Word Of Mouth Jeans Are Made Entirely By Hand
The Word of Mouth denim brand was started by Simone Sorgato in 2019. Based in Rome (Italy), just a 10-minute walk from the famous Colosseum in a small basement. All the jeans are made by Simone by hand, meaning designing, cutting, and sewing. A one man strong denim brand. One pair at a time.
The Different Models Within The Collection
During the years, Simone collected a fine collection of different original Union Special and Singer machines. Around 11 machines are used to produce each single pair of blue jeans. Within his Word of Mouth collection, there are several models represented: the 311 and the 411. While the 311 is a straight-cut jeans, the 411 is a WW2-inspired pair. This pair is also highlighted in this article.
Next to these two, you can also order a 1937-inspired pair with a cinch back. And not to forget a WW2 denim jacket in ecru selvedge fabric. To make it complete, a matching ecru pair is available as well.
Each Word of Mouth pair is constructed with the unique imperfections and characteristics of the jeans that are related to the specific era of the originals.
Simone About Making His Jeans
‘’Although I cannot consider myself a vintage jeans collector, I’ve been fortunate enough to study lots of original Levi’s ‘Big E’s’ from different eras that came in for repairs, as well as most of the finest replica brands of the last decade. All my jeans are made selecting the finest unsanforized Japanese selvedge denim, woven on vintage shuttle looms and sewn only with cotton threads.’’
The Process Of Starting His Brand
The Word of Mouth brand wasn’t ready since day one. It took Simone more than two years with countless hours of trials and errors to be up and running. After making thousands of errors and sample pairs and watching YouTube videos, the first pairs were finally ready to wear. He also got a lot of help from other denim makers which he met on the social media platform Instagram. And still, he’s learning each day to improve his jeans to bring them to the next level.
The Production Of Each Jeans
To produce one single pair of jeans, it costs around 2,5 hours. It depends on a few factors, are the machines already set up with the right threads for example. Sometimes it takes even longer and more time is needed to finish one jeans as he’s doing everything by hand. Also, the patterns are cut by hand, so no rotary cutters are involved in the process. Maybe in the future to speed up some steps…
The Selvedge Denim Fabrics
The fabrics for the jeans are sourced from Japan. A 12oz so-called ‘Loom State’ fabric is used. Another nod to the originals from that time. Also known as ‘Shrink-to-fit’ fabrics.
These fabrics are woven on traditional shuttle looms and give the exact characteristics of authentic selvedge fabrics. The selvedge ID is light pink, something you will notice on vintage pairs as the redline ID is washed-out. The more you wear your jeans (and wash them), the better your jeans will feel and fit. And to forget, the results of beautiful fades in the end.
The Details Of The 411 Jeans
The 411 jeans, shown in the article, feature many details that are included in the WW2 pairs of jeans. It is a regular high-waisted jeans cut with a roomy thigh, straight from the knee down to the ankle.
Expect key features such as a laurel leaf top button (with a V-stitching on the inside), unbranded donut buttons on the fly, selvedge peek-a-boo on the coin pocket, and lemon stitches all over the jeans. The thread that is used is 100% cotton, so not poly-cotton. These types of cotton were the standard back in the day. They will age together with the fabric, so they will shrink and brake with many wear and washes, but that’s the beauty of ‘staying true to the originals’.
The inner pockets are made with a green herringbone fabric. And they are stamped and numbered by hand. This is pair #128. Even small details are reproduced as raw crotch edges and fly. For the reinforcement of the back pocket, hidden rivets are used. So, no bar tacking on the outside.
The Pizza Red Tab
On the right back pocket, there’s a red tab with the word Pizza written. Single-sided, like the originals from this period. The pizza word is a funny reference to a period when Simone used to work at his daily job and ate pizza almost every day. You can find the pizza reference as well on the back patch. There’s a graphic design where two pizza bakers are pulling on a slice of fresh pizza. Underneath, the slogan is used: ‘’Every Slice Guaranteed’’ – Finest Italian Overall.
Even on the paper pocket flasher on the right back pocket, there’s a funny slogan: ‘’Or how I learned to make jeans and stop worrying about my job.’’
How To Order Your Pair?
If you want to order a pair of Word of Mouth yourself, just go to the Instagram feed here and send a DM with your request! Simple as that.
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