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Freewheelers / Big Yank by Anatomica / Fruit of Loom / my favourite belt by @Duke Mantee 😉😁 / WoM 5150 / Russell Moccasins

Paired my SC1945 jacket with my Resolute 710...they feel like skinny jeans 😅

Buckle back 1936 jeans just came in. It’s been about 2 years since I last bought a five pocket design jeans. These are light, roomy and the fabric looks amazing up close. The only downside is that despite what it shows on the website, my pair lacks the crotch rivet, which happens to be one of my favorite details. they are still raw, I expect to wash them later on tonight, will add before and after measurements afterwards.

My 611s right before first real wash. Shot in open shade so tried to get these more accurate, but this still feels a little more dramatic than how they look in reality. Maybe the coin pocket pic is closest to most accurate. little bit of button rust with multiple passes of hand stitching reinforcing that back seam now. Still holding but sheesh lots of time left. Maybe need to lay off the bike commutes in these.

Tender Co orslow 105 Birkenstock

I guess a lot of folks don’t know I’ve been quietly collecting Ooe for 10-15 years, trying to pick up one of everything they make. These pants were definitely a bit of a stretch, but I’m so glad I got them. Maybe one day I’ll try and post a pic of my collection. The one thing I’m missing is the melton wool vest they did about 10 years ago, if anyone knows where I can find a 38 let me know!

Modified Tender 473 Sack Shirt Starts to lose colour very lovely

3 and half years ago after a fair bit of chat and a lot of encouragement from my mate @Flash I started making belts with some purpose. The purpose was that I had retired to look after my little girl who has multiple disabilities and in intervening hours I wanted to do something to slow down brain atrophy coupled with the fact that I’d bought a Warehouse belt which transpired to be shit. Since then, and much to my very genuine surprise, I’ve now made a little over 200 belts … slightly better than 1 belt every week. That’s the extent of my ‘business’. Each belt is made to the requirements and specifications set out by the customer. Each belt is made entirely by hand - no electrically or manually operated machines whatsoever. Skiving, edge bevelling, burnishing and the like are done according to how I ‘read’ each piece of leather being used. I have never made the same belt twice - some are similar, but respectfully that’s down to the request and invariably there will still be fundamental differences. Because every belt is different, there is no easy way (or wish) to standardise the process or materials. This also means I cannot easily plan ahead or take advantage of cost savings in ‘bulk’ purchasing. In terms of the money I ‘make’ from this enterprise - I charge exactly what I pay for any materials and add the honest number hours labour (at UK minimum wage). If I take a picture of a belt - I’ll normally display it here, and post it on IG (if the owner allows). I guess that can be considered as advertising but I don’t look for new opportunities or sales. If I’m asked, I’m asked, if I’m not then it makes no difference - I’ve just explained that it’s not a source of income that makes any substantive impact on household income, even if it was predictable. Because Standard Rivet has closed down I can no longer replenish my studs/spots, so my ‘business’ will soon close down … that should be good news to Miho at ACE But anyway, thank you to everyone who has trusted me with their hard earned, I hope I’ve never let you down.

Iron Heart / Whitesville / Full Count

Instagram is more or less a digital shopping mall at this point. You could tell in the early days. I was early on facebook and not so much on IG, but it got to the point where - as a photographer - that was actually where you got decent jobs (for awhile). When it was still new(ish) art buyers and photo editors actually would use it as a source. That was a poor decision - I always felt like IG was not and could not be a portfolio but I was in the minority with that sentiment. I always tried to forge working relationships with personal (and not social media) contact, but for awhile I played the game. The reason I got on it was for work, but it wasn’t supposed to feel like or look like it - but it still was. I’m not alone in that sense. That happened in so many industries. It has become an almost necessity of small business / creative, because that’s where so much of the public goes to see what exists. You need to be visible, somehow. I fuckin hate it, I am happier being off the platform, but to be honest, deleting all of my Meta etc. accounts is a privilege in its own right. Most of my colleagues would love to but cannot fathom it. It’s become like an extension of themselves and needed to exist in the digital world where they actually bring in the revenue that pays their rent. So yea, it’s pretty shit in a lot of ways but that’s the world we live in.

Shout out to @okimoto for proxying a pair of these for me! The denim is really nice, I hope they use it for another future release. There's some pretty interesting stitching details throughout. The singular back pocket will take some getting used to, but I can see myself wearing these a lot in the summer.

Oh, what a beautiful morning. Oh, what a beautiful day...

Yes, 48. It works as a wide, comfy fit. The 40 is more a 42. Here is the 1933-34 jacket in size 48. Freewheelers Lot506XX 1933-34 • GroundAlls • Sugarcane 1947

I guess it’s like reading a magazine, of your interest. have to say the world seemed to be better when we still read magazines

I can’t say I agree with FurnitureMaker’s post, for a few reasons I’d rather not get into. I’ll just say this — I pretty much always like the belts Duke puts out, ones I’ve seen in photos. Especially the simpler ones — clean, no fuss. I got one for myself, and it’s only gotten better with age. Picked up another as a gift for my nephew, and just the other day he told me he builds his outfits around it now. If money weren’t so tight — wartime’s not exactly great for the wallet — I’d happily order a few more.

I'll have the boots shortly after I have the matching leather jacket.

Now now, you can't quit just yet. I still haven't gotten my teacore belt made by you yet!

@Duke Mantee I’m not sure if you take the same pleasure or interest in making other leather goods, but I am quite happy to own two different bags you’ve made as well, and look forward to using them for some long time or even passing down an old weathered version of one if they make it. And the one simple belt is far and away the nicest one I’ve ever owned, and one that I’m proud to wear when the occasion calls for it. Understanding it is not exactly a profitable enterprise for you I very much appreciate the task you’ve set out for yourself, as my son went through a pretty rough journey some years ago that made me have to really revisit my priorities and responsibilities in life. It’s a different situation of course, but it makes the things I’ve gotten from you that little bit much more important. I hope you’ll keep working with leather even if Standard is closed, but if not, I am grateful for having gotten the chance to own some of the thoughtfully made pieces you’ve spent your time on.

Broark was obvious. Srudy, I didn't have on my radar

I shoulda put money down on who the proxies were going to, would have been a better bet than most anything else these days. They look great.

Jesus fkin Christ Duke!.. did you learn nothing from DB? Not everyone gets it! that's what these are for.. ..and if you're still not sure, use some of these I'm not going to tell you again..

I was making a joke … but if you feel better after your broadside then I’ve succeeded even though you didn’t see the humour. FWIW I would never claim anything I make is better than anything by anyone else, it would be arrogant and most probably false … and on a few occasions I’ve used those beautiful ACE buckles you mention (gotten to know them reasonably well too). I appreciate your advice on what I should do with my ‘business’ (such as it is) but I’m happy enough making what any interested party asks me to make - won’t be too many more now anyway.

Union Special / Tender Co. / The Vanishing West / Tezomeya / Word of Mouth / Russell

Spent a few hours on a ladder this weekend tearing down some invasive vines from the (also invasive, but much less work to upkeep) bamboo lining our side walkway. There was way more to it than I bargained for—probably 2–3 cubic yards, all told—and I didn’t even consider how barren it would leave my de facto WAYWT backdrop. Oh well, bamboo grows back all too fast once it’s not getting choked out. feat. Union Special, Tender Co., The Vanishing West, Tezomeya, Russell In other garden news, the irises I put in a few months ago are just starting up, and the delphiniums are just finishing for the season: (feat. vintage Cane’s x2 in the background) …and we’ve just moved some tomatoes and peppers from their starter pots into the ground out front, plus threw in some marigolds and extra tomato starters from the store for good measure

This all depends on how hard you want to work for your money. Social media allows people to gain vast tracts of information in mere seconds … of course in those fleeting moments they’ve gained next to no actual knowledge, but who cares about that? I like the forums because I get the feeling there’s a little bit more effort from contributors … mostly.

Hmm, I guess you could say I "follow" people in the sense that I like this guy's outfits or that guy's pictures of cars on Instagram, or subscribe to YouTube creators whose videos I enjoy. But "follow" seems to connote this weird personal investment in the lives of people who make stuff, which I rarely if ever care about. This seems to have more in common with more traditional celebrity gossip, where you once had to buy a trashy magazine in the checkout at the grocery store or turn on Entertainment Tonight or whatever on TV. Somehow, this silly celebrity drama has been democratized and foisted on us all through social media, and it's really tiresome. Yep. The "algorithms" foist huge quantities of junk content on us, which it determines to be relevant to our interests, and filtering it out from actual, high-quality content that might have once been curated in a magazine can make pursuing your hobbies on a platform feel more like work than fun. I think it's a generation gap thing. Those of us born in the 80s or younger tend to like forums better because that was the standard online community context prior to the rise of corporatized social media. But for younger generations who came of age in the mid 2000s or later, after social media really took off and independent forums either died off or ended up in the internet ghetto, big social media platforms are all they've ever known. As someone who's become more interested in cars in recent years, it seems that the best up-to-date knowledge sources tend to be Facebook groups, a couple of active forums (like Toyotanation), and trudging through mostly dead forums for tidbits of relevant knowledge.

I was like that with the idea of people watching other people play video/console games l mean wtf, just play the game yourself! Having a 17 year old has educated/enlightened me since. Tbh Neal, l only use Instagram for research/info/images of old denim (well and maybe some dodgy reels) and Facebook for entertainment only (comedy mostly but also old lorries). I rarely post on lg now and never post on FB. Like you l only come here now for real world exchanges on the internet.

Have you got new boots that you need this teacore belt to match? 😉 (👈 see, I’m catching on)

47’s out of the wash. They have a really nice blue colour to them now.

Freewheelers 1922 / Tezomeya / @Duke Mantee / Belafonte / Converse Timeline

Welp, they’re so good! Thank you @okimoto I can post more pics later if people are interested.

Demand is dying out - nobody wants to buy a sterile, over thought out and fussy belt 😉 (see? I’m learning 😄)

I like denim so I’m a member of a denim forum.. I like bikes so I’m a member of a bike forum, are these other folks just doing a better job of it? I don’t have much more time I can afford to waste..

I feel this is directed at me 😮

See.. @Broark gets it

I've never 'followed' anyone online.. it sounds weird af, like i'd be one step away from throwing acid in their face.. What are these folks doing which is so important that i need to be following them? i'm sure they're not curing cancer or anything significant? .. is it like the Big Brother effect? .. and if so will there be a future Gogglebox effect where I watch someone who's following someone online? .. huf! future sounds bleak? I mean.. I like to hear what you guys are up to, same goes for my friends and neighbours because I’m invested in those people but what the 8 billion other' people are doing outside of my community.. I honestly couldn't care less

Evolution of my hi back denim trousers pair. Bad lighting, but it has been cloudy and foggy for the past week or so. Not much to do about it.

He's coming out of retirement ..

^Peak Ooe, congrats both on the pickup! 🙏

The indigo-dyed No. 7 slub tshirt by UES. It's really thick..usually I don't like too thick tshirts so I will see how long I can wear it in the summer

Pre-wash shots of my 611’s (37’s). Details Crotch shot…

Blackhorse Lane Ateliers shirt, FW, Allbirds

Neat Style x Denim Bridge WWII / At Last & Co Lot 212 / Nicks

Same old. Getting way more mileage out of a pair of budget Target jeans than I ever expected. Button fly, wide vintage fit, mid weight selvedge denim for less than the price of fabric? Late stage capitalism is a weird mess.

Ooe / Farm sweatshirt / WMJ / Quoddy

Finally off the crutches. Ankle surgery went really well & I’m healing up quick! Devium USA Jac shirt Domestics selvedge Happy Hour shades

American Optical, Vintage Levi’s, Colimbo, 3sixteen, Georgia Boot

Contest jeans in the wash Tender Co. / The Vanishing West / Tezomeya / Hollows / Roy / Russell

These arrived today. Hi back trousers in salt and pepper over dyed chambray. The fabric is amazing in person. Very light, will be great for summer. The color is the most accurate in the last picture, sort of a grayish brown.