In Japan, Murasaki (purple) has always been held in high regard. Rewinding back to the Heian period, Japan’s courtly society was governed by the "twelve-level cap and rank system" - a hierarchy where official ranks were signified by color. At the very top of this spectrum was purple, reserved exclusively for the highest-ranking nobles and members of the imperial court. Traditionally, the purple dye was naturally derived from the Cromwell plant, and was notoriously rare and tedious to produce. Because of its scarcity, purple garments became the ultimate representation of power, prestige and royalty.
Taking inspiration from the legacy and reverence of this color, we approached Studio D'Artisan with our crazy idea for our 19th collaboration project with the Osaka OG’s. In terms of working with colored wefts, we've certainly worked through most of the spectrum - but a deep purple hue is a first for us, and we wanted to get it right. Cue SDA's coveted "G3" denim, a selvedge fabric we have worked with for close to a decade. Knowing the sheer level of texture and ruggedness we've seen with previous collaborations using this fabric, we knew from the get-go this was a perfect match for this project. On the surface the combination of indigo warp yarns and purple weft yarns gives the fabric a subdued and elegant tone, but turn up that cuff to be instantly greeted with a bold and distinctive purple hue. Additionally, SDA's G3 denim has a proven track record to develop accentuated fades, revealing multiple hues that stray far from the path of conventional denim fabrics.
