When I hear the word moleskin, I think of a cotton fabric with a slightly brushed texture, often referred to as "mole fur."
I recently asked Doretra of OSAKA SPECIAL, a brand I'm particularly fond of, to create a green moleskin for one of their previous projects, and I still remember that the focus wasn't on the feel of the fabric, but rather on the appeal of the weave itself.
That's right, moleskin is a fabric with a fine warp thread and a thick weft thread, with the weft thread visible on the surface. Depending on the weave, it can be a beautiful, supple, and alluring fabric.
This new piece focuses on moleskin.
This new OX'ED SILVER piece created by Zuki, has given birth to a new masterpiece with incredible depth.
" HEMP MOLESKIN "
Once I found out what was inside, I was thrilled by the words that made me want to sing the praises of the brand, and it is no exaggeration to say that, as someone who has been involved with the brand for 15 years, I was reminded of the essence of Zuki's designs.
OX'ED SILVER
No. 80510480920
COLOUR : CHARCOAL
SIZE : 46 / 48 / 50 / 52
Looking at moleskin used in clothing, it was generally used for hunting and outdoor field activities, and the majority of it has a brushed finish to give it a fur-like feel, which is reminiscent of what is commonly referred to as "mole fur."
It is thought that the reason it is used in workwear is because its brushed and fuzzy texture makes it durable against rain, just like animal fur, and provides impermeable protection, which is why it was adopted for outdoor activities.
In addition to this meaningful aspect of moleskin, the piece that Zuki focused on taps into a fundamentally niche space, creating a vintage moleskin that is woven using loosely twisted yarn without the brushed finish typically found in old European vintage fabrics, resulting in a naturally brushed and fuzzy texture.
Couldn't OX'ED SILVER express this method of naturally creating a brushed and fuzzy texture through the design of the yarn used, rather than through processing, using a material unique to OX'ED SILVER? This was a challenge that was conceived by Zuki's superhuman fabric design intellect.
And while envisioning these ideas, rather than creating a moleskin weave using only cotton for both the warp and weft, Zuki came up with an incredible feat using hemp, a plant that OX'ED SILVER has cherished.
It was an approach that only Zuki, with his intimate knowledge of the characteristics of hemp, could come up with.
Hemp is a raw material with short fibre length that makes it easy to obtain a fluffy texture, and by using these as the visible weft threads, they were able to achieve a natural fluffy texture rather than having it brushed when processing, giving it the vintage look that was the original concept.
Hemp itself is also said to be eight times stronger than cotton, so its strength is impeccable, and by combining these two, they created a recipe for the strongest moleskin possible.
Hemp is a raw material with truly untold possibilities.
As the only hollow natural fibre that can be dyed, it has the functionality of absorbing body heat and storing it by trapping air.
As this functional material pills, the fabric becomes more refined, and despite being hemp, it has the potential to be used as an autumn or winter material.
Also, because it is a hollow fibre, the yarn itself is light, which leads to a light feel when worn.
And while it is shiny at first, with repeated washing it absorbs water, swells and becomes more defined, then the lustre fades and it takes on a more drab appearance. It's truly exciting to see what happens.
According to Zuki, although the fabric stiff at first, it will become more comfortable with age and adapt to your body as you move about your daily life.
It is said that it can take up to 10 years to master thicker hemp, so it felt right to treat it as being on the same level as Harris Tweed, which originates from the UK.
While I'm well-versed in the effects and aims of hemp itself, the reason I find the look of this piece so appealing is the density of the weave of the fabric itself.
Cotton is woven into the warp, while hemp, which is intended to create a fluffy texture, is woven to the limit of its density for the weft, which creates the visible texture. The cotton warp is necessary to support the short-fibre hemp weft and prevent it from slipping off during weaving. However, because the cotton warp is a fine count, it is not visible on the surface, and the weave is composed of hemp at a 6:4 ratio, so I would dare to call it hemp moleskin.
After repeated testing, the number of threads and the thickness of the weft were adjusted to create a thicker weave, and the result is nothing less than the superhuman ability of Zuki, who has the recipe for designing threads and weaves in his head.
The background to the design is also carefully considered.
The typical style for coal miners, as the product name suggests, would be to wear chore jackets and work shirts that resembled work jackets, paired with overalls.
However, after finding a portrait of a coal miner wearing a tailored jacket-like design during his break, the designer decided to focus on that specific design rather than simply picking out the work jacket.
Rather than a typical work suit like a chore jacket and overalls, the designer hypothesised that a tailored jacket worn occasionally would be paired with overalls, creating an "unusual work suit," which led to the overalls used as the pants for this piece. I like how Zuki doesn't simply mix designs, but instead builds backgrounds around these hypotheses.
Looking at the details, this tailored jacket features a watch pocket for a pocket watch and buttonholes for a chain. Though the lining is simple, the pocket linings are reinforced with fabric, the two sleeves feature a three-dimensional pattern, and the handmade horn buttons are an assortment of amber, adding a nice touch.
The colour is an exquisite charcoal. A wonderful charcoal that is almost black and has a rich shade.
The reason for this is that the work jackets worn by coal miners were made of black moleskin, so the charcoal colour is close to black. The more you wash this fabric, which is guaranteed to age well, the more its colour changes, which is irresistible.
Back at an exhibition about a year ago, this piece was in its first sample stage and I couldn't have predicted that the finished product would be this good. Even as someone who has been purchasing goods for the store for many years, I was painfully aware of how naive I was with this piece.
The pattern has also been skilfully modified since then, and the silhouette has been updated to fit the craftsmanship well.
Hemp is extremely rare due to its limited production areas and the raw material is now difficult to obtain, and without the necessary skills, it is impossible to weave it properly and achieve the ideal result.
The fabric that naturally produces the napped texture seen in this piece naturally becomes fuzzy during the weaving process, and without the necessary skills, the threads will break and the fabric will not turn out well.
It can only be woven in a place where all of this can be skilfully adjusted and managed.
This entire production process is made possible by Zuki's unique route, which is completed in just a few regions and factories in Japan, from finishing to dyeing.
This unique route is not easy to access at first glance, and it would be difficult to access without the relationships and history that Zuki has built.
This piece has an incredible backstory.
I feel like I've learned a lot about this fabric, which embodies the OX'ED SILVER philosophy that Zuki has created.
This is an incredibly popular item and stock is running low in all stores, but I hope that the online store will also hold out a glimmer of hope.
I would like to ask customers who attended the pre-order event to check out the product again as soon as possible.
I would like to ask customers who were unable to reserve the size they wanted to reconsider, even if it means going up one size.
I have been amazed many times by Zuki's research and knowledge into fabrics.
The amazing guideposts that Zuki creates never show any signs of slowing down, and I believe they are steadily mapping out the future. Therefore, although it would be rude to call it an evolutionary process, this is such a high level of perfection that I would rather think of it as being close to the goal.
This is a fabric that is guaranteed to undergo a transformation that will make you love it even in five or ten years.
I don't know of any moleskin cloth that is better than this.
Yamauchi
The products introduced here are currently on sale at Nigel Cabourn stores nationwide and the official online store, although stock is limited.
We look forward to hearing from you if you have any questions, whether by calling any store or via their official LINE account.
