Too many cooks in the kitchen is never a bad thing in the denim market, where there are as many recipes to success as there are jeans lovers. Here, a look at some of the best of the new crop, including the latest denim confections by established designers, labels new to the blue and imports.
THE STRONGHOLD
Who: Michael Paradise and Michael Cassel
Maiden Voyage: Von Dutch Originals, which Cassel founded in 1999. Paradise was fashion director for North Beach Leather.
The Recipe: When Cassel and Paradise say vintage, they mean vintage. Their collection is a relaunch of 1895 denim line The Stronghold. “It was a regional brand to Los Angeles,” Paradise explains. “We thought, This is perfect. That’s where everybody makes their denim now.”
Stats: Eight silhouettes for women, from a cuffed capri to utility worker pants, all of which are constructed from selvage fabric; $285.
PEOPLE OF THE WORLD
Who: Yves Castaldi
Maiden Voyage: Castaldi’s CV reads like a list of who’s who of denim power players: Levi’s, Wrangler, Diesel, Buffalo.
The Recipe: The signature diamond star embroideries, zigzag stitching and ultrafrayed fabric patch labels make for a denim collection with a craftier touch.
Stats: Fifteen different styles, including this season’s Western-themed items, complete with Native American embroideries; $160 to $210.
SIWY
Who: Michelle Siwy
Maiden Voyage: After working for Maurice Malone in the late Nineties, Siwy was hired to revamp the year-old Fractal Jeans in 2002 into a more marketable collection.
The Recipe: Feminine fit (read: curves) meets vintage feed-sack cloth. The waistband dips in the front, the knee is sculpted and the hem curves slightly from back to front for better mobility.
Stats: Five styles for fall, named after Siwy’s sisters and sisters-in-law. The signature slim jean, however, is named after the designer herself; $130 to $185.
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CB BRAND FOR … CURVED BOTTOMS
Who: Leslie Ungar
Maiden Voyage: Apple Bottoms Jeans by Nelly.
The Recipe: Three months after licensing out Apple Bottoms Jeans by Nelly (the denim line she started with the multiplatinum-selling rapper), Ungar set her sights on developing a new denim collection that would be as equally derriere-friendly, but for the contemporary market.
Stats: Six different styles, from five-pocket to rhinestones; $130 to $250.
Extra Credit: The CB Brand is also host to charity foundation Style International Source, which raises self-image awareness in the face of eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia.
LIVE LIFE AND LOVE
Who: Karl Kani
Maiden Voyage: Casual sportswear label Karl Kani.
The Recipe: Denim tricked out with Buddha embroideries, Swarovski accents, crocheted patches and hand-painted floral motifs, among others. “If I were to compare it to a car, a Benz 500 or Bentley, where our jean is the car,” Kani says, “our embellishments are the rims you add on.”
Stats: 15 styles plus the dressier novelty items, like a denim tuxedo; $158 to $230.
FINS
Who: Lisa Kingsley
Maiden Voyage: Lisa Kingsley Clothing, a Bali-inspired collection of separates.
The Recipe: The look is sophisticated, clean and classic, with no streaks, abrasions, sandblasts or loud embroidery.
Stats: Nine looks, from the skinny jean to a ruffled pencil skirt; $130 to $249.
J BRAND
Who: Jeff Rudes and stylist Susie Crippen
Maiden Voyage: Paris 2000, a designer denim label Rudes established in the States in the late Seventies. In the early Nineties, he took a stake in the line A. Gold E with Adriano Goldschmeid.
The Recipe: Rudes is looking to re-create, in dark resin-treated stretch fabric, his 1976 slim-fit jean, while tending to one sole mandate: no excess hardware and/or embellishments.
Stats: Four styles, from a 20-inch flare to a 14-inch skinny; $140 to $155.