We know you love IH, but where do you think we can improve?
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I’m probably gonna come in for a lot of abuse and online ‘trolling’ over what I am going to post but I need to get this off my chest as it’s been bothering me for some time now.
I’m not one for contributing much to this forum, one or two silly posts in 12 months barely warrants any justification for my continued inclusion, I’d rather let my jeans do the talking however on one thing i am adamant. The choice of 25 oz denims is pitifully low, for a company that prides itself on their heavy denim the choices on offer are becoming less and less every day. The 666XHS is ‘where it all began’ yet for the past 2 years IH has been unable to fix the run1 and run2 .In the meantime we can all continually choose the 777’s. The talk recently was about the 555 XHSib 25oz. Upon closer inspection I figured I could use these jeans yet low and behold, this pair of 25oz jeans is now endangered like some panda in a zoo in a Chinese city.The roll-call of extinct jeans grows by the month like some long list of never-to-be-seen-again classic cars. Please ironheart there are people out there who choose your jeans for the sheer weight of your denim not to visit the website and reminisce over what might had been had I pulled the trigger and bought this or that pair of 25oz jeans ‘when I had the opportunity ‘
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@Jackhammer happily we get extremely little “trolling”on this forum and encourage expression of honest opinion. You’re using this thread absolutely as intended so if anyone trolls you, you can be sure the mods will deal with it.
As to your point, I can say this… I too love 25oz and would happily see all IH cuts in it. That being said, because of the type of product and the section of the clothing industry we are talking about, there are real logistical issues with this. Here are a few:
- production of the 25oz is notoriously difficult to do, to the high standards Haraki-san requires.
- It doesn’t get made in very high quantities.
- It is expensive to make, leading to expensive jeans. You can’t have that much expensive stock lying around if you aren’t going to move it.
These issues are parts of the reason behind some of the things you point out. The 555-XHSib snd 888 in the same denim are endangered because of the quantities involved. It is spesialist, unusual denim, hard to make and expensive to make. It therefore fits the «limited batch» model IH and most other Japanese «secret» brands employ. The 777-XHS is a response to the popularity of the 777 cut, as was the 666 version when originally released. The point being as long as they sell, they will be remade.
The 21oz is the heavyweight denim IH has as its flagship product. The 25oz was initially a one off project that Haraki-san was sceptical to. Other company’s produce heavier denim but H thinks his 25oz is at the limit of what can be made well and worn comfortably. It is extreme, special interest denim. It will never be produced in massive quantities and you’ll never see that many cuts that are Extant made of it.
Happily this forum exists so that fans of the 25oz can get the lowdown first and they can pick up pairs of limited batch 25oz as they drop. Discussions about the last of the XHSib denim and which cuts will be made of it are underway, so watch this space.
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We pride ourself primarily on our 21oz.
The 25oz was a thing I dreamt up with Roger Hatt of VMC in the bar of the Granbell Hotel in Shibuya a few years ago. It is extraordinarily hard to make, we get an immense amount of wastage and the mill we use for weaving it hates making it. Any sensible company would have dropped it as a production item years ago, and that did nearly happen as the mill wanted to stop weaving it because they get so much wastage, it is only because we agreed to buy all the denim they make, even the 2nd and 3rd quality that they agreed to continue.
Please can you expand on this statement, I don't really know what it means:
"The 666XHS is ‘where it all began’ yet for the past 2 years IH has been unable to fix the run1 and run2".
When you say "The roll-call of extinct jeans grows by the month", do you mean 25oz or jeans in general? If you mean 25oz, then there are not many that are extinct other than intentionally limited runs that were done for competitions or special events. If you mean in general, we still have 72 different styles of jeans available, frankly, that is an asinine number of models to offer for a company our size.
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In addition to the above, the 666-XHS rerun is due in the next couple of weeks so.
The run 1/run 2 thing you refer to is what happens when two batches of jeans measure differently, we opted to provide accurate meausments for all units in stock rather than provide a simpler, inaccurate measurement chart.
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A minor "complaint" but the collars on IH work shirts and westerns are too large. The ends always curl and it gives off a bit of a 70's vibe. Nothing that stops me from buying them obviously but if the collars were made just a bit smaller they would be perfect.
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A minor "complaint" but the collars on IH work shirts and westerns are too large. The ends always curl and it gives off a bit of a 70's vibe. Nothing that stops me from buying them obviously but if the collars were made just a bit smaller they would be perfect.
I agree with this, FWIW.
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I'm not a fan how the IH tag is sewn on shirts. It looks oftentimes sloppy and doesn't match the otherwise flawless/premium construction and appearance. I know it adds more complexity to the process but as a suggestion I'd love to see the tag being sewn on separately/individually which would look much cleaner and suit the IH aesthetic perfectly IMHO.
Example of the tag being sewn on separately (on a random shirt)
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I never gave the tag much thought. If I let my ocd kick in I’d probably never buy clothing again. Shows me that we’re human and imperfect
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I have a shirt where the tag is sewn on crooked. Drives me crazy.
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Doesn't bother me, in a way it fits with the workwear origins…
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Let's just use the (red or other coloured) w on the pockets, like on the SH-38
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Without being deliberately contrary, or advocating features of items to be deliberately off; I quite like the fact that each one is different. I think the wabi sabi side of it gives a product more character
Agreed.
Let's just use the (red or other coloured) w on the pockets, like on the SH-38
I like the red W on the jackets and jeans but not on the shirts. Having the woven IH tag on the chest pocket of a shirt is enough branding for me, anything beyond that is overkill imo and I would likely stop buying them. Plus, I think adding the W would look out of place on certain shirts, especially anything with a pattern. I have an aversion to overbranding in general. A few years back Filson tried doing this with their shirts by adding an embroidered logo above the pocket or some such thing. Ugly as feck. But, then again, I wouldn't have bought it anyway since Filson can't seem to sew a shirt properly.
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@Max:
Let's just use the (red or other coloured) w on the pockets, like on the SH-38
Great idea! The red W is a far better and subtle branding detail on the shirts than the tag. It is unique to IH and it would look not only great but also distinct it from everyone else who uses a tag on their shirts (e.g. two other companies that start with an L). Red W instead of the tag has definitely my vote.
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I say keep everything as is. I love the red W as it's used now (jeans/jackets/some cut and sewn) and the tags that are currently used on the shirts don't bother me in any way.
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The tag can be removed if you don’t like it, the W would pretty much be there to stay.
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I haven’t read this whole thread so forgive me if this has already been mentioned..
The pocket bags on all my IH jeans are the weakest link and almost all of them have had to be repaired. They could be much thicker or even made with a light canvas and still be comfortable.
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I love pocket seam taping on my 666's. When I got a pair of 777's I was surprised there was none. It's a great feature all cuts should get it!
