Loop and Weft is a Japanese label specializing in vintage style knitwear. There are a lot of Japanese specialist labels out there, many with their own particular crazy obsessions, and Loop and Weft neatly fit into that group. They are all about utilizing vintage knitwear machines, making some of the highest quality knits you can find. They can be hard to track down, especially outside of Japan, but are well worth the effort.
This shirt is Loop and Weft’s “heather slub cotton double binder crewneck”. Design is seemingly simple but there is actually quite a bit going on and really all aspects of the shirt have been very carefully considered. Fabric is what they call a heather slub jersey which uses a special spinning technique to create a fine heathered pattern and uneven yarn texture. The fabric is intentionally uneven, knitted with thread counts ranging from 8 to 25, that also makes it highly breathable.
Neck design is also labor intensive. They call the neck a double binder, where you have a double wrapping of two different fabrics with double needle stitching. Front of the shirt has a set-in sleeve while the back is raglan. Sewing is complicated with the uneven weave, using four needle flat felled seams which take both time and skill to produce. Loop and Weft note that they provide a painstaking attention to detail with this shirt, and hopefully that care shows through in the finished garment.
Loop and Weft pieces are made in very limited quantities given the care that goes into them and the vintage machinery they use. Distribution is limited even in Japan, but get it here at a fraction of the retail price.
Size is labeled a medium and fits a bit slim. There is a bit of a stretch to the fabric but unstretched I measure the chest at 18” / 46cm, shoulders at 16” / 42cm and length at 25.5” / 65cm. The shirt comes in lightly used, very good shape with no holes, tears, stains or visible signs of wear. Made in Japan.
Shipping from Japan to anywhere will be $24.