There is a new denim brand on the scene, RE/DUN, and they are incredibly cool! We have already been spotting their jeans on celebrities like Jessica Hart, Alessandra Ambrosio and more, purely because their concept is amazing! They take old vintage Levi’s jeans and reconstruct them into modern fits and designs, all while keeping that vintage essence. I was lucky enough to catch up with RE/DUN and do an interview with them for The Jeans Blog about the new brand and the ideas behind it! It’s amazing and you should definitely check it out! All of their jeans are one of a kind pieces so no two are the same! Check out their site by clicking here and read the interview below.
The Jeans Blog – RE/DUN is brand new to the denim world, could you tell us about your brand?
RE/DUN – RE/DUN buys vintage jeans and recuts them into modern fits. We essentially use vintage denim as the fabric for our new jeans.
TJB – Where did the inspiration come from for this concept?
RD – We both always loved vintage Levi’s. The quality of the denim is by far the best and after years of wear, the distressing is natural. When companies try to recreate those wear patterns on new jeans, it always ends up looking so contrived. The only draw back of vintage jeans is that they never fit right, so for years, my friends and I would have our old jeans tailored into more modern fits. One day I realized that it could be a great business. We give our customer the best of both worlds: top quality fabrics, with beautiful and unique wear patterns, in contemporary fits.
TJB – I think taking vintage Levi’s classics and re-working them is fantastic. How easy or difficult is it?
RD – Cutting a jean is never simple – even when you are using new fabrics. Everyone has a different body shape, so that will always pose a challenge for us. But when it comes down to it, reworking the vintage denim isn’t that different from using new fabric. It is all about creating the right fit. We have worked hard to develop our two styles, the relaxed straight and the straight skinny, and we are proud of them.
TJB – How do you go about actually re-designing them with the new label/patch etc.? Do Levi’s mind?
RD – You would have to ask Levi’s how they feel about what we do, but we never considered keeping their patch. After all, our customers are buying RE/DUN jeans. For our label/patch, we wanted a super sleek look. Even though we use vintage denim, we are still a modern company and we wanted our label to reflect that.
TJB – Can you tell us about the two fits you offer, what classics are they modeled on?
RD – First, we have our Straight Skinny jean. It is a classic mid-rise skinny jean. Second, we have our Relaxed Straight jean. This one is more of a boyfriend fit, without being too baggy. We envisioned it as a more tailored take on the boyfriend. Our inspiration for both honestly just came from looking at the women in our lives, and seeing how they wanted to wear their jeans. We looked to them, and so far it seems to be matching the demand and turning out pretty well.
TJB – Do you add any distressing or aesthetics to the jeans or keep them authentic as they were?
RD – No. We try to keep them as authentic as we can. One of the main appeals of vintage denim is the unique wear pattern that each jean has. We want to celebrate that and stay away from the fake distressing.
TJB – Each pair is 100% unique, is it sad seeing some of them get sold as you love them so much?
RD – Of course! Part of us just wants to create an amazing archive of all of our favorite jeans, and we do snag a few pairs from time to time. But mostly, we want to share what we are doing with our customers. It’s a pretty great problem to have when you love your product so much that you don’t want to part with it!
TJB – I think there’s a huge market for authentic premium denim at the moment. With all of the new technologies and fabrications around, there’s a gap for true blue quality denim. Is this why you decided to create RE/DUN now or was it a happy coincidence?
RD – It is a bit of both. The creation of the company truly developed out of our passion and love of vintage denim. We didn’t see anyone else in the denim space creating jeans we loved and wanted to wear. Now the demand for the product is showing us that we were not the only ones who felt that way.
TJB – Could you tell us what we might be able to expect from you in the future? More fits perhaps?
RD – We have a lot of exciting things in the pipeline. Up next, we are launching a new high waisted fit. We have seen the samples of that one, and absolutely love it. We are also doing two types of shorts: one is a classic denim cut-off short; the other is a longer, more like knee-length, denim short. We have also made a few pairs of men’s RE/DUN jeans for ourselves. We didn’t want to be left out of all the fun and will definitely launch that on the site soon.
TJB – I’ve loved denim from such a young age, but what makes you personally love denim so much?
RD – How could you not love denim? It is the iconic American fabric. It is impossible to talk about denim, especially vintage denim, through out the years, without bringing to mind the amazing stories that have always accompanied the material. From the very creation of the first Levi’s jeans in the 1850’s, to the factory workers of the early 1900’s, to the youth counter-culture of the 1960’s, all the way through the explosion of designer denim in the 1980’s, denim is almost mythological in our society.
TJB – Do you own loads and loads of jeans or do you stick to a few good classics?
RD – I have amassed quite a collection over the years, but I definitely have my favorite go to pairs.
TJB – What would you say is the best thing about RE/DUN? In your own words?
RD – There are so many great things about RE/DUN, but for me it’s that I was able to create a brand I believe in out of one of my passions. When the untouched vintage jeans come into the office, and I get to go through them and find the amazing pairs that we get to transform, I get so excited.
TJB – Lastly, please add anything you want to share with The Jeans Blog readers that we haven’t covered!
RD – Our jeans are different than the stretch jeans on the market, so they might feel a bit foreign at first, but we promise you, give them a chance, and you will be a convert!
TJB – Amazing, thank you so much! I’m sure everyone will love RE/DUN!
Such a cool new brand! I’m wondering if sizing is pretty standard, or if it differs a little due to the vintage-ness of the jeans.
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That’s one thing I don’t know yet! I was wondering exactly the same thing. I’m thinking if they re structure and sew them though it might be to fit current sizing?