Outfit of the Week 17/01/2017 - Vintage Inspired Workwear

Many of the items commonly worn today are rooted deeply in their practical workwear past. Riveted denim jeans (patented by Levi's in 1873) started life as a hard wearing item of clothing worn by gold miners. These types of garments were tough, practical and long lasting. The practicallity, durability and heritage of such clothes has begun to find popularity amongst today's 'fast fashion' controlled industry. Think lumberjacks, construction workers, foresters, miners and pioneers, the new resurgence in quality workwear harks back to a time when 'men were men'. Even though you may only wear your Red Wing boots to walk the dog. 

Red Wing is a fantastic example of a heritage company popular in today's market. Founded in 1905 by Charles H Beckman, Red Wing quickly became one of the largest suppliers of footwear in America. They manufactured the majority of the boots for both World Wars. To this day they still produce high end safety and work boots. However, Regent stock the brand's heritage range, reissues of classic styles, hand made entirely in the eponymous town of 'Red Wing' in Minnesota. Red Wing source all their leather from Red Wing owned S.B Foot tanning company. Red Wing boots look best worn with other heritage garments, their chunky silhouette makes them difficult to wear with narrow styles of jean. Regent would reccomend something with a slightly straighter or tapered leg, such as Edwin's ED-55 or Harry Stedman's Kulsan.

Edwin (the word 'denim' jumbled up with an upside down 'm') was founded in Japan in 1947 by a Mr Tsunemi, who had a passion for quality denim. Initially Edwin imported the vastly superior American denim into Japan, as the Japanese textile industry was, at that point, inferior. However, Japanese denim and Edwin in particular, soon began to overtake its American counterparts. In 1963 Edwin created the heaviest ringspun denim available, a 16oz fabric with it's now famous rainbow selvedge, which is still available today. Edwin were also the first company to experiment with stone washing and vintage washing their denim. A process which revoltionised the denim industry.

ED-55 Selvedges

New to Regent, Levi's made and crafted showcases the very best materials, construction methods and attention to detail, building on the brand's storied 140 year history. Shown here is a take on the classic chambray shirt, the same sort of shirt from which the 'blue collar' term to describe manual labour was derived. First coined in 1924, manual labourers wore blue shirts as the collars were less likely to be stained by dirt, as well as the chambray being more durable than other materials. This chambray shirt is made from imported Japanese selvedge fabric which will age and fade beautifully the more you wear it.

he chore jacket or coat, unsurpisingly named for the 'chores' that were done whilst wearing it, has been a staple of practical menswear since the early 20th century. With numerous pockets and a large collar (to turn up and protect you from the sun) these boxy jackets were worn by farmers and fieldhands worldwide. This offering from French brand Vetra (an amalgamation of the french translation of 'workwear' or 'vetements de travaille') has a long and storied past, including founder Edouard Beereens destroying all of his stock and machinery to avoid working for the Nazis. Today, the chore jacket works fantastically as a practical layering piece or lightweight summer top layer.

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