Cottle

Cottle is a brand of the rarest quality that elevates utilitarian design through a distinctly Japanese feel and folk craft heritage. After graduating from the prestigious Bunka Fashion College in Tokyo, designer Toshiaki Watanabe worked for a premium denim manufacturer before founding Cottle in 2015 in Kojima, Okayama - the heart of Japanese textile manufacturing. Working from an old, renovated textile factory, everything is built in-house from concept to production. It’s a vertically integrated method that enables ideas formed on the gallery floor to be shaped in the building’s workshop. What they don’t produce in-house is still thoughtfully designed through consultation with local, veteran manufacturers (Cottle’s denim took four years to develop from idea to completion and another two years to manufacture).

The clothing leans toward western workwear, but the comparison stops there. Using traditional Japanese techniques - the fabrics, colors and hardware are the fusion of intricate Japanese handcraft and industrial capability. To give some examples, Cottle’s unique denims mix cotton and linen that pays homage to the original Japanese denims produced in the 20s and before the heavy import and reproduction of American denims. The dyes are all naturally sourced and made locally (persimmon, sumi ink, natural indigo). Even the thread in the denim uses an iron oxide dye that is the homegrown specialty of a small village in Okayama. Zero synthetic fibers are used, creating natural fiber blends that have a luxury beyond aesthetics. Cottle takes traditional materials in new directions, and with a super small team, this gear is the result of an absolute focus on craftsmanship…