Wayousechu, and the Most Exciting Things in East West Style

Kai D Utility

Bandana Almanac describes "wayousechu" as "the Japanese term for the cohesion of east and west." A lot of the best creations in this world arise from the intersection of different cultures - cuisine, for example - and while used broadly to encompass different aspects of living and design, the concept of "wayousechu" can also be applied to style. This is something that some of the more prominent Japanese clothing brands such as Blue Blue Japan, Kapital, and Visvim have captured in their respective fashions so well in recent years. If you're unfamiliar with those companies, they're a good place to start, but there's a lot more out there to see if you know where to look.

Kai D Utility

I'm surprised I don't see more people talking about Kai D Utility, a Brooklyn based boutique created in 2009 by Kai Fan, an industry veteran and former creative director at Nautica. His namesake brand is anchored in a 1920s design aesthetic with a modern fit (a little short and on the slimmer side to my eyes) with vintage militaria, workwear, and tailoring inspiration. Though I don't much care for some of the stylized model photos adorning the site (I prefer Kai's and his customers' personal fits) nor the "Tools & Clothing for Artisans" motto (which I find a little cheesy), I'm in love with his incorporation of eastern inspired garments with western wear.

Kai D Utility's collection features a number of one-off casual kimonos/yukatas, noragis, and mixed style garments constructed from fabrics like patchwork indigo cottons and repurposed army parkas styled over casually tailored western attire. I'm fairly sure it isn't a direct reference, but the overall feel brings to mind something that's occurred at several points in history as western and eastern culture came together. Specifically, during the Meiji Restoration of the late 1800s - an intense period of state-mandated modernization that yanked the Japanese population out of Edo era traditional Japanese dress and into western garb, some Japanese men would wear western clothing in public and Japanese clothing at home. But the two inevitably intermixed, and you'll find pictures of Japanese men incorporating elements from both. Similarly, the tie-closure "Monk shirt" from Kai D Utility is styled with western elements reminiscent of the transition that occurred following the end of the Qing Dynasty.

Digressions aside, from a purely aesthetic standpoint the clothing from Kai D Utility pairs quite beautifully and naturally, and offers a natural extension for those already quite at home with sashiko jackets and Kapital ring coats. I'd love to wear almost all of it, if it weren't priced so damn dearly (unfortunately, a common thread you'll see in this post).

Old Industrial Japan

Old Industrial is based in the Chiba prefecture of Japan and specializes in collectable vintage Japanese garments and repurposed sashiko/boro fabric accessories. Their boro scarves are as good as any I've seen, but their bags are truly sublime. Made from a mix of vintage fabrics like persimmon dyed "kakishibu" cotton (above), hand-stitched sashiko/boro textiles, and indigo bed-cover textiles, the handmade totes are truly one-of-a-kind and seem almost as worthy to sit in a museum than comfortably carry. If/when I can go back to Japan, a shop like Old Industrial would be high on my list to try and see the process in person of Japanese "re-make" taken to its highest level.

 

Kuon

 

Among the designers using traditional Japanese fabrics, Kuon is among the best from a textile standpoint. They produce garments and accessories from both machine woven and hand-stitched sashiko, sakiori fabric, and boro patchwork. Though their clothes seemed to be aimed more towards the hypebeast streetwear type of scene, every season they put out a some incredible tailored and workwear-styled pieces as well. Unfortunately, they're priced to the moon. Says Greg Lellouche of No Man Walks Alone, "Kuon is beautiful but prices are up there. That boro blazer is $5,100, the sakiori v-neck cardigan is $4,000. I went to their workshop last year in Tokyo. Amazing stuff. We look at it every season and every time we love it but the prices are just impossible." This coming from a retailer that I can only ever afford to buy on sale. A man can dream.

C O A T Z

"Coatz makes coats and other garments" according to their website. More specifically, Coatz produces singular pieces designed to be unisex in a few different styles. While not being strictly Japanese/eastern origin or influence, sourcing vintage/deadstock fabrics from all over the world (especially Africa - an under-recognized traditional textile/dyeing powerhouse), the core of their "classic" garments tend towards Japanese designs. You'll see a lot of African mud cloth (a resist-dyed cotton woven in strips), indigo, and some beautiful embroidery and applique work. I'm especially

T-Michael + Y. & Sons

I first discovered Bergen designer/tailor/artist T-Michael through his company Norwegian Rain, which offers the most forward-thinking rainwear design and weatherproof textiles perhaps since the trench coat. Norwegian Rain itself has become one of the most exciting concepts to strike a chord with both the casual and tailored menswear community, but T-Michael's collaboration with Y. & Sons for their T-Kimono line strikes at the heart of what make can make "wayousechu" so great. In fact, what initially hit me was an image from Pitti Uomo of T-Michael walking with some of his partners from Tokyo-based kimono maker Y. & Sons (shown above). In recent years, a lot of clothing companies have begun producting casual and streetwear kimono-style clothing, yet tailored wear has remained relatively untouched.

Y. & Sons was opened in 2015, but its parent company Yamato has been making kimonos since 1916. The Y. & Sons boutique was founded with the aim to move the kimono into more contemporary style. T-Michael first met the Yajima family at their Tokyo shop, starting a friendship that would eventually lead to a partnership based on a common vision to introduce the kimono as a staple modern menswear piece, "side by side the suit or a pair of jeans, as an everyday outfit and not just as a ceremonial garment." The T-Kimono line is made from suiting wool flannel from a Spanish mill and constructed in Y & Sons' kimono studio. The standard set is comprised of two parts - the kimono tied with the obi (sash), and the open haori which is held by the haori himo. Admittedly, these generally lean heavily toward the eastern end of the east-west spectrum, but the way T-Michael and his colleagues are able to mix and match the T-Kimono with tailored menswear is something special. There's also a white organic cotton yukata hand dipped in indigo that leans more casual.

18 East

Kamote Joe for 18 East

I've mentioned 18 East a few times in the recent past, but drop 3 is releasing this Thursday (tomorrow) at 11 AM, and it's one of the best yet, judging from the lookbook that posted on High Snobiety this week. As we've come to expect, designer Antonio Ciongoli continues to draw heavy inspiration from eastern culture and remixes it in a way we haven't quite seen before. I'm not the biggest fan of tie-dye and hoodies, to be honest, but the tie-closure jacket, sashiko sweatshirts, and Hmong fabric jungle jacket are all very strong (and as a quick aside, if you've been looking for some of the best relaxed pants out there, Ciongoli has been putting out those out an the apex level since the later days of Eidos Napoli). 18 East is the perfect space for him to explore those silhouettes without the constraints of classical tailoring he previously worked within (kind of).

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If you're interested in exploring this type of "wayousechu" style but are struggling to find a way to make it work in your wardrobe, that's completely understandable. It's not the type of thing you just wander into and pick up in a week. Take it slow and consider just dipping your feet in to see how the water feels. It will likely feel very weird for a while, and sometimes you'll take a wrong step and realize the water was not at all what you thought it was before you really find something you feel comfortable in. Take it from someone who has spent a fair bit of time at the wrong side of the pool.