Fifteen years of Okayama Denim have given us plenty of reasons to celebrate, but few things feel quite as fitting as returning to the Japanese textile traditions that have been a pivotal part of our journey. For the latest addition to our 15th Anniversary Collection, we've teamed up once again with our good friends at Glen Clyde, the makers behind Chup, to develop two exclusive sock designs that bring together three of our longstanding favorites: Sashiko, Indigo and Kakishibu. Having spent well over a decade championing these traditional Japanese crafts, we wanted to create something that felt distinctly OD while making full use of Chup's remarkable expertise in pattern design. The concept was to bring together a variety of traditional Sashiko motifs in a patchwork-style arrangement, allowing the different patterns to complement one another while creating a distinctive overall design.
Of course, deciding which patterns belonged together was a project in itself. We sat down with Glen Clyde's design team to study the history and symbolism of Sashiko, while examining the remarkable variety of geometric motifs that have been developed through generations of Japanese craftsmanship. Countless discussions followed as we considered which patterns would complement one another, how their individual proportions would work within a patchwork arrangement, and how best to translate these traditional references into Chup's distinctive knitting style.
