Consumers expect top-notch products in today’s automated world, but that wasn’t always the case.
The latest Levi’s Vintage Clothing collection pays homage to the inconsistencies of clothing production in the 1940s, a time when fabrics and sundries like metal buttons and rivets were rationed for the wartime effort.
Called Perfect Imperfections, the collection offers five versions of men’s jeans that each represent a “the hodgepodge of inconsistencies’ found on Levi’s jeans during the era. “The idea behind the collection is that imperfection can actually be a beautiful thing. It’s the romance of something totally unique,” Levi’s stated.
Details include pockets missing Levi’s signature red tab and others with extra red tabs. Trims range in material and some are unbranded. The pocketing materials on each jean will also be unique, representing the random scraps of fabric used on the original 1940s 501 jeans.
One of the most notable departures from a perfect pair of Levi’s is the jeans’ arcuates on the back pockets, which had to be printed instead of stitched to conserve thread. The printed arcuates are recreated in the collection, though some pairs will have regular arcuates, and others will have ones that are crooked, misshapen, or upside down, while some will have no arcuates at all.
For an added heap of history, the jeans are made from Levi’s Vintage Clothing’s 1940s deadstock Cone Mills White Oak denim—the last of its kind.
Each version of the jean will get a limited run of 100 pairs, with the first version getting 101 pairs to add up to a total of 501 pairs in the world. The collection launched exclusively last week on Levi’s app, and each item retails for $495.