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Sashiko Chore Jacket. Blue edition

Name: Sashiko Chore Jacket. Blue edition
Brand: Vollebak
SKU: JKT083BLUXSM
Price: 895.00 GBP
Availability: InStock

Reinforced with 1 million high-strength stitches, using the ancient Japanese art of sashiko.

CHF 895

Model is 6ft 2 / 189cm with a 40 inch / 101cm chest, and wears size Large.

Made with Japanese indigo-dyed material
Entire jacket reinforced with 5.5km of meta-aramid thread
Garment-washed for a faded look

Reinforced with 1 million high-strength stitches, the Sashiko Chore Jacket pioneers a completely new approach to creating highly durable clothing, inspired by the ancient Japanese art of sashiko. The technique of sashiko, or ‘little stabs,’ is a highly resilient form of embroidery developed during the Japanese Edo period, where worn out garments were repaired using decorative hand stitches. Clothes would be mended again and again as they passed down the generations, getting stronger as they got older.

Rather than waiting until an item of clothing needs to be repaired, we’ve simply applied sashiko-style stitching in super-strong meta-aramid thread over the entire jacket at the start of its life. With a design based on early workwear jackets, it combines heavy-duty Japanese indigo cotton with 5.5 kilometres of high-strength stitching for comfort and durability.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

Material made in Japan: 100% jacquard cotton

Embroidered with 5.5km of sashiko thread

Sashiko thread composition: 100% meta-aramid

Engineered embroidery follows body contours

2 angled side pockets

1 inside chest pocket

Jacket fastens with 5 bioresin centre buttons

Bioresin button fastening at cuffs

Material weighs 540g/m2

Jacket weighs 1150 grams

Cool hand wash only – wash separately and inside out

Constructed in China

Material made in Japan: 100% jacquard cotton

Embroidered with 5.5km of sashiko thread

Sashiko thread composition: 100% meta-aramid

Engineered embroidery follows body contours

2 angled side pockets

1 inside chest pocket

Jacket fastens with 5 bioresin centre buttons

Bioresin button fastening at cuffs

Material weighs 540g/m2

Jacket weighs 1150 grams

Cool hand wash only – wash separately and inside out

Constructed in China

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The Sashiko Chore Jacket is reinforced with 5.5 kilometres of meta-aramid stitching

The sashiko method helped pioneer sustainable clothing

The technique of sashiko, or ‘little stabs,’ is a highly resilient form of embroidery developed during the Japanese Edo period to repair torn and damaged clothes. Instead of today’s invisible mending, sashiko highlighted the rips, tears, frays and fringes of a piece of clothing, reinventing it with stitching in a contrasting thread. This simple ‘running stitch’ technique, used in repeating or interlocking patterns, not only gave clothes individual style, but also made them warmer, stronger and longer-lasting.

Repairing clothes made them tougher

The Japanese tradition of mending clothing with sashiko stitching was a brilliant example of how a sustainable approach to clothing could actually improve the clothes at the same time. Sashiko was used to keep farmers warm, fishermen dry, and make firemen’s coats thicker. So we wanted to explore whether this stitching technique, which creates very strong repairs, could be applied to a whole garment as a way of building in durability from the very start of its lifespan. Our Sashiko Chore Jacket is soft and extremely comfortable to wear, but with 5.5km of meta-aramid fibre stitching, it’s also tough and hard-wearing at the same time.

It pioneers a new approach to creating highly durable clothing, inspired by the ancient Japanese art of sashiko.

Sashiko needles were like magic wands

A long, sharp sashiko needle was sometimes referred to as a ‘magic wand.’ A tool that could not only save a piece of clothing, but make it more beautiful at the same time. Grey or white stitches against an indigo blue background were the classic sashiko combination, sometimes recalling blue mountains covered in snow, or the whitecaps on The Great Wave off Kanagawa.

5.5 kilometres of engineered stitching

The traditional geometric patterns of sashiko included arrows, lightning and bamboo as popular motifs. Our stitching pattern is based on the Vollebak ‘V’. The engineered embroidery follows the body contours, with the stitching denser towards the hem of the jacket, and sparser at the elbows. This maximises movement and strengthens the areas where it’s needed most.

Reinforced with 1 million meta-aramid stitches

High strength, flame-retardant aramid fibres are conventionally used to make clothing worn by military personnel, firefighters and industrial workers whose lives depend on protection against fires and electrical arcs. While we’ve used these materials to make some of our other ultra-tough clothing before, we’re pretty sure that we’re the first to reinforce a single piece of clothing with 1 million meta-aramid stitches.

The jacket is inspired by early workwear jackets

We wanted to build a jacket that was as utilitarian, practical and beautiful as the idea of sashiko itself. So for inspiration we turned to chore jackets, the early workwear jackets first worn by 19th century French labourers. Chore jackets were built to last and came in a simple cut that was easy to wear all day, every day. So we used that same design as a base for our Sashiko Chore Jacket, recreating it with incredible attention to detail.

The jacket comes pre-repaired with 1 million high-strength, fire resistant stitches.

Dyed in Japanese indigo then washed for a faded look

To create the jacket’s material we worked with a mill that’s been supplying Japan with exceptional materials for more than 120 years. The first chore jackets were typically dyed blue to cover dirt and stains, with the colour becoming so widely used it originated the term ‘blue collar’. So our heavy-duty Japanese cotton is coloured with indigo dye before the jackets are cut and sewn, reinforced with sashiko stitching, then washed to give them a look that’s like rugged, faded denim.

Buttons made from plants and vegetables

The jacket fastens down the middle with five buttons made of buffalo imitation bioresin – a natural, non-toxic and water-based material we’ve produced by combining plant and vegetable waste with a polyester resin used by the aerospace industry. You’ll also find a bioresin button at the end of each sleeve to fasten the cuffs.

Built with 3 pockets

At either side of the jacket there are 2 deep open pockets. The pockets are designed with an angled entrance and come lined with soft cotton. And inside on the left you’ll also find a small patch pocket on the chest.

The engineered embroidery follows body contours to maximise movement and strength.

Ancient Edo society hated garbage

Garbage was almost non-existent in the Edo period. They didn’t just recycle and reuse. They understood that everything had a value and that living happily and within their means was a virtue. Repair and reuse businesses were everywhere. Enterprising samurai would turn busted bamboo umbrella frames into kindling, carefully unpicking oiled parasols and turning them into special wrapping paper. ‘Geta no haire,’ or wooden clog repairers, would travel door-to-door. And if your kettle or old pot sprung a leak, an ‘ikake,’ or metal repairer, was never far away.

It meant Japanese clothing wasn’t like Western clothing

Clothing was the ultimate non-disposal product. Traditional kimonos were cut straight in equal proportions with no waste, so they were standardised goods – a significant point of difference with Western clothing. If Western clothes were disassembled they would be different sizes and could not be recycled in the way kimonos were – effectively making them single-use items.