Archival Clothing Can Do No Wrong

As far as I remember I don't think that Archival Clothing has put out anything that I didn't immediately felt  the need to purchase. Despite that fact I've ever only ordered some Columbiaknit t-shirts from them. But hopefully it won't be too long before I start supporting them more. It's like they can't make a do anything wrong. I mean, the collaboration with Hollows was great, so are their sweatshirts, duffels, zipped totes, rucksacks and the list just goes on and on.

Not too long ago they released these cardigans that are made by Centralia Mills. Therefore you should instantly know that they're well-made, sturdy, heavy duty and of a superior quality. This particular design could easily double as a jacket in between seasons and I'm sure it would become the go-to sweater in many wardrobes.

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Centralia Knitting Mills - Varsity Jackets

A great thing about the internet fashion forums like Styleforum is that you can find people to share your interests and obsessions with. You discover, that you're not the only one digging Donegal tweed or tripping over some new South Korean streetwear collaboration. That's of course all good. But I get really excited, when I see it materialising every now and then, when people get together and buy a specialised product by some of the good makers as a group buy. It's democracy at its finest, especially when they vote over the details and create polls. Beautiful.

When I wrote about the Dehen 1920 varsity cardigan, I started thinking about the company Centralia Knitting Mills. They're a great company that makes great products. Their production is still specialized in making small batches of specialized products for sports teams for instance and nowadays they also cater to the picky Japanese market. 

For some odd reason I've passed on two consecutive group buys of custom made varsity jackets on Styleforum. I really don't know why, but I keep my finger's crossed that it will happen again, and when it happens I'll be the first one to sign up for it.

Here are some of the options that were available for the Styleforum group buy. They were a bit limited compared to the options that Japanese retailers/brands have. But still it shows a great number of options and endless combinations.

Here are some examples that I've found browsing Japanese webshops mostly. I think it really shows, what they're able to do.

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Dehen 1920 - Varsity Cardigan

Although I would probably go for a varsity cardigan from Centralia Knitting Mills - Or Skookum as it's also known - because I already own a varsity cardigan from them, and it has performed very well. Very well being an obvious understatement as the sweater is one hell of a sweater with an incredible heft and fit.

However the varsity cardigan that I have is purple with yellow stripes on the sleeves, which sounds a bit worse than it is. I still find it very wearable. But when I walked into the store Brund on my most recent trip to Copenhagen and saw this cardigan from Dehen 1920, I was thoroughly impressed by the quality and fit. It was on par with my Skookum, but the colours were definitely more wearable.

This sweater features a very heavy four end jersey knit and it's made of 100% worsted wool (which basically means it can double as a jacket). Other than that it features some really nice corozo nut buttons and as mentioned a hefty quality that you just don't get much nowadays.

I had my doubts about this company. These days a lot of old, defunct companies are being revamped and some of them aren't that impressive, when it comes down to their products and not just being nostalgic about a long and glorious history. But Dehen knows a thing or two about making a good, solid cardigan and varsity jacket that is for sure.

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