Big-Time Jeans

Madewell's high-quality collaboration with Benjamin Talley Smith, Jamie Haller's cool new sneakers, and a postcard from the Sierras.

There are people in the L.A. denim scene who possess a kind of mythical status – their names dropped and whispered at factories as both a bragging right, and a test to see how connected I am. “Look,” the factory owner will say showing me this sample or that; a jean hand-sanded to the finest blue; a sweatshirt I can’t stop petting. “We did this for Benjamin Talley Smith.” Pause. “Do you know Ben?”

In fact, I do know Ben. I was introduced to him through a friend who worked in design at Helmut Lang in 2019, when I had this idea to make jumpsuits – maybe in denim, but probably not, yet – and needed advice. See, if you want to make jeans or anything jean-adjacent in Los Angeles, if you want to do it properly at the best factories with the highest quality fabrics, and you want your hardware to feel special and your fits to be pristine, you call Benjamin. Consultant, contractor, designer – he’s the guy behind the scenes on Khaite’s jeans. And Reformation’s jeans… and more. In 2024, The New York Times called him “The Most Influential Jeans Guy You’ve Never Heard Of”¹ because at the time (and maybe, still) it was true.

Now that you, too, know Benjamin, we can all get excited about the collaboration he designed with Madewell – a 7-piece capsule that comes straight from the greatest sources our City of Jeans has to offer. It launched today. “We wanted to showcase L.A. craftsmanship, to give you something different,” Benjamin told me at his downtown studio, where he let me try everything on. “I think a lot of people see Madewell as being more casual. This feels like luxury.”

With Benjamin Talley Smith at his studio in downtown L.A., wearing the new Coolidge Low Rise Wide Leg from his collaboration with Madewell, which launched today. “You can cuff it, but it’s also for the tall girls. You have a ton of extra length,” he said. I wear a size 24, rolled twice at the hem.

The capsule includes two jean fits – “a straight leg and this low-rise, wide-leg cuffed guy,” Ben said, in two washes – along with two jackets, two sweatshirts (classic and oversized), and a punchy tee. Really, it’s everything we keep in our wardrobes, done like nothing I’ve seen before. Creative. Considered. Take the barn jacket, for example. The top pockets don’t match – only one has a flap, though neither have buttons – yet, it totally works. Meanwhile, the fray at the hem of the slimmer Putney jean is extra fuzzy, finished with a stitch so it doesn’t go rogue. It’s full fringe. I love it. As someone who only wears unfinished hems on beaches in the summertime, I’m making an exception for these.

The Coolidge comes in two washes – the Wells (above) and super pretty Chalk – with leather button tabs at the waist. As always, my white t-shirt is this. The great-for-tees bra I wear with it is this. But if you’re looking right through me to Benjamin’s wall of denim in the background, I don’t blame you.

“We spend many hours fitting every jean. Looking at back pocket placement, belt loop placement, belt loop height, trying to land something that everybody loves and that’s super comfortable,” Benjamin told me. I can feel it, I tell him. The Coolidge makes a sexy “schoop” sound as I slip it on over my hips. The fit is immaculate. The finishing is tight. “The people that work in the factory, they are the true artisans behind what I do,” he asserted. “As many as thirty people touch every piece, from myself to my design partner Jen [Zmrhal], the pattern maker, fit model, tech designer, sewing team, washing team. I hope we get the point across that real people make these clothes in a real factory here in Los Angeles.”

The Fairview Barn Jacket in Chalk White has a patch pocket on top that’s detached from the chest piece along the bottom seam. The opposite pocket doesn’t match exactly, yet the two play so nicely together.

Benjamin doesn’t have to say it, but I will: These artisans he and Madewell rely on to make clothes this nice? Many of them are immigrants. Los Angeles is world-famous for its jeans because of the skilled and hard-working people who live here and have learned from the best – family businesses with decades of experience. “The hand process here in L.A. is like nothing else, especially for jeans,” Benjamin emphasized. “Me and Jen were at the factory almost every day as this collaboration came through. We’ve seen it at five or six different points during production just to make sure that everything looks amazing.” And trust me, it does. Look absolutely amazing.

The Putney mid-rise has a straight leg and a thick, frayed hem. I’m adding it to my ever-growing collection of slim silhouettes. Jamie Haller boots.

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Speaking of being meticulously and passionately made in L.A. by skilled craftspeople, my bandanas are almost finished. In fact, I was out last weekend test-driving them through the state of California. (Actually, I took my kids skiing in Mammoth – bandanas are great for that, too! – and a stop in Lone Pine on the way back was a bonus). The “Daisies,” I’ve named them, come in black and five custom colors, each one embroidered with little stars and other accents. I can’t wait to show you and tell you all about them (it’s been a journey!). Email me to be notified when they’re ready.

In Lone Pine, CA wearing my “Daisies in Space” bandana, coming soon.

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Meanwhile, I returned home to find my Jamie Haller sneakers had arrived, and since many of you are fans I’ll tell you my thoughts. I think they are fantastic. The traditional sacchetto construction, which is Italian (roughly translating to mean “little bag”), involves sewing the inner lining directly to the upper, eliminating the need for a heavy insole. Fancy. Light. I love the low profile and generous dip around the ankle. I love the fresh white laces. At first I thought they were modeled after boxing shoes, but Jamie told me they were inspired by climbing sneakers. “Meets sacchetto, meets a vintage inspired trainer, but tonal… to start,” she wrote. See all the colors here.

Jamie Haller’s new Sacchetto sneakers are slim like climbing shoes with an extra big dip around the ankle. Here with my Georgia in Jet, a very good sneaker jean. This Theory sweater is tissue-weight, warm, and wears like a t-shirt. SPRWN suede bomber. I share these sweet little Negative socks with my daughter (more on that below).

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That’s all for this week. A huge Thank You to Benjamin for being so generous with his time, his resources, and his always-excellent insight. I’m back on Saturday with a very special guest (OK, it’s Nili Lotan!). Subscribe so you don’t miss it, she’s a legend. Please heart this post if you heart jeans. Thank you for reading. As always, Denim Forever.

Jane

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More good things…

I believe in collage art. And these heavenly Emme Parsons boots. Use code JANE10 at checkout for 10% off.

About those Negative socks... My 7 year-old daughter, who is generally (distressingly) sock-resistant also loves them. Our first shared clothes thing! (Though I may feel less generous if she were borrowing these.)

The influencers are all influencing about these Biologica supplements and I, too, accepted a tin of the Cranberry Lemonade flavor as a gift. True story: They are delicious, and I feel good when I drink one a day, and so I subscribed to get the midlife essentials delivered monthly.

1. “The Most Influential Jeans Guy You’ve Never Heard Of,” by Vanessa Friedman. The New York Times, May 28, 2024.