With the weather finally becoming cool by California standards,* I am not only able to start wearing jackets, but sweatshirts as well. Despite being into raw denim for so long, it took me until only 6 months ago to purchase my first loopwheel/tube knit sweatshirt. This was one of the first two I purchased and I have to say that I immediately kicked myself for not purchasing one earlier. The specific fluffy tube of goodness that we are discussing today is my Suvin Gold loopwheel sweatshirt in heather grey from Japanese denim legends Studio D’artisan.
While there is a nice gold hue to the fabric, the first picture is more accurate than the second
The first of the now legendary Osaka Five, Studio D’artisan was founded all the way back in 1979. To put that in perspective, Michael Jackson’s Off The Wall came out that year, John Bonham was still alive, there was only one Star Wars film, and the standard Chevrolet Corvette from that model year produced 195 horsepower. For those not into cars, that is about equivalent to a bowl of oatmeal without raisins or cinnamon. Quite often, brands that have been around for nearly 40 years begin to lose sight of their original values and what made them popular in the first place. Fortunately, Studio D is not one of those companies. They still produce fantastic raw denim jeans, shirts, jackets, and loopwheel t shirts and sweatshirts.
The details are done right. I love the ribbing and that beautiful tag!
Recently, they have come out with several products made out of Suvin Gold cotton. Apparently, this is the most expensive cotton in the world and is said to have the highest combination of strength and softness. In fact, it is rumored to make Zimbabwe cotton look and feel like that itchy, embarrassing wool sweater with your name on it that your mom knitted for you.** If you read my RJB 103bsp denim review (hint hint! Go read that!) then you will know that I personally believe that the cotton type used for shirts and denim does make a difference in terms of comfort and softness and I am personally a fan of Zimbabwe cotton. If there was something better available out there, I had to try it!
The above two pictures show just how expertly stitched this piece is
Trying to get all artsy with the sleeve
Luckily for me, Self Edge LA is relatively close to my house, making it a no-brainer for me to go try this piece on in person. Upon seeing the sweat for the first time, the color popped immediately. The listed color is heather grey, but thanks to the fact that Suvin Gold cotton does have a very strong gold/beige color to it, this color is more of a mix of grey and beige/off white. As a person who is pretty much obsessed with off white and ecru colored clothing, I was very happy about this, though I wondered why there was not an natural or off white colorway as well.
Touching the garment for the first time surprised me. Compared to other shirts and sweatshirts that I had touched before, this was immediately softer. Trying it on for the first time was so soft and pleasurable that I cannot describe what it actually felt like for fear of getting in a lot of trouble if you catch my drift. The best way I can describe it is by saying that I immediately wanted to buy the entire stock of them in my size from the store. I do not mean to overhype this product, but it is by far the softest item of clothing I have ever touched, handled, or worn. Your results may vary, though.
Some detail shots of the beautiful fabric
The sizing is quite nice for me as well. At only 5’7.5” and with a 42’ chest, sleeve and body lengths are often far too long on me, but this sweat actually fits me very well in these areas. The only area where it is a little tight is the shoulder. I went for a medium in this and if you check the measurements, you will notice that I very much undersized this item. Many people (including the owner of Self Edge himself) will say that a sweat should be several inches larger than your chest, but I completely disagree. Of course this is personal preference, but I like a snug fit on all of my knitwear especially because it all stretches so easily. This sweat was no exception. It is a little snug on me, but I love the way it feels when I wear it.
The sweatshirt looks fantastic by itself…
In terms of weight, it seems to be about equal to my other ones, which are listed at 12oz. Here in Southern California, this is as much as I could ever need. The fabric feels tough and dense despite its softness and with just this and a leather jacket, I have been comfortable in weather down into the 40s (Fahrenheit). Some other details of note are the very beautiful ribbing on the cuffs and waist, the double V collar, and the fact that it is 4 needle flatlock seam stitched throughout the body. The stitching itself is beautifully executed and I could not find any flaws when I looked over it recently for this review even after wearing it quite a few times.
As much as I would love to ramble on like I usually do, there is nothing more to say about this incredible sweatshirt. At this point, the only disappointment is that this hasn’t become available in the natural gold or an off white color which I believe would look unbelievably beautiful. Perhaps the price is rather high depending on who you buy it from, but given the quality of the cotton and the construction, it was worth it to me. The only thing I will say is that while this sweatshirt is unbelievably soft, the Suvin Gold t shirt that I tried on was not nearly as noticeably soft. I am sure that the other Suvin Gold items are very nice, but I am not sure how much the softness will be noticeable with them. In fairness, some may not even find this that much softer than a normal sweat. However, I do, and I could not be happier to own this, my favorite winter item that is not a jacket.
But I think it looks even better with a jacket
*This equates to merely ‘warm’ by normal standards
** My apologies, I got you confused with Ron Weasley
*NOTE* The products shots were taken during golden hour which make the garment look more gold than it actually is. The shots of me wearing it are more accurate to the actual color.
