James Dant x Shangri-La - Custom "Yin Café Racer" Leather Jacket - Black Tea Core.
We worked long and hard to get this collaboration to its launch. It's been nearly a year since we started discussing plans for a custom jacket with Shangri-La. To be honest, it all started with the liner. We saw this houndstooth pattern and thought..."my goodness that would look amazing in red." So we had Marko and the gang scrounge up some samples for us. We settled on this brilliant, vibrant red that we knew would give you that happy feeling every time you pull it out of the closet.
The next step was deciding on a silhouette. We waffled back and forth so many times between the "Café" and "Chiodo" for weeks. All we could imagine was how much of a rockstar you would look in the "Chiodo" with a "red liner." And that is what ultimately made our decision to go with the "Café." Not all of us are rock stars. Not all of us feel like putting on a costume every time we walk out the door. I'd venture to say...most of us want something hard-wearing that goes with everything...something with enough solid details to give you that tingly feeling when you pick it up but not enough to stick out like a sore thumb. It was always going to be the "Café" as it was our first love.
We had a good idea of which leather we wanted to do, but the question was...do we just do one or do we crank it up a notch. Having decided to do the veg tan up front, this was the natural forward progression. It's essentially the veg tan treated to be black on the surface. What you don't see with this piece, as it's got a liner, is that the back side of the lather is veggie. So, as this piece ages it almost works in reverse of the veg. Pieces of the black will wear and chip away revealing levels of brown and tan underneath. This, is true nature of a tea core. It gives it an incredible aged look that is hard to accomplish any other way...and to be honest, nothing else will look as good as it ages.
We're so excited to be sharing this project with you. The good people at Shangri-la made our vision come to life. They did all of the hard work and absolutely crushed this design. It's a joy to work with our good friends in Italy and see our brainchild come to life.
Please note, there will be variations in the leather. This could mean that one jacket is has more veg tan showing through than the other. This creates a "1 of 1" piece exclusive to you.
Every Jacket comes in a high-quality 100% organic natural cotton Bag, laced with Havana rope and with a screen printed logo.
We're so excited to be sharing this project with you. The good people at Shangri-la made our vision come to life. They did all of the hard work...the hardest being this leather clean during the cutting and sewing process. It's a joy to work with our good friends in Italy and see our brainchild come to life.
Please note, there will be variations in the leather. This could mean that one jacket is lighter or darker than the other. The leather seems pretty consistent from what we've seen, though. There is also going to be color transfer from the zippers to the leather. It's completely unavoidable, but doesn't make the jacket any less desirable nor change the fact that you will pick up colors, stains, and aging that will rival and even surpass those marks. This creates a "1 of 1" piece exclusive to you.
Every Jacket comes in a high-quality 100% organic natural cotton Bag, laced with Havana rope and with a screen printed logo.
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James Dant x Shangri-La - Custom "Yin Café Racer" Leather Jacket - Black Tea Core
We worked long and hard to get this collaboration to its launch. It's been nearly a year since we started discussing plans for a custom jacket with Shangri-La. To be honest, it all started with the liner. We saw this houndstooth pattern and thought..."my goodness that would look amazing in red." So we had Marko and the gang scrounge up some samples for us. We settled on this brilliant, vibrant red that we knew would give you that happy feeling every time you pull it out of the closet.
The next step was deciding on a silhouette. We waffled back and forth so many times between the "Café" and "Chiodo" for weeks. All we could imagine was how much of a rockstar you would look in the "Chiodo" with a "red liner." And that is what ultimately made our decision to go with the "Café." Not all of us are rock stars. Not all of us feel like putting on a costume every time we walk out the door. I'd venture to say...most of us want something hard-wearing that goes with everything...something with enough solid details to give you that tingly feeling when you pick it up but not enough to stick out like a sore thumb. It was always going to be the "Café" as it was our first love.
We had a good idea of which leather we wanted to do, but the question was...do we just do one or do we crank it up a notch. Having decided to do the veg tan up front, this was the natural forward progression. It's essentially the veg tan treated to be black on the surface. What you don't see with this piece, as it's got a liner, is that the back side of the lather is veggie. So, as this piece ages it almost works in reverse of the veg. It is the Yin to its Yang. Pieces of the black will wear and chip away revealing levels of brown and tan underneath. This, is true nature of a tea core. It gives it an incredible aged look that is hard to accomplish any other way...and to be honest, nothing else will look as good as it ages.
We're so excited to be sharing this project with you. The good people at Shangri-la made our vision come to life. They did all of the hard work and absolutely crushed this design. It's a joy to work with our good friends in Italy and see our brainchild come to life.
Please note, there will be variations in the leather. This could mean that one jacket is has more veg tan showing through than the other. This creates a "1 of 1" piece exclusive to you.
Every Jacket comes in a high-quality 100% organic natural cotton Bag, laced with Havana rope and with a screen printed logo.
Full Grain Lambskin Veg Tanned Black Tea-core finish from Tuscany (Italy)
Lining: “Crimson Houndstooth" Viscose Liner
Custom Cream "Crystal Ball" Gargoyle Woven Label
Padding (body): 100% cotton
Zippers: antique brass with engraved mark
4 zipper front pockets
2 inside leather welt pockets with antique brass snap buttons with engraved markings
Pockets lining 100% cotton
Tab-adjustable waist - brass
Hand Made in Italy
Designed and tested in Bergamo, Northern Italian Alps and in sprawling flatlands of Indiana
Position
Description
S
M
L
XL
XXL
A
Chest (Pit to Pit)
21.26"
22.24
23.03
24.01
25.19
B
Half Waist Width
20.07
20.86
21.65
22.83
24.02
C
Bottom Width
19.68
20.47
21.26
22.44
23.62
D
Back Length From Seam Neck
24.6
25.20
25.98
26.77
27.36
E
Sleeve Length
24.8
25.39
25.98
26.77
27.36
F
Shoulder Breadth
17.32
17.91
18.90
19.68
20.47
A variance of +/- .5" is within tolerance.
Fit Notes: Shop owner Tommy is wearing a size medium in the pictures. In the past, the medium was a super snug fit. This round has just slightly more room so it was easier for him to go with the medium. He tried on the large and ultimately thought it looked to relaxed for a café jacket. We do highly recommend sizing up if you don't want a tight fit. Most people size up once in these jackets, but if you're looking for a slim fit you can stick with your true size. Tommy is 5'10", 165lbs with a 40" chest.
It's been some time since we've had indigo denim from Freenote, and we couldn't think of a better introduction than this blue/brown. If you know anything about our preferences, you know we love an earth-tone weft. Well, it doesn't get any more earthy than this. The brown on these is deeper than any we've seen from persimmon, turmeric, or catechu dyes in the past. It's a true mocha-colored brown that we think makes for one hell of a stylistic denim. The contrast between indigo and brown is a lot less harsh than that of a traditional jean, and this makes for a better-looking cuff in our opinion. It's also right in our sweet spot for weight. We really dig anything between 14-16oz. It has the perfect amount of crunch to give you all of those wonderful lines around the legs without being so hard to break in. This is the fabric we've been waiting for Freenote to work with for years!
It's been some time since we've had indigo denim from Freenote, and we couldn't think of a better introduction than this blue/brown. If you know anything about our preferences, you know we love an earth-tone weft. Well, it doesn't get any more earthy than this. The brown on these is deeper than any we've seen from persimmon, turmeric, or catechu dyes in the past. It's a true mocha-colored brown that we think makes for one hell of a stylistic denim. The contrast between indigo and brown is a lot less harsh than that of a traditional jean, and this makes for a better-looking cuff in our opinion. It's also right in our sweet spot for weight. We really dig anything between 14-16oz. It has the perfect amount of crunch to give you all of those wonderful lines around the legs without being so hard to break in. This is the fabric we've been waiting for Freenote to work with for years!
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The Jepson is a known staple at this point, but their ability to make it look new with every release is pretty astonishing. We said that last time but they've done it again. A mix of sashiko and plaid is almost too much to handle. It's a classic 2 pocket shirt that can be worn with almost anything. It has so many layers to explore right now, and even more, will expose its true nature once the indigo starts to fade. This baby is a standalone piece that doesn't really need other layers to make it pop.
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