Introducing Dutil x PBJ: Year One Collaboration Jean

A year ago today, we decided to make a jean. 

We had just opened our Dutil Denim location in Calgary and wanted to honor the city and its rough and tumble history of denim. We wanted to celebrate the beautiful denim fabrics worn by cowboys and ranchers in an entirely modern way. But we knew we couldn't do it alone... so we turned to our friends at Pure Blue Japan to help us turn this vision into a reality, and the Dutil x PBJ: Year One collaboration jean was born. 

Shortly after the idea was conceived, Levi (a member of our Dutil Vancouver team) traveled to Japan for some vacation time. When the PBJ team got the word, they immediately organized appointments in both Tokyo and Okayama. In Tokyo, Levi was invited to PBJ's retail space in Harajuku to privately meet the staff and check out space. Then, about a week later, Levi had lunch with PBJ's president, Iwaya-san in historical denim town Kurashiki, Okayama where the collaboration was discussed and its details finalized. It was then that the jean was officially put into production. 

A couple of months later, a package arrived in the mail at Dutil Vancouver: a sample pair of the collaboration jeans. Levi has been wearing the sample pair for about 7 months now, and, safe to say, we're excited about the denim evolution that has occurred. Next week we'll be posting a blog article all about the wear-in progress, so stay tuned for that. In the meantime, here are the jeans specs...

The Fabric

This jean is a modern fit with vintage fabric. PBJ's 'VTG' fabric is the brand's interpretation of the iconic Levi's 501XX 1947 denim fabric. It's a 14oz, unsanforized (but one-washed) denim with faint pink-line selvage detailing. We chose it because of the denim history it recalls and for the reason that this history is oftentimes synonymous with the (wild) Western tropes that Calgary has been associated with.

The Fit

We wanted a vintage fabric, but not a vintage fit. The 'VTG' denim is juxtaposed with a more contemporary, updated silhouette. We decided to use PBJ's XX-013 fit which is a true slim-tapered jean. Fitted (but not tight) throughout the leg, the silhouette is timeless — a lot like the 501 this jean borrows its inspiration from.

The Details

This jean also features an orange-outlined, embroidered Indigofera leaf on the back pocket and a custom-designed patch that shows the "PBJ-man" dipping a Dutil tote bag into the dye vat. Both details were chosen to express the collaborative nature of these jeans.

Speaking of Dutil Tote bags - each PBJ x Dutil: Year One jean will come with a limited edition Dutil x PBJ tote.

If you're interested in learning more about the Year One collaboration jeans, give the product page a look.