TCB_Cat Head Jacket

□ Encounter with the original material

I wanted to make a new coverall for spring, and I started my quest to find the original design early last year. I gradually narrowed down the target audience, but I just couldn't find the right one. Then, during a casual chat with Ryo, who always works in the same room as me, I casually mentioned to him that I'd like to make a 1930s duck head coverall because I think it would be cute. He replied, "I bought one when I was living in the Netherlands, and now I've given it to my dad as a gift." It was a great coincidence, and when I told him I wanted to target this vintage style, he readily agreed, and the project began.

Attention to detail

I've mentioned this many times when talking about coveralls, but I love the distinctive left chest design from the 1930s. Previously, I created Black Bear, Strong Hold, and Boss of the Road designs, but this one also features an asymmetrical design, though not as much. What attracted me most was the adorable, slightly funny duck face. I've always loved the animals in Vintage logos, from the bulldog in Boss of the Road to the chicken in Can't Bust'em, the bear in Black Bear, and the pig in Finks—the list goes on and on, but they're all charming features. To recreate this vibe, I had the designer redraw it multiple times, recreating the original's humorous feel by changing it to a cat. Because the cat on the tag turned out so well, the two-pronged dot buttons on the chest and the dome-shaped tuck buttons on the sleeves also managed to capture the vintage vibe while still being cute. The buttons on the placket have the same matte finish as the Vintage designs. The rough texture makes them less slippery and easier to put on and take off. I think this texture is the result of pursuing functionality rather than design.

Another thing that I found appealing was the green of the bartacks and buttonholes. There are many vintage jackets with colorful bartacks, and at TCB we've had fun experimenting with bartack colors, trying out colors we've seen before and colors that seem familiar but don't. However, the only jackets I can think of with colorful buttonholes are Duck Head and Oshkosh. Of course, the green looks vivid at first, but one of the joys of this jacket is seeing the green fade with continued wear.

□Fabric

The stitching was also unique, with the chin strap collar made with a chain stitch. The managing director and I were racking our brains over this process, but when we consulted with our comrade, Tateno-san from Workers, he told us that he had actually created a trumpet horn two years ago when he was making a Payday-themed jacket. We took his advice, saying, "It's fine as long as you use it on TCB," and we learned something from the compatibility of the Payday and Duck Head collars. It's proof that what we thought was design was actually a by-product of the convenience of sewing machines, which was considered from a manufacturing perspective.

When making coveralls, TCB shortens the length slightly compared to vintage styles to make it easier to balance them with denim tops and bottoms. The raglan sleeves allow for a comfortable fit and allow for a wide range of arm movement. We also had vintage designs on the fabric, with attention to detail, from the unevenness of the yarn to the color and dyeing method. Recently, rather than using a single yarn count to create an uneven texture, we've been choosing to mix different yarns to create different uneven textures. Specifically, we use a 1:1 ratio of 8-count straight yarn and 9-count short uneven yarn for the warp. For the weft, we use a 1:1 ratio of 12-count natural uneven yarn and the same 12-count nep yarn. The resulting use of four different yarns gives the garment a vintage feel. We also had the garment dyed in a lighter shade, characteristic of our store brand. To compensate for the lighter warp, the weft is dyed gray instead of off-white. This idea was based on the idea of each company, and I think some fabrics were made with a focus on making the warp threads dark in color to make stains less noticeable, and there were also many fabrics that made the fabric look dark in color by dyeing the weft threads gray, making stains less noticeable.

For the finishing touch, nep yarn is used for half of the weft, so the fabric is finished without being singed.

□ Regarding size

The basic size is based on TCB's classic coverall, the Cathartt Chore Coat. When comparing it to a denim jacket, we recommend going down one to two sizes depending on your preferred size.

The above is reprinted from the TCB official website

Above all, the vintage-like cat buttons are an irresistible detail. When you look at vintage items, you might wonder why old designs are so appealing... Personally, I think it's probably because the originals were hand-drawn.

No matter how much we evolve, I think there is a quality to hand-drawn designs that AI just can't match. That said, to mass-produce buttons, the hand-drawn designs are naturally digitized and then produced.

With the temperature fluctuations these days being so extreme, coveralls are extremely convenient to have ready when you need them. They are just the right thickness and can be used all year round.

Actual size chart: Unit: cm