Archive for the ‘Literature’ Category

Real McCoys SPEC-REPORT

Saturday, September 19th, 2009

For Real McCoys fans, the Free & Easy Nov09 Edition, SPEC-REPORT could be good.
spec-report


Fugitive Denim

Saturday, September 19th, 2009

This books sounds interesting


From Azerbaijan to New York City, a human-scale view of global trade. In the business of making and selling clothes, “Made in” labels do precious little to convey the constellation of treaties, countries, and people at work in the assembly of a simple pair of jeans. In Fugitive Denim journalist Rachel Louise Snyder reports from the far reaches of this multi-billion-dollar industry in search of the real people who make your clothes. From a cotton picker in Azerbaijan to a Cambodian seamstress, a denim maker in Italy to a fashion designer in New York, Snyder captures the human, environmental, and political forces at work in a dizzyingly complex and often absurd world. In a disarming and humorous voice, she ponders questions of equity, sweatshops, and corporate social responsibility through narratives of individual people, making an often academic subject accessible and compelling. Neither polemic nor prescription, Fugitive Denim captures what it means to be at work in the world in the twenty-first century.

I personally think that the cover design is shit.  The Japanese version of the book has a much better cover.
fugitive


Evisu Photo Book Tateoti

Thursday, April 30th, 2009


The Tateoti book is more expensive than a magazine, so I thought I’d give you a glimpse of what is good about it.

It’s a similar size to a regular magazine, denim covered, and the first two thirds of the book is just full of photos of worn-in denim. The image captions include the denim grade and style number.



The last third is a bit boring (for me) with more artistic fashion shots.

(Sorry, I posted the same pic twice, here is the other one I meant to post)

Amazon Japan Ships Internationally Fast

Wednesday, April 29th, 2009


I’d been meaning to actually purchase something from Amazon Japan for a while (for a long period of time they didn’t ship outside of Japan). I just ordered a stack of denim magazines last week, and they arrived in five days!

I was surprised they arrived so fast. My experience with Amazon USA has always been a wait of approx. one month for the international shipping. I reviewed the international shipping costs, and Amazon Japan charges are more expensive but the cost per item is cheaper. If you are buying five or more books, then it is actually cheaper.

Anyway, I’ve got a pile of new magazines to look through. I’ll post some quick reviews over the coming weeks.

ps. The Evisu Tateoti book is quite spectacular!

Lightning No.62 The Denim Book

Sunday, February 1st, 2009

Lightning magazine are releasing another denim book this month.

I’ll be visiting Japan next month, but I doubt I’ll be doing much shopping. The Australian dollar has collapsed compared to the Japanese yen… I might be able to afford this book.

Levi Strauss & Co. by Lynn Downey

Friday, January 23rd, 2009

I noticed this book on amazon:

I haven’t seen it before. It looks interesting.
Does anyone have it? Is it worth getting?

Brit Eaton: Hunting for Vintage Denim

Friday, January 23rd, 2009


Outside Magazine has an article written by Steven Rinella about vintage denim hunter Brit Eaton from Carpe Denim.

Here’s the article:
http://outside.away.com/outside/culture/200901/brit-eaton-hunting-for-vintage-denim-1.html

You may remember seeing Brit in the Blue Jean Confidential documentary by CBC.

It’s quite an exciting article with interesting stories about remote places and funny characters.

Perhaps when I get through my shelf of reading material I might get Rinella’s book on the American Bison/Buffalo.

Indigo Master (Lightning Magazine Vol.47)

Friday, January 25th, 2008


I’m back from holidays. I didn’t actually buy any denim, but I did get this magazine. It has lots of pictures of the denim masters, and worn in denim. If you follow the link to Amazon Japan, click on the picture of the magazine, and you can see some internal pages.

Article on Jenny Balfour-Paul

Tuesday, November 6th, 2007

The Times Online has an article on Jenny Balfour-Paul (author of the indigo book).
http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/property/gardens/article2785493.ece

There’s also a link to an exhibition at the Brighton/Hove Museum that Jenny has curated.
Indigo: A Blue to Dye For
29 Sept – 6th Jan 2008

Real McCoy’s Funbook 2007

Monday, March 19th, 2007

Earlier I mentioned the Real McCoy’s magazine that I got at Kinokuniya in Sydney. It’s really a catalog that you have to pay for, but it’s got some great pictures and probably some good information if you can read Japanese.
Here are some of my favourite parts.

Layout showing the various parts that comprise an A-2.

The internal padding/insulation of a B15. I presume that this filling is quite similar to what is inside my Buzz Rickson’s MA-1.