Last weekend, I had the pleasure of hosting a conversation about jeans at the new Esprit store in Los Angeles. Being a child of the 80s, I have very fond feelings about Esprit and its stenciled logo and iconic, color block campaigns. I mean, who doesn’t love Esprit?! Its sporty look and irreverent use of denim as a fabric – for clothes, not just jeans – became a cultural touchstone, and continues to resonate with me now (when I saw there were vintage Esprit pieces in the store, I had to have one; it’s still so good). To be invited behind the scenes of Esprit’s denim revival was a total treat.
The panelists at the event were Amy Leverton of Denim Dudes, Albert Muzquiz (@edgyalbert), and Denim Doctors’ Zip Stevenson – three people whose work has helped shape the jean-loving landscape of L.A. From trend forecasting (Amy) to men’s styling (Albert), and vintage alterations and repairs (Zip; also the Jean of the Week, below), they are experts in their fields. I learned a lot and loved talking to them about what jeans mean to us, personally, but also to a global company like Esprit that’s adapting to today’s fabric and fit technologies while still trying to honor the wacky, wonderful spirit of its past.
Esprit was started by Susie and Doug Tompkins in San Francisco in 1968 (news to me; I always thought it was a European company for some reason.) The stencil-effect logo designed by John Casado more than a decade later was reportedly inspired by the labeling on shipping containers. In truth, the first two decades of Esprit are a bit blurry. It was the first store, designed by the Italian architect Ettore Sottsass and opened in Cologne, Germany in 1986, that helped bring the brand into focus. There, in Sottsass’s radically colorful space – a postmodern playground built in his signature Memphis style – Esprit’s visual identity was affirmed. Campaigns shot by fashion photographer Oliviero Toscani on real people (v models; shocking!) captured the joy and aspirations of a generation. Life, in Esprit, was good.
It was around this time that Esprit introduced a category called “jeanswear,” which I interpret to be a mashup of jeans and sportswear, a very broad term once used to describe anything people wore during the day that wasn’t workout gear or power suiting. With jeanswear, dresses, skirts, jackets, overalls, vests, bras, baseball caps, and directional 5-pocket jeans were all cut in denim. It was fun. It was unexpected, and – true to its era – it was excessive. Just look at the vintage jacket I got at the store (featured below). There’s so much going on: Bonus snaps, flight suit-style pockets, exaggerated sleeves, grommets in the armpit gussets, a built-in backpack! Surely, the designers were having a blast.
I agreed to do this letter in partnership with Esprit because I believe the company’s history is inspiring and something you’d enjoy. I also think the new jeans are genuinely excellent, well-made, and nicely priced. The pairs I’ve chosen today fit true to size – I’m a 25 in both – and most sizes come in two inseam lengths (28” and 30”; I’m 5’4” and wear the 28” inseam in both pairs). As with every letter, I’ve learned a lot while writing and it’s a joy sharing everything with you.
ESPRIT: Premium Retro Wide Leg
This is the pair I wore to moderate the panel – a super-clean wide leg with a touch of stretch (2%). The V-shaped triple-stitching on the back pockets and a 3-line logo in red on the coin pocket (references to Esprit’s signature “E”) are good examples of the kinds of thoughtful details sprinkled throughout the new denim collection – clever, not too much. Bar tacks in the corners (v rivets) give the Retro a more polished look. With spanking-new Nike sneakers, it feels very fresh.
I’m wearing these jeans with the vintage piece I scored at the store. No doubt, there is a lot going on with this jacket, which is part bomber, part varsity, part…backpack? What is the oversized rectangular pocket along the yolk for, exactly? (A Trapper Keeper was the first thing that came to mind for me.) Good idea or bad, these were the kinds of rule-breaking design risks Esprit had the guts to make back then. Was anyone in the industry having as much fun, I wonder?
ESPRIT: Recycled Retro Straight Jean
Clothing made with 100% cotton is, in my opinion, one of the greatest luxuries because it’s natural and machine-washable (you can’t say that about cashmere and wool, as gorgeous as those fibers are, too). To wear a cotton poplin shirt like Esprit’s with non-stretch, recycled cotton jeans is the definition of ease, I think. Poplin, a fabric weave that’s straight and tight, is often described as feeling “crisp” because it’s dense, but also breathable. At this point, I doubt I have to tell you about the glories of all-cotton jeans – they’re pretty much where all of the denim magic happens and I’d say 1/2 of the jeans I feature in this letter are non-stretch. But recycled cotton? That’s exciting.
Look, jeans are part of fashion’s environmental problem. I know this and anyone who makes jeans knows this, as well. It’s isn’t perfect, but denim is a changing scene, and an $88 jean made with recycled cotton matters when it’s done by a globally recognized brand like Esprit. If they can do it, others surely can, too.
Jean of the Week: Zip Stevenson
“Fit. Fit is the most important thing,” Zip Stevenson told me about buying vintage jeans. Which is why he started Denim Doctors, a denim repair and alterations operation in Los Angeles that specializes in re-working pre-worn jeans without, well, f*cking them up. “As long as you have a good fit on the outer hip, everything else is modifiable,” Zip explained. “We shorten the legs. Take in the waist. We can change the rise. Make the rise shorter. Make the front rise shorter and keep the back rise the same, depending on where there’s looseness. It’s a game-changer.”
Zip is what you would expect from someone who has been deep in the denim business for nearly 30 years – really good at sizing people up. When I visited his store last week, he told me he could get me in a great vintage pair in 10 minutes, or less. “It happens pretty fast,” he said. I started the clock. “Light or dark wash?,” he asked. “We’re going into fall.” Darker, but I like highs and lows, I told him. “Are you cool with it above the ankle, or do you like them to be long?” I said I don’t like cropped jeans, but they don’t have to touch the floor, either. Zip sent me back to the dressing room with three options and in exactly 6 minutes and 33 seconds, I walked out in a pair that felt made for me. “You’re proof of concept, my dear.” No joke.
Of course, I bought the jeans. You don’t walk away from a perfect fit.
Denim Doctors is located at 1495 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026; (424) 256-9506. Follow @denimdoctors for more.
Zip and his team will be offering repairs and alterations at the Esprit store in Los Angeles this Saturday, October 14 from 11am - 7pm. Bring a pair that needs some love – they don’t have to be Esprit – and let Zip make them better than new. As always, thank you for liking, sharing, shopping and subscribing to my work. Your support is everything.
Jane
Hello dear Jane! I’m contemplating that recycled straight leg and wondered if you could share thoughts on sizing. I’m a 6, waiver between 28/29. For some bootay/thigh action happening. Thank you for all you do -- a treasure.
Jane, I have been meaning to comment on this, but wanted to wait until I had the time to compose my thoughts. Esprit. WOW! One of the fondest childhood memories I have, is when my family lived in the Bay Area in the early 1980's. My Mom would take me to the Esprit outlet in San Francisco from the East Bay and we would shop until we were starving and then eat chocolate croissants for lunch! It was the beginning of many shopping outings my Mom and I would venture out on for years to come. I recall many purchases from those trips including a classic Esprit Sweatshirt, the also classic tote bag (which I used as my school bag), and my entire matching skirt and shirt set that is forever captured in my 1st grade school picture. Thanks for the trip down memory lane, the details I never knew ( they are not French?!), and the heads up that Esprit is back and the denim is Jane Herman approved.