〜 The Back Pocket: The Face of the Brand 〜

 

 

This is a Vintage Blog entry.

This time, I'd like to introduce Lee's Lazy S stitch.

 

As you've probably seen,

the back pockets of jeans often feature a stitch that acts as the brand's face.

In previous Vintage Blog entries,

I've introduced LEVI'S and Wrangler.

 

 

When you think of LEVI'S,

you think of the familiar Arcuate Stitch.

(501XX/47 Late Model)

 

 

 

When you think of Wrangler,

you think of the Silent W (Mount Fuji) that I introduced last time.

(1948 - 1950s)

 

 

 

And when you think of Lee, it's this:

The Lazy S.

(1940s, Center Red Tag)

 

 

 

By the way, JELADO's back pocket

has this stitch.

(JELADO 301EXX/JP94301E)

 

 

 

In fact, until around 1943, when LEVI'S patented the arcuate stitch,

Lee also used the arcuate stitch.

 

 

This wasn't limited to Lee; it was seen in other denim brands as well.

FOREMOST, a store brand, might be a good example.

 

 

Because LEVI'S obtained the patent for the arcuate stitch in '43,

Lee needed to come up with a new stitch.

 

 

The reverse arcuate stitch seen during the World War period

(1943-45)

 

 

 

This pattern existed for only two years until the Lazy S was introduced in 1945.

There were also versions with no back pocket stitching.

Perhaps it was a desperate measure.

 

 

Finally, in 1945, Lee finally developed the "Lazy S,"

a distinguishing detail that made Lee jeans recognizable by their back pockets.

 

※ Origin of the Lazy S

The design is inspired by the branding iron

used by cowboys on cattle,

and "Lazy S" refers to an S on its side.

 

 

While this detail might be commonplace now,

I hope this blog helps you understand the story behind it.

 

 

Since we're talking about back pockets, I'd like to introduce one more detail.

 

 

Thread Rivet

(1943-45 / 101B War Model)

 

 

(1940s / Center Red Tag)

 

The X-shaped stitch on the pocket

is called a thread rivet.

 

 

So why was the thread rivet adopted?

 

 

Because iron rivets could scratch horse saddles and chairs,

Lee independently came up with bar tack reinforcement.

 

 

While LEVI'S adopted bar tacks

from the 1960s,

Lee had been using them since 1924.

In terms of public recognition,

it might be LEVI'S > Lee, but

Lee, unlike LEVI'S, started as a food company,

and their flexible thinking, which is still used in current models,

makes me personally believe they were a cutting-edge brand at the time.

 

 

This time, focusing on the back pocket as the brand's face,

this blog was about Lee's "Lazy S" and

"Thread Rivet," which uses bar tacks for reinforcement instead of metal rivets.

 

 

Earlier, there was an image of JELADO's back pocket…

 

JELADO is a brand that produces items based on vintage designs,

and they also offer denim.

 

To analyze the XX fabric of the 1950s,

we cut into deadstock denim from that era,

scientifically analyzed it, and created our own original fabric,

LAST RESORT denim, which is as close as possible to XX fabric. 

 

※ For more details, please see our YouTube videos:

Episode 1

Episode 2

Episode 3

 

Now, I'd like to introduce products made with this denim fabric.

 

JELADO Age of Longing 301XX【JP94301】

JELADO Universal Slim 312ZXX【JP94312】

JELADO 55Denim(55デニム) 313XX【JP94313】

 

And the denim released in early October…

The LAST RESORT Black Tag Series released in late October:

JELADO Age of Longing Black tag 301EXX【JP94301E】

JELADO Age of Longing Black Tag 407EXX Size34(XS)~38(M)【JP94407E】

JELADO Age of Longing Black Tag 407EXX Size40(L)~44(XXL)【JP94407ED】

JELADO Age of Longing Black Tag 407EXX Big Size(50)【JP94407EDD】

Please come and try them on at the store!! 

 

 

 

One more thing…

We have opened a "VINTAGE JEANS Dictionary" on the JELADO online store, from JELADO's perspective,

so please take a look!!

You can go to the page here, so please check it out!!