Tiger Stripes – Fashion and Claws
As the name suggests, pants from the fashion label Zoo Jeans do indeed come from a zoo in Hitachi, Japan. The ‘designers’? Lions, tigers and bears.
In 2014, the predators were given denim fabric to play with, slash and chew up. Afterwards the material was sewn into four pairs of jeans and auctioned off on Yahoo! The L1 designed by lions model sold for about $1,500 (about 1.400 €). The proceeds helped the zoo with renovations and supported the non-profit organization WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature).
Mithun Romandani, buyer for men’s clothing at Selfridges in London, was unimpressed: “The rips are too sporadic” and “don’t look natural”.
Well, as Heidi Klum would say:
“As you know in fashion, one day you’re in.
And the next day you’re out!”
See the Zoo Jeans making-of:
References Zoo Jeans Homepage http://zoo-jeans.com (13.11.2016) “The Japan Times: Zoo makes wild fashion statement with lion-ripped jeans” The Japan Times from 23.07.2014 http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2014/07/23/national/zoo-makes-wild-fashion-statement-lion-ripped-jeans/ - .Vm2XUOnpBNo (13.11.2016) “Zoo versteigert von Löwen zerfetzte Designer-Jeans” Die Welt from 14.07.2014 http://www.welt.de/newsticker/news1/article130143953/Zoo-versteigert-von-Loewen-zerfetzte-Designer-Jeans.html (13.11.2016) Cochrane, Lauren “Zoo jeans: would you wear denim custom ripped by lions and tigers?” The Guardian from 08.07.2014 http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/shortcuts/2014/jul/08/zoo-jeans-custom-ripped-lions-tigers (13.11.2016)