Found Denim/18th Amendment Featured in June NYLON

IN THE CUT
It takes a lot for a denim label to distinguish itself. Here, some that do...

1. 18TH AMENDMENT

In the ’20s, lofty bouffants gave way to short bobs, rib-splintering corsets were replaced by brassieres, and pants were replaced with thigh-skimming pinafores. While the latter fashion fact would make a denim brand inspired by the roaring ’20s seem a bit anachronistic, it was more the era’s stylistic bravado that 18th Amendment (for non-history buffs, this is the amendment that brought about prohibition) designer Rebecca Dawson sought to achieve. “There are no rules!” she exclaims of her line’s ethos. 18th Amendment—which Dawson founded a couple of years ago in Australia with international denim distributor Rachel Rose—was one of the first companies to embrace the higher waist at the tail end of the low-waist trend. “Quite simply, it was time. We were bored!” says Dawson. “Proportion and silhouette is continually evolving in fashion and it was time for something fresh and new for the eye.” 18th Amendment jeans are just that—combining modern fits with antique details like the Art-Deco wing logo, inspired by the Rolls Royce ‘Flying Lady’, and in styles that live up to their sassy namesakes such as the ultra-skinny Sedgwick, velvet Leigh, and the true-high-waist Bacall. It’s a line worth raising a glass to.

2. FOUND

Say goodbye to your torso: Found has created the Corset jean, hiking the high-waist up 13 and a half inches toward the ribcage. “It was inspired by an old motorcycle photo we found of a woman wearing high-waisted belted leggings,” says Lana Cretz, one third of the Found design team. “Some people think it might be hard to wear this style until they actually put it on—it elongates the waist and makes you appear taller.” Cretz, Sara Watson, and Steve Zeitzoff each worked at Hudson Jeans, AG Adriano Goldschmied, and Chip & Pepper, respectively, before launching Found at the start of the year. Their experience is evident in Found’s variegated, vintage-inspired aesthetic. Further proof of their good taste is that their lookbook featured none other than the stylish ladies of the band Au Revoir Simone.