Levi's Capital E denim

[tljenkin]

What's up with this line? I understand Warehouse, APC, Samurai, etc, but I cannot seem to get a straight answer on these things. Are they all produced on narrow looms and selvedge denim? More specifically, my mom was looking to get a really nice woman's denim jacket and she fell in love with the capital e slim classic trucker jacket, but the salesman was hopelessly inept. We are heading up to the Denim Bar to gte something tomorrow, would anybody here recommend something better? How does the Nudie Conney compare in terms of quality and fit?

 

[Get Smart]

I've never seen the Cap E denim jacket, but I have a Connie and it's a great jacket. Really slim fitting and no boxiness to it, unlike most denim jackets.

AFAIK, Cap E has nothing to do with shuttle looms and selvage. It's Levis' US premium line, but it's a different product than LVC, which uses selvage and repro cuts. I have the Cap E Stacked Skinny and it's a good jean, comparable to Nudie's non-selvage jeans, in terms of quality and finish.

 

[sbbbjm]

i might be in a slight minority here, but i enjoy the capital e line. the jeans i've tried on at barneys co-op have fit me quite well, which was not the case in the levi's premium line. i think they tend to do very tasteful washes along the lines of earnest sewn.

they may be mildly everyman, but i think their skinny fits and various selvage offerings give them an edge over brands such as seven.

also, i don't know what it is about levi's, but i've always had an affinity for the brand name and its image as the original jeans maker, and all the alpha male figures like marlon brando, james dean, clint eastwood etc wearing them.

you can also find a plethora of them on ebay for awesome prices, since it seems like the masses are still enthralled with rock/republic, seven, and true religion.

 

[zacharydschroeder]

Originally Posted by sbbbjm

i've always had an affinity for the brand name and its image as the original jeans maker, and all the alpha male figures like marlon brando, james dean, clint eastwood etc wearing them.
I agree with sbbbjm. To answer your question about the selvedge, though, the answer is no. What sets Capital E apart from the rest of Levi's line is the fact that all the detail stitching is single needle and sewn by a person at a sewing machine (they say each pair is crafted personally by a group of about 15 people), as opposed to a mass-produced jean that is done entirely on an assembly line. The result is a much more home-made, almost personal look--the arcuates are not always symmertrical, all abrasions are done by hand, etc. Since its all done by hand and greater attention is paid to detail, they tend to age and fade much more gracefully than some of their department store counterparts. Also, all Capital E products are made entirely in the United States, which I really appreciate. I don't know much about Nudie's because I'm more of a Levi's afficianado, but I don't think you can go wrong with Capital E.

 

[theshonen8899]

Originally Posted by zacharydschroeder

To answer your question about the selvedge, though, the answer is no.

Depends which model you're talking about. Most of them don't but I believe there are 501's that have selvedge.

My pair of Matchsticks are not selvedge and the denim is very thin, and it looks like the jacket is made with similar material. The Nudies jacket looks like its made with better stuff but I would personally prefer the design of the Levi's.

 

[zacharydschroeder]

Originally Posted by theshonen8899

My pair of Matchsticks are not selvedge and the denim is very thin...

Some of the lighter washes of Matchsticks are stretch denim and they're around 11 oz I think, but most Capital E are 12 oz other wise. Oh and you're right, all Capital E 501 are selvedge, I forgot to mention that.

 

[schmallo15]

I have a pair of supposedly Capital E 501's that I picked up at a Sak's Off-5th for about $70. They're selvage and have the leather patch but the 'e' on the Red Tab isn't capitalized. So are these actually Capital E's?

 

[Kopite]

They are, all the rest have a lone capital E except for the 501s which have a regular red tab. If you look inside under the right pocket theres a tag that says Capital E and where its made etc.

 

[theshonen8899]

Originally Posted by zacharydschroeder

Some of the lighter washes of Matchsticks are stretch denim and they're around 11 oz I think, but most Capital E are 12 oz other wise. Oh and you're right, all Capital E 501 are selvedge, I forgot to mention that.

My pair was the Rigid wash. I was pretty suprised to see how light it was, but I guess that's a good change from your everyday heavy denim. Still a steal at 60 bucks though.

 

[zacharydschroeder]

Originally Posted by theshonen8899

Still a steal at 60 bucks though.
You're damn straight that's a steal. I got my cap. e skinners for $30 but they're irregular--they're missing the capital e. I can live without an E on my tag for a$128 price cut.

 

[missionamp]

Originally Posted by schmallo15

I have a pair of supposedly Capital E 501's that I picked up at a Sak's Off-5th for about $70. They're selvage and have the leather patch but the 'e' on the Red Tab isn't capitalized. So are these actually Capital E's?

Thanks for the tip on this - there's an Off-5th about 5 minutes from where I live, and they're selling Capital-E 501's for $27+tax. It's Arundel Mills, MD in case anyone's interested, but they're a little limited on sizes.

 

[schmallo15]

Originally Posted by missionamp

Thanks for the tip on this - there's an Off-5th about 5 minutes from where I live, and they're selling Capital-E 501's for $27+tax. It's Arundel Mills, MD in case anyone's interested, but they're a little limited on sizes.

Wow. That's an amazing deal. I got mine at the Wrentham Outlets in Massachusetts.