Denim custom ripped by lions, bears and tigersfor $1500
Japanese brand Zoo Jeans describes its product as "the only jeans on earth designed by dangerous animals". Lost in translation? Lip my denim? No, the jeans are really gnawed and clawed by your favorite wild beasts to create the coolest one-offs for branded distressed jeans.
How do they get the animals to cavort intimately with denim?
Check out the company video promoting the awesome design method for stylized distressed denims:
A link to the Zoo jeans promo video on You Tube promoting animal designed jeans. All rights reserved to Zoo jeans.
The team assisting ZOO jeans and the designers cover large tyres with swathes of denim and secure it in place before tossing the teething rubber into the animals' dens at the Kamine zoo in Hitachi, Japan. The animals play with the newfound objects in their home and leave territorial marks on them: denim is torn, 'lipped' and shredded in personalized fashion that makes each pair a unique one-off.
Three pairs were auctioned off to raise funds for the zoo and World Wildlife Fund. And one pair fetched as high as $1500.
The demand for denim complete with pre-made rips and tears remains strong – and Japanese brands often apply abrasions to their jeans by hand. Japanese denim, continues to have a cult following that has grown since Evisu arrived in Europe in the 1990s with their distinctive back-pocket seagulls. These days, jeans from Momotaro, with handmade denim and sterling silver buttons, can cost more than £1,000.
Not just a marketing gimmick, the ZOO campaign shows what we can do with the animals we care for and how we can produce some very nifty items that can also provide for the upkeep of the animals that help us make design a much smarter process. Expect more of this kind of design process with other captive wild animals and with other fashion products soon.
A look at the Tiger-played denim by Zoo Jeans. All rights reserved to Zoo jeans.
