3sixteen for Wythe.
Photos: Austin Withers
Model: Max Jablonsky
This Saturday, May 13th, we’re excited to launch our inaugural jean collaboration with fellow New York City-based new Americana brand Wythe. We first met Peter Middleton, Wythe’s founder, almost two years ago but had admired his work well before we finally connected. What has always resonated with us about Wythe has been its razor sharp focus on vintage American classics that have been cleverly recontextualized for a modern customer. It continues to fascinate us to see how both Wythe and 3sixteen pull from similar points of reference but are able to interpret them in vastly different ways. Flannels, for instance, are integral to both brands - and while we’re both inspired by vintage patterns and textures, our different methods of execution result in unique outputs that, in our opinion, have equally important places in the marketplace.
The idea to work together on a jean first arose from a reference swatch that we received in the mail from one of the small mills we work together with in Japan. We were immediately drawn to the hairy nep exhibited on the face combined with its unique grayish-blue indigo color, which brought vintage western jeans to mind. We reached out to Peter right away to show him this fabric thinking that he would be into it as much as we were - and we were right. It turned out that, unbeknownst to us, Peter had just purchased a pair of original deadstock jeans from the ‘70s produced by one of the big 3 in jeans. We later compared the two denims and they were shockingly similar, fifty years and an ocean apart. Realizing that this was indeed the fabric for us, we went back to the mill to learn more about the denim and to find out how to calibrate it and customize it to meet our needs for a joint project.
The result is a 14oz. rope-dyed indigo right hand twill selvedge denim that is custom woven exclusively for this project. As mentioned before, the fabric features a beautiful nep that looks akin to paper flecks and a beautiful greyish blue tone that exhibits lots of indigo variation when viewed up close. For the selvedge ID, Peter wanted to utilize a pink thread to match the way red selvedge lines on vintage jeans fade out over time when worn and washed heavily; we gladly obliged and paired it with our broken double-line ID that we typically feature on our Kibata denim.
The fit for this jean is our CS cut, the first 3sixteen jean that Peter tried on and subsequently fell in love with. It makes sense because it’s a modified version of a classic late 1940’s denim fit that many know and love, and features a roomy top block, full leg and slight taper from the knee down while still having enough room to fit over cowboy boots. We then dove into the details to add finishing touches to the jeans that would pay homage to the best American jeans of bygone eras.
Trims include custom debossed and co-branded brass rivets alongside brass fly shanks. We bought a full cowhide and sent it to our friends at Sidnaw Company in Michigan to cut down into patches and brand it with our logos, and were thrilled with the result. Vintage denim aficionados will surely appreciate the acorn shaped back pockets and the aforementioned pink double line selvedge ID. The result is a jean that we made, but that we could not have made apart from Wythe’s partnership. Alongside these jeans, Wythe produced a small run of rope hats with our cobranded logo embroidered on the front.
The 3sixteen for Wythe jeans retail for $330 and will be available in-store at our NY launch party this Saturday, May 13th. You can find them online the following Monday, May 15th via Wythe, Guevel, and our online shop. Please note that quantities are limited on this release and we expect sizes to move quickly. For your convenience, we've posted photos and measurements for your consideration ahead of Monday's online launch.
