long vowel mark (usually only used in katakana)

Fujiwara::

Lastly, Mr. Fujihara Yutaka, director of the vintage store "BERBERJIN," who also participated in the last "The Third Edition," made an appearance. This time, Mr. Fujiwara planned to create vests, which he often wears. While paying respect to the vintage design, it is not just a reproduction, but a piece of clothing that he is particular about. We asked him about his unique idea of mixing various elements and the story behind each detail.

The concept is a denim vest that can be worn with a big yank shirt

First of all, please tell us how you first met Big Yank.

Fujiwara:I think it was about 18 years ago, when I was a customer at Belle Belgin, Mr. Yamada (editor's note: Mr. Kazutoshi Yamada, owner of Belle Belgin) was wearing a Gachapoke chambray shirt, and I saw one of the same shirt hanging in the store. I think it was 70,000 to 80,000 yen at the time. At that time, my first thought was, "What the heck! That was the first time I thought, "What the heck! Then I was curious and went to secondhand clothing stores and came across a chambray shirt with a Yamapoke pattern. And the price was 12,800 yen! It was a size too small for me, but it was cheap, so I bought it anyway.

That's quite a bargain even for the time.

Fujiwara:I went to show it to Mr. Yamada right after that, but he told me to take it off for now, so I bartered it for an equivalent item and gave it away (laughs). (Laughs.) After that, I acquired a variety of items, including the Yamapoke flannel shirt and a chambray shirt.

Mr. Fujiwara, you have such a connection with Bik Yank, but this time you have planned the best of the best, which is a complete change from the previous "The Third Edition.

Fujiwara:I had an image of "BIG YANK" as a shirt, so when I thought about what to match with the shirt, a vest came to mind. Vests are one of my favorite items, and since it was early spring, I thought it would be perfect. I also liked the fact that "BIG YANK" does not have original vests. As someone who deals in vintage clothing, I can't make reproductions.

When I think of Mr. Fujiwara, I have an image of denim. What is your aim in using denim in this project?

Fujiwara:Denim is a material that I personally like, and I had made a denim mountain poke shirt for the previous "The Third Edition," so I wanted to continue using denim for this collection. When I thought of a vest project, I remembered a denim hunting vest from the 1930s that I had purchased at Berberzine. I had never seen a denim vest this old myself, so I had a vague idea in my head that denim vests were cool. This idea matched with this project and became the deciding factor, and the final path to making a vest out of denim was established. I also thought it would be fresh to wear it with jeans and denim as a set-up.

Pocket design inspired by the Big Yank overalls of the 30's, a phantom item

How did you come up with the front pocket design?

Fujiwara:After deciding to make a denim vest, I was wondering about the detail design, and Kinji-san (ed. note:<ビッグヤンク>Kinji Teramoto, a representative of Thirty Five Summers, which has<ビッグヤンク>I remembered the denim overalls of the

I have never seen such an item. That's great...

Fujiwara:I have only seen one of them, but there are actually overalls with a mess pocket made in the 30's. I thought it would be interesting to incorporate them into a vest. I thought it would be interesting to incorporate them into a vest, so I borrowed them. Therefore, the pocket design is based on the overalls. In the case of shirts, the balance of the left and right pockets is up and down, but the key point of overalls is that the height is the same on both sides. The pockets are also a good fit for the vest.

The buttons, names, and other details are also a highlight!

Fujiwara:The button was actually used on the overalls made in the '30s. It was a button that had never been used by Thirty Five Summers before, so we had it made on purpose for this project. I am very happy about that. The name is also a "deluxe tag" attached to the overalls. Of course, the position of the tag is also the same.

A one-of-a-kind design that mixes all kinds of details

And what can I say, the back is impressive.

Fujiwara:First of all, the thong, which has become a synonym for me, is a detail that is applied to larger sizes. Levi's 506XX is a famous example. The model name is also "T-BACK VEST.

What is the ring under the collar?

Fujiwara:This is probably the rarest vest I have, but it is based on the "assault vest" of the U.S. ARMY worn during WWII. If you look at photos from that time, you can see that it is worn over a nylon jacket. It has a backpack on the back and many pockets. When I wondered if I could make use of something from this vest, I focused on the ring attached to the bottom of the collar. I think it probably served as a hanger loop to hook onto something, but I adopted it as a design accent. Of course, it can also be used for practical purposes, so you can hook it on something when you take off your clothes at a pub.

I can feel the attention to detail in every single detail.

Fujiwara:Yes, we have adopted, for example, the larger buckle back that was attached to the first in addition to this. This makes the back look like a G-jacket and goes well with the thong. And the waist pockets are taken from a store coat made in the 30s. I like the interesting pentagonal shape with shaved inner corners. The V-shaped hem of the front opening is from a Lee engineer's jacket. All the details actually exist, and I placed them in a well-balanced way.

It is a vest that is typical of Mr. Fujiwara, who has a wealth of knowledge about vintage clothing. It is also interesting that there are two colors with different stitches.

Fujiwara:： The inspiration for the black stitching came from a denim hunting vest from the 30s. The black stitching brings out the color and creates a contrast to the denim, which loses its color after washing. I like this atmosphere, and originally I was thinking of using only this one color, but since the vest has a strong work taste, I decided to develop white stitching that was used for overalls as well. The denim itself is the same, but the look is distinctly different depending on the color of the stitching. The black stitching is for a clean look, while the white stitching is for a casual look.

Finally, how do you want people to enjoy the best of the best?

Fujiwara:: I would wear it over a white B.D. shirt myself. I would recommend a denim setup with jeans for pants, without worrying about color matching. For casual wear, I think a chambray shirt or thermals would also be good. Since it is made of a thin denim fabric, it is just right to wear over a T-shirt when it gets hot.