it's combined with other brilliantly subtle touches; expecially the back pockets, which I'd describe as a '40s splayed shape, with a unique, very subtle concave curve at the top. It's combined with other quite amazingly subtle touches; the stitch length on the pockets and fly is extremely short, almost like turn of the century jeans, while on the arcuate it's longer, like '60s Levi's. Some stitching, I believe, is poly cotton, for more strength, yet some is regular cotton, which wears more quickly. The fabric, too, is beautiful; only very subtle, fine irregularities which take time to come through. It captures the feel of late 40s or early 50s levi's denim perfectly, in its subtle graininess.

 For all these reasons, I happened to take my own 1108, bought from Full Count's store in Harjuku, out for a walk when I wandered around Columbia Road and Brick Lane on Sunday. When I dropped in on Son of a Stag, they clocked my well-worn arse and informed me that the designer of the jeans, Mikiharu Tsujita was in town.

 Miki-san is one of the key visionaries of the Osaka 5, the group of Japanese companies who revived the art of vintage denim. Staying around to ask him some questions meant that I'd be late for the Transformers movie that evening. It was a sacrifice I was prepared to make. There are a million questions I'd have liked to ask Mikiharu, but he had a busy schedule; for that reason, I thought I'd keep the questions specific to the 1108 in particular. In their own way, these lovely jeans embody the whole story of the Osaka Five.

 I'd like to ask you about your 1108, which I believe is a classic design. What was the inspiratiion? Did you come from a 60s starting point, or a '40s one? 
 The cut is '60s. The details is 1940s, but the shape is 1960s.

 Tell me about the shape of the pockets - it's curved at the top, very subtly, where did the inspiration for that come from? 
 My collection of vintage jeans, I noticed sometimes the shape is a bit like that, from people putting their hands in the pockets many, many times. It's not cut that way, it's the wear. It's just a small difference, not too much.

 The fabric is very subtle, too; fine slubs, not too irregular. Which mill produced it? 
 This mill is, in Okayama, is named Shinya, a very old company, which was making denim in the 1960s. They were making fabric for Levi's in the 1960s. I found them, with my friend [Yoshiyui] Tayashi from Denime, in the early 1990s, we found them and we asked them to make denim, with the old way.

 Obviously in Okayama there are a lot of the old 1920s G series Toyoda looms, then there are post war selvage looms by Toyoda and Sakamoto. How old were Shinya's looms?
 It depends. One [type of loom] is for heavy fabric only. The other can make only up to 10 ounce. The [main] point is whether the person can use the machine properly or not.

 So the skill of the operator is more important than which particular old loom? 
Exactly.

 A lot of the look of the denim comes from the yarns; was that hard to get right, both for these jeans and your other early models? 
I wanted to make original American 40s style fabric… and Zimbabwe cotton happened to have a similar structure to American cotton in the 1940s. American cotton then was more a long staple cotton boll. [More] recently, it's one year, two [crops] so the boll is smaller. These days when they make the yarn from the cotton is much easier, it's a different technique.

 Do you use Taisshobo for the yarns or is it all different spinning companies? 
Different ones.

 What year did you introduce the 1108? 
1995. I started making [jeans] in 1992, and the 1108, the 66 model, came in 1995.

 You had so many challenges to get those early jeans right. What's the next big challenge that you're working on? 
 Ha ha. My challenge is, other Japanese brands are making thick and strong fabric. I am still continuing this good-feeling and comfortable and nice fit jeans, it's a continuing challenge.

I'd initially misunderstood Miki-San's final answer, so I didn't quite realise that he is making a point about not producing super-heavyweight denim. We chatted while I took his photo, and he asked me what I thought about super-heavy designs. Time was short, so I compared super-heavy, super-slubby denim to Marshall amps that go up to 11. They don't actually wear any better. From his laughs, I got the impression you won't be seeing 23 ounce denim from Full Count any time soon.

Many thanks to Rudy, Max and Linda at sonofastag, which has been stocking Full Count for several years now, as part of their terrific selection of purist denim and workwear.  Thanks also to Kotaro Tanaka of Full Count for his help. 

Naturally beautiful: a trip to Nihon Menpu

Photos from top: Kase dyeing with natural indigo; working on the warp; Mr Kawai (left) with Teiji Kakutani

The story of Japanese denim is filled with magic and mystery. Many people know the story of the Osaka Five, the brands who spearheaded the revival of premium selvage denim in the 1990s. In comparison, the story of the mills who actually produced that denim is shrouded in mystery. Of all those mills, Nihon Menpu tends to inspire the greatest reverence among denim cognoscenti. When you've admired that kooky Mr Freedom wabash, the beautiful streaky Sugar Cane Edo Ai, the deep natural indigo of SDA's 103XX, or the authentic evocation of '70s Levi's produced by Denime, you've actually been looking at the work of this venerable mill in the heart of Okayama.

Okayama is a beguiling, rural location; the nearest town, Kurashiki, is famous as the centre of Japan's textile production, with many beautiful, low, wooden houses dating from the historic Edo period. Several famous mills – including Kurabo and Kuroki – sprung up around here, while the nearby island of Shuikoki is a last centre of natural indigo production. Nihon Menpu itself was established in 1917 by Jiroichi Kawai, around 20 miles out of Kurashiki. Reached by a rural train line winding alongside the Oda River, the factory nestles just out of sight of the Sanyo Highway. The workmanlike exterior belies a magical place, now overseen by Shinji Kawai.

Shinji-san is tall, grey-haired, somewhat refined, yet engaging and practical; he's worked with the family firm from 1980, and took over as president in 1996. Towards the end of a sweltering afternoon, we take tea in the upstairs boardroom, under the watchful eyes of photos of his Kawai forebears and the company's longest-serving workers. Together we study 1920s American denim pullovers, or other scraps which Shinji-san and his yarn experts have deconstructed and analysed. Yet the soul of Nihon Menpu comes from its distinctly Japanese heritage. The factory has made indigo-dyed fabric for most of the near-century it's existed; the room is filled with vintage fabrics loomed here: cotton ginghams, patterned Bingo Kaguri kimono fabrics and various Sashiko, the heavy, working kimono jacket.

This heritage explains why Nihon Menpu was one of the first Japanese mills to produce denim. Early investigations into the fabric derived from the Kawais' close relationships with Edwin, who started making jeans around 1961, and, from 1971, Studio D'Artisan (NM made their selvage denim from 1988). SDA's Shigeru Tagaki was an early collaborator with Mr Kawai and, he says “a very important person in the history of denim – he was a big influence.” Other crucial people in the complex web of Nihon Menpu's relationships include Mr Kondo, from the Taishobo Spinning Company, who make many of the yarns, and Mr Ryoichi Kobayashi of Toyo/Sugar Cane.

Although compact, Nihon Menpu is crammed with fascinating machinery; doubtless, the two key processes that define its finest fabrics are the 1920s Toyoda G10 Shuttle looms, and the indigo dyeing vat.

Toyoda looms are a key part of Japan's industrial heritage, and are the workhorses of Japan's revival of selvage denim (the story that the Osaka 5 used American looms is a persistent, but silly myth). Most of Japan's selvage denim is made on Toyoda looms dating from the 1950s or 60s. Nihon Menpu have over 70 of these looms, pictured here. They're historic items, but more historic still are the 20 Model G from the 1920s, the loom that helped launch Toyoda (later Toyota) as an industrial giant. Proud as he is of these machines, Mr Kawai doesn't allow photos; I believe they were customised, different from others I've seen. These produce the finest denim – the machines weave more slowly than the later Toyodas, hence the fabric is “very relaxed”. With low internal tensions, it's softer and smoother - the epitome of what the Japanese call “gentle weaving.”

Although Kawai-San wanted his own G10 looms to bask in romantic anonymity, I have found an almost identical model rather closer to home, and I'll post the photos here soon.

The elderly hank-dyeing apparatus, controlled by Koji Nomiya, represents the same, slow-food philosophy. The hanks, short loops of yarn, are twisted by the machinery and repeatedly dipped in the vat; and the vat's contents are, again, unique, for Nihon Menpu are champions of the Ai method. This ancient technique uses “Sukumo” - the composted leaves of the Japanese Polygonum Tinctorum plant, grown nearby on Shikoku Island – Kawai-san has visited the island many times, harvested the indigo leaves and studied under Dr Osamu Ni, one of the leading experts and researchers in this ancient art. Often, this Edo Ai method is combined with dyeing via natural indigo cake, from Indigofera Tinctorum, a more efficient, but still, unthinkably old-fashioned technique. Hence there are some Nihon Menpu denims, like the Edo Ai, made for Sugar Cane, which feature a combination of dyeing techniques from the 16^th, 18^th and 20^th centuries.

I knew Nihon Menpu produced many fine denims, principally for Sugar Cane and Mr Freedom, but I was surprised to discover that several other of my favourite fabrics originate from this tiny mill. There is, however, no typical Nihon Menpu denim. The Edo Ai, with its flamed indigo effect and slubby yarns (which contain tiny sugar grains at their core, to soften the fabric) is extrovert, obviously different - most of us will know if from several beautiful Flagship Mr Freedom items. Others, are extremely subtle. Over the last couple of years, I've been wearing a 2 by 1 Buzz Rickson armourers top; it's plain, with a utilitarian beauty all of its own, and the fabric comes from Nihon Menpu. Another landmark fabric is that made for Denime; I'm not sure how many models, but NM seem to be responsible for their late '60s or '70s style fabrics – one of Mr Kawai's own favourite jeans, shown in the photo. Over the last half dozen years, I've found my Studio D'Artisan SDA 103XX to have some of the most intriguing denim; it's natural indigo, which is dark and black when new, then fades to a baby blue with absolutely minimal crocking and a far more subtle slub than most Japanese 40s and 50s interpretations. Again, this unique denim is a flagship Nihon Menpu design; I believe in this case, the dye used is Indian natural indigo cake, rather than the Sukumo method. Finally, to give an idea of the breadth of their denims, I believe NM also produce the distinctive dark chambray for LVCs lovely sunset two pocket shirt.

My head was reeling after the day I spent looking around the factory, a combination of information overflow, and of course disorientation; technical terms don't always translate from one language to another, which left intriguing mysteries. But even that one day helped dispel many myths and unlock many secrets. It is really a magical place.

Thanks to Mens' Style magazine, who commissioned my original story on Nihon Menpu.  

Tokyo Denim Tour part 2: Harajuku and Ueno

My post on the Naka Meguro area was pretty comprehensive, as many of the shops are comparatively new. In contrast, most of the Harajuku and Ueno stores are pretty well-known, so this is more of a quick and dirty update.

Harajuku

Harajuku is well-established as a centre for youth (ish) fashion; it has a decent sprinkling of vintage stores, none of them earth-shattering. For me, the key destination was Full Count. Full Count were, with Evis, as they then were, one of the key companies in what we now call the Osaka Five. Before the rise of Evis and Full Count, Japanese denim was pretty well-established via two companies, Edwin and Studio A'Artisan. Meanwhile, Hidehiko Yamane and Mikiharu Tsujita worked for Lapine, a small store in Osaka, which imported vintage denim - together, they both speculated about producing vintage-style denim in Japan.Yamane was the first to do so, with his company Evis, which started volume production in 1992 - Tsujia followed a few months afterwards, with Full Count.

Although they're long-established, Full Count still seem modest in size, if we go by their Tokyo showroom. It's just off Harajuku Street; follow the main market street, which you can see from Harajuju, pass the KDDI Design Studio, and their shops is on the left, at the next junction. I've added it to my Tokyo denim map.

I 

I don't have too many photos, because I didn't do too much looking in this store. I was buying. In this case, a pair of Full Count 1108. I'll probably do an update on these later; along with the SDA 103XX, these represent the definitive, vintage style,  Japanese reinterpretation of 1947 Levi's. I love their subtlety, especially in terms of the pocket shape, and the stitching. The cut is great, too, again, very subtle. All their classic cuts are available in both raw and one wash - which is very handy for making sure your raw pair will shrink to the right size, of course. 

I saw these intriguing, 1920s-style prototypes in the shop, too. No idea if these are intended for volume production. I wasn't really supposed to photograph them, I was told afterwards - so I've left this tiny photo in to intrigue and frustrate you.










Full Count's washed items are terrific, too - they show, again, superb attention to detail. Full Count washed denim has the train tracks and crinkling at the seams  that are found on vintage Levi's but which remain very hard to mimic.

It's worth having a good, leisurely walk down Harajuku Street itself - a lot of interesting stores, although I got the feeling the halcyon days when it would take vintage buffs a day to peruse all the stores are long-gone. It looks as if OK & Emotional, which stocked a range of denim and was near the new Full Count location, is now closed.

Lee Concession, Laforet

This is tricky to find - unless you realise it's within the LaForet department store. A lovely little shop, with very helpful staff (who, like many others, ask you not to photograph but seem to wait until you've finished to do so). They feature the full range of Edwin-made repros, which at around 17,000 Yen are distinctly less expensive than many Japanese repros; you'll also find the Bluebell Wrangler repros, too.

What I especially liked was the selection of accessories, perfect for presents. I picked up a Hickory Stripe book cover, and a couple of aprons. The accessories are keenly-priced - unfortunately, they're made in China, which seems particularly ironic for items that are so distninctly branded with the "Union-Made" tag.



I was somewhat foxed in my attempts to find the Edwin showroom, just over the road. It's still there in Google Maps but in reality has disappeared. The Lee staff told me the shop has indeed closed, but that Edwin plan to open a new one.

Other nearby stores include Nudie (another concession within LaForet), Raw Drip (opposite side of the road from LaForet, with a decent selection of US brands including Rag & Bone, White's and LVC), and, a little further down, a large Levi's store, with a selection of LVC. (The main LVC location is at Aoyama, it's a beautiful store and is well-worth visiting).

In Shibuya proper, the 45RPM store is worth a look - there are several interesting shops in the same block. Sorry, the location for 45rpm on the map is a guess, as my iPhone battery died around this time.

Ueno Market

Ueno market needs little introduction - it's always been a key part of Tokyo culture. The two main stores, Hinoya and Americaya, are easy to find. The only trick is to look for the Shinobazu exit from the station (it's clearly marked). The stores are under the railroad tracks, at the end of that street to the right of Uniqlo. 

Hinoya

The first Hinoya stocks lots of Sugar Cane, Buzz Rickson (like the lovely shawl collar jacket, above), a good smattering of Mr Freedom (including older stock, but mostly washed), and of course their own brand, Burgus. Hinoya PlusOne is next door, and stocks Hawaiian shirts, Iron Hearts, some nice Heller's Cafe, including the H-094 early 1920s Repros, that took my eye...

Just a little further down are Hinoya PlusMart and Americaya.

Hinoya Plus sells some of the same items as its neighbour, plus more of the Burgus Plus Range. 

Immediately adjacent is Americaya. They have an excellent selection of Freewheelers/Union Special items including their lovely, albeit pricey, Wabash shirts. 

Note also these Toy's McCoys Lee Steve McQueen repros.

There are several others shops in this block selling interesting denim. The most notably one is probably Sun Dial - it's owned by the Hinoya people, I would guess, and features interesting items by Engineered Garment and Junya Watanabe, as well as more Burgus Plus Chinos. 

There are other great Tokyo stores I've left out. In time, I should be able to add these to the Google Map. Please feel free to email me with reminders, or locations. As mentioned before, I would have liked to visit the Kapital and Freewheelers stores. Maybe next time. 

Here's the map again - hopefully, you'll now find Full Count and others on there. 

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Tokyo Denim Tour part 1: Nakameguro, Daikanyama and Ebisu

Shopping is by no means the main attraction of Tokyo - but, let's face it, it's a worthwhile pastime. The department stores - Isetan and, especially, Tokyu Hands, the magnificent multistorey hardware store - are some of the world's finest. But I especially liked the smaller, boutique stores, many of which are unique, with carefully-sourced product and often many proprietary lines you rarely see elsewhere.

The area around Naka Meguro is richest in these stores; again, like elsewhere, they're by no means the finest attraction of the area. We loved this compact location, made friends there, hung out by the canal, guzzled iced coffees from the streetside vending machines. But the shops were great, so here's my all-too-brief selection.

I'll append a map later, and update this post with other people's suggestions for shops. So please email me or leave a comment if you have any additions, corrections, or gratuitous insults.

ACTS

If you're walking south, this is the first of a run of fabulous small shops. Brits will feel a patriotic surge at the display of Trickers'; there's a compact selection of vintage, many tasteful accessories and some original designs; chinos, tops etc.

Acts website


Army Gym

A block or two down from ACTS; Cabourn's label is, to my mind, one of the most exciting newer British label - in a Tokyo context it looks even more impressive.

Telepathy Route

In many ways, just a typical Tokyo vintage store, with a sprinkling of Levi's 507 and other items. But I liked the more down-market items best; simple deadstock French T-shirts for example. 

Raise High The Roof Beam, Carpenters

Mostly women's clothing. As one sees so often in Japan, the standard of execution for what I presume is a pretty small label, is simply staggering. Their website is well worth a look. 

By now, we've walked down near to Naka Meguro tube station. This area is full of intriguing stores, like Gaku Vintage Tools, on the other side of the canal from the clothing shops. It was, frustratingly, closed the day we noticed it. 

Up from RHRB, I believe turning up towards Daikanyama, was another intriguing little shop, Reflex, with an American Hunting and Fishing theme. Not my particular bag, but as usual the sourcing, and quality of items on display, was impressive. 

Daikanyama

Follow the train line round from Naka Meguro and you soon reach Daikanyama, home to what is now one of Japan's most established denim brands, Evisu. The story of Evisu is fascinating; often credited as  the first Osaka 5 label, Evisu were of course at the forefront of the resurgence of selvage denim. They were also the main company described as purchasing redundant American looms; I'd personally written them off for such marketing porkies, and have grown depressed by the poor quality European Evisu items - and some of the business practices of Evisu Hong Kong. But a wander around the Daikanyama stores helped revive my decades-old enthusiasm for the label - especially the first floor, with its wealth of golfing items. 

There is a loom in the entrance to the downstairs showroom; the staff didn't know, but I suspect it's a Toyoda Type G, the pioneering loom shown in action here. 

I love the portrait of Evisu's founder, Hidehiko Yamane, which has the feeling of a religious icon in this setting. 

Barley Harvest Season

Barley Harvest Season are over the road from the Evisu showroom. I've heard great things of them, but sadly didn't have a chance to check out the store, which is closed Mondays and Tuesdays. 

My disappointment at missing BHS was eased by my visit to another of Tokyo's finest small stores...

UES

UES is just north of the junction dominated by Evisu, set back from the street in a huddle of mostly lowrise apartment buildings and small shops - like Naka Meguro, this is a corner well worth spending time in. UES alone justifies the trip - for a small company, the execution of their denim is stunning. Sadly, I didn't have enough Japanese to find which mill they use, but the denim, and the standard of finishing on their pants is very impressive. 

Of course, Tokyo has plenty of choice in Levi's-inspired pants. But... no one else has kids' wear as impressive as this. 

The kids' jackets retail at around 15,000 Yen, available from Size 0 to Size 3. That's a fair amount of money, indeed, but fully justified by the workmanship. 

This is Tomohito Inomata at work in the store; like many Japanese denim outlet, there's a Union Special in the shop so customers can get a custom inseam with the obligatory chainstitch.

The UES blog is here. 

Just around the corner from UES, there's Hollywood Ranch Market. As the name suggests it was a little generic, at least on cursory examination, but it's worth a quick look.

Continue North up the main street, Komazawa Dori, toward Ebisu and there are plenty more nice stores. Wild Life Taylor boasts Alden, Mr Freedom, LVC, some choice RRL items, lovely canvas bags and another very tasteful interior.

Komazawa Dori also has this impressive shop selling vintage Harleys...

This street takes us up to two of Tokyo's most significant denim stores, Warehouse and Kapital. 

I didn't visit Kapital in this location (although it's marked on the map, below), as I planned to do so in another location in Kojima - where, unfortunately, I was told not to take photos and was getting very short of time. But I was very impressed by the full range.  Designer Kazuhiro Hirata draws on a huge range of denim mills, and there's some very impressive laundry work, all of which I believe is done at the Kapital factory in Kojima. 

Warehouse

I had a fixed plan of what denim I planned to buy in Tokyo; but it was very hard to resist temptation and buy a pair of 1001XX. Sadly, Warehouse don't seem to support the Duck Digger range any longer, but that's made up for by the superd Heller's Café range - all based on the collection of Larry MacKaughan, a denim collector and dealer who's also, I found when researching Denim, one of the most helpful people in the industry.

Downstairs has the standard Warehouse range. 

Upstairs we have the Warehouse Archive, with more of the one-off Heller Cafe items. I have far too many cinchback jeans... but am sorely tempted by these. 

This is very attractive denim, with an authentic vintage look, fine yarns and short stitch lengths rather than the exaggerated vintage style we see on many repros. The pants retail at Y24,000, good value for that attention to detail. I loved the One Pocket Pleated Jacket, too, at a slightly heftier Y33,000. 

I would have loved to have visited Toys McCoys and Freewheelers in Tokyo, two places I've heard a lto about, but sadly didn't make it this time. I will follow up with far briefer stories on Shinjuku and Harajuku, plus Ueno market. Watch this space...

And now, it's possible you might see a Google Map giving you direction to all these denim destinations. 

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