7 For All Mankind [Seven] is celebrating ten years in the business. Can you believe that we've been spending upwards of $150 on jeans for that long? We can definitely thank Seven for that. We can also thank them for the dramatic improvement in fit that comes with the premium label and high price-tag.
While visiting the showroom for their Holiday 2010 preview, I was able to also get a look at their celebratory collection. For their tenth anniversary, Seven dug into their archives and reinterpreted some of their original styles. Included are the original bootcuts that launched them to stardom as well as a skinny with Swarovski crystals snaking up the leg. Iconic details such as the back-pocket squiggle and A-pockets are carried over in updated versions of classic silhouettes. Darting down the front and back replace sanded creasing that was a popular feature among the brand's first offerings. A favorite of mine, and new to the collection, is the indigo-dyed unisex trouser (above) with pleating and slash pockets.
As an aside, while perusing the racks, I couldn't help but remember the first time I'd ever seen a pair of Seven jeans. I'd just moved to New York that year ---a pricey shoebox studio in the Upper East Side. I was walking down 57th street near what used to be the Trump building behind this girl who had on a pair of light blue bootcut jeans, a knit top and pointy-toed, black stilettos that were the thing back then. The reason why this girl stood out to me was because the wash and cut of her jeans looked vintage ---like a throwback to the seventies. There was something about those jeans that I couldn't put my finger on which made the whole ensemble look polished and polish wasn't something I, or anyone else I knew, associated with jeans. I had to get a closer look.
When I got closer I noticed that she wasn't much taller than I was, but her legs looked ridiculously long. It might have had something to do with how straight the silhouette was or the faded crease that created a straight line from the back of the thigh to the hem. The best part of all; her butt looked great. As if to draw more attention to a great looking ass, there was a distinct squiggle on the back pockets that I couldn't make heads or tails of, but I made sure to make a mental note of it.
A few weeks later, I was talking with a coworker who was going on and on about how she wanted a pair of Seven jeans. I had no idea what she was talking about, but thought the name sounded cool. This particular coworker liked to drag me to Bergdorf's and Bendels during lunch, places that I could only dream of shopping at back then...and now. During one of these lunchtime shopping excursions, while she was buying yet another $1000 handbag, she decided to go jean shopping and what do you know. She picked out the pair with the squiggle on the back pockets. I took a look at the tag and it said 7 For All Mankind. What a name. It made me feel like whoever owned these jeans was a part of this great denim collective. I tried on a pair as well and it was love. Complete and total, head over heels, heart-pounding love. Never, had my body looked so good in a pair of jeans. Never had my legs looked so long and slim. I turned around and, gasp, never had my butt looked so fantastic. I then checked out the price tag. Ugh. $120. Never had I'd spent more than $40 on a pair of jeans. I looked at myself in the mirror again. There was no way I was going home without those jeans. It was a stretch in my bank account at the time but I decided to go for it. Who needs food anyway.
Long story short, or not so short, I still own those jeans. They quickly replaced every other pair of jeans I'd owned before than and were the start of my premium denim obsession. Needless to say, it's exciting to me that the brand that started it all is taking it back to the beginning and bringing back the styles that made us fall in love with them in the first place.
Recent Comments