Himel Brothers Vintage Leather Blog: One Good Thing

INSPIRATION 2012:Himel Bros and Clutch Magazine

By David Himel on February 8, 2012

Inspiration 2012

One of the most exciting times of the year is February. Nancy and I get to travel down to Los Angeles and Las Vegas and participate in the most exciting happening in the clothing and design world, Rin Tanaka’s Inspiration. Inspiration you say…what is it. Well if you were ever interested in meeting the underground movers and shakers in the design world, the vintage dealers that work with them, and throw in a culture jam of California surf culture, Japanese travellers and designers and store owners and cool music, well that is Inspiration.

This year I am especially pleased as my good friend Eric Schrader from Junkyard Jeans will be showing off all the latest Himel Brothers Jacket models in his booth on the Queen Mary. Also very exciting news , Himel Brothers is featured in Lightning Magazine’s newest launch, Clutch Magazine. Clutch’s North American debut will be at Inspiration. So if you were ever interested in seeing an HBL jacket up front and personal and you happen to live in the Greater Los Angeles area, come on down to the Queen Mary this weekend, or make your way out to Project Las Vegas and give us a look

Posted in Design, prototype designs, Uncategorized | Tagged clutch magazine, inspiration 2012, Rin Tanaka | Leave a comment

Bread and Butter Berlin: Viberg, Himelbros and Inspiration

By David Himel on January 16, 2012

Well so many things are going on in the new year and I am playing catch up as usual. I have had some great customers last year and I am thankful I’m still here and launching into the new year with exciting new jackets! So I would like to extend a big thankyou to all of you who follow my blogs, and my little tiny company and an especially large thankyou to all those that have bought jackets. I will of course be posting all the reviews by my customers on this blog this month. I am honoured to have so many pleasant compliments in my in box!

So big news for those living in Europe interested in seeing jacket in person. Brett Viberg of Viberg Boots will be previewing some of my jackets at Bread and Butter Berlin this week. If you happen to be in Germany drop in and say hello to Brett, he is not just a fan but a collaborator and is launching his own line of clothing at the show!! Also for my American friends, Himelbros will be going to Los Angeles for Rin Tanaka’s Inspiration Show and will be show cased by Eric Schrader of Junkyard Jeans in his booth at the bottom of the Queen Mary. Come down to the show if you are in L.A. in February to see the action, as some of the best and greatest in the design business will be hanging about shaking hands and kissing cheeks!

Posted in Design, Materials, prototype designs, Uncategorized | Tagged berlin, bread and butter, brett viberg, himel brothers, himelbros, Inspiration, Rin Tanaka, trade shows | 1 Comment

New Jackets….Finishing Christmacha Orders

By David Himel on December 24, 2011

Well its the holidays around here and between shopping for friends and family, and throwing a rockin partaaay over here in Himel central, Nancy has to tolerate my last minute rush to get Christmas orders out the door. A few lucky fellows ordered jackets at the end of November and while it was a challenge I am finishing them on Christmas Eve. Granted I am going to be running to my moms for dinner…I liked the way they looked so much that I thought I would do a quick post and share. So posting in haste …post haste seems to be the order of my afternoon. The buffalo bear jacket is the third one I have made in 2 months. Luckily this one is my size so I get to try the 48 on and see how the jacket actually looks and wears. The dark brown Heron has a new burgandy wool lining that I just recently got in and it looks wicked! I love making jackets and so far the feed back has been wonderfull. Mailing em next week!!!!

Posted in Design, Materials, prototype designs | Tagged blanket liner, buffalo, grizzly, heron, Horsehide | Leave a comment

Patrons Profiles: Bret Viberg and Collaboration

By David Himel on November 28, 2011

A big part of my Himel Brothers project was to create a brand that celebrates being Canadian. So many clothing brands are secretly made here in Canada and so many Canadians are secretly living prominent lives in the good ole U.S.A. hiding their Canadian identities and I didn’t want to be one of them.

The names and themes of HBL celebrate all things Canadian, from my neighbourhood, to the animals and people that live here in the Great White North. One of my earliest supporters and customers was one of the few globally celebrated Canadian brand owners Bret Viberg of Viberg boots. Bret and I have become great friends, not only that but he has bought a couple of Himel Brothers jackets!

Another incredible talent that Bret has is his tremendous ability to collaborate. As a small growing business is it good to share information but collaboration is a key strategy for brand building. (more…)

Posted in Customer Profiles, Materials, prototype designs | Tagged boots, canadian, himel, Horsehide, jacket, leather, tannery, Viberg | Leave a comment

Patrons Profiles: Mikel and His Buffalo Delivered

By David Himel on November 14, 2011

Mikel received his jacket and wrote me a nice note. I thought I would share it….not to brag simply to let my potential customers know that when they order online a bespoke jacket that they can feel confident they are getting the best jacket possible. Mikel is one of my best customers and I am honoured to have him! “Dave , Yesterday I was wearing your jacket and Everybody went crazy ! I went to the coolest places like SELF EDGE , STRONGHOLD or RRL , and I was asked about the jacket everywhere ! Everybody loves It ! M” Thank You to M. and all my customers! If you are curious about Mikel’s music this is his website… http://www.mikelerentxun.ws/

Posted in Customer Profiles | Tagged Mikel Erentxun | Leave a comment

Prototyping: Mixed Media …Materials and Design

By David Himel on November 10, 2011

I spent the better part of last week developing some new ideas for my jackets. I have a whack of designs that I am working out for some very exclusive retailers. A lot of my experience working and hanging out with other designers as well as my fascination with odd and old designs has led me down the road of mixed media. That is to say, the beauty of old world materials like wool, leather and oil skin cotton should be mixed and matched to create beautiful well balanced jackets. Usually I make smaller prototypes and have friends try them on. Winter is approaching and I wanted to make two jackets I could wear in the cold. I wanted them to be warm and in the case of the oilskin, moderately water proof.

This is Italian dark brown horsehide, with black oilskin and 1930s ball and chain chest zippers mixed with old stock lightning cuff zippers. The inside is thick heavy Melton wool body liner and cotton twill sleeves.

The second jacket is a perfect blend of European veg. tanned goat skin, in two tones, with plaid wool body and a beige flannel liner. Nice for mid weather, I used my deadstock 1930s urethane rimmed buttons and an nice simple tube cut. It really creates a balance of simple beauty and nice details. The A gusset stands out in leather against the dark rich greens of the plaid. I think these are really beautiful but I wont know until I wear them out in the world and see what my friends think!

Posted in Design, Materials | Tagged goatskin, Horsehide, leather, wool | 3 Comments

Vintage Meets New: Special Order Heron’s for Roger and VMC

By David Himel on November 8, 2011

I completed a special project a few weeks back. Here at Himel Brothers we strive for authenticity and ultimate creativity. I have a huge collection of vintage leather jackets and being small I am capable of small run special projects.

One of the special qualities of custom jackets made before 1930 was the raw custom nature of the techniques that went into their making. The reality is many of the tailors that sewed leather jackets pre 1930 had little experience in mass production. The pattern making skills were often intuitive, the sewing techniques were usually crude and rudimentary. Jacket makers would either be copying something that they had seen in a publication or just a simple interpretation of something from memory. There were few sewing standards and pattern making techniques pre WW 2. The primitive nature of these jackets is very hard to “recapture” both in technique and spirit because of the random beauty of the intuitive design.

I own thousands of jackets. I love leather and developed a crazed passion for collecting and dissecting the nature of these jackets. My Heron jacket is one of the results of my passion for patterns. My new friend Roger of VMC Originals asked me to do a very special project of super authentic Herons.

Back in the day leather jackets were mostly work wear. Leather shells were super tough but often even after being resewn the linings were not either tough enough or warm enough for the inclement conditions that workers of the 1920s might have to endure. Often the jackets would go back the tailor to have a old tired blanket sewn in to provide extra warmth. What better way to keep a good and expensive garment working for you then to repurpose a warm old wool blanket into a liner. I own many such jackets with custom blanket liners. Here is my version of blanket liners in my Heron’s available exclusively at VMC in Switzerland. Each jacket became a unique artwork combining the beauty of the past with the resurrection of new horsehide leather shells!

Posted in Design, Materials, Retail | Tagged 1920, 1930, beacon, blanket liners, check plaid, heron, himel brothers, Horsehide, pendelton, Switzerland, VMC Originals | Leave a comment

Inspirations: Journey to the East and Women’s Jackets

By David Himel on November 7, 2011

Nyla Jacket and Nancy

One of the great joys of my new found business is designing and developing new jackets. My goal is to make beautiful perfect jackets and make the people wearing them look good. My other goal is to reflect the historical perfection and the uncompromising quality that early jacket makers imbued in their designs. My beautiful wife had been bugging me to come up with a jacket that would reflect her sense of style and at the same time have a cut and design that had some historical panache. The Nyla is the prototype jacket that is in the works. Nance named it for one of the wives in Nanook of the North…the famed early Canadian documentary on the hard life of Inuit in the arctic of Canada. We took the prototype on a test run trip to the rugged north tundra of Newfoundland. The jacket spent a week travelling the historic desolation of Trepassey and remote fishing outports, exploring ancient light houses and British and Irish settlements. Nancy was happy. I gave my vintage wool and Carhartts a run as well.

Posted in Design, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The Patrons: Profiles

By David Himel on November 7, 2011

My new friend Eric is one of my many repeat customers. I am very very proud when I can make and sell a jacket. I am ecstatic when a customer comes back and orders more then one. Usually customers approach with trepidations via the web. Many are concerned that they cannot possibly get the correct fit or that my jackets will not live up to expectations. I intend to include some of the letters I get from my customers regarding my jackets. I am taken aback by the amount of love and appreciation I am getting through the email. I am going to not include the names of my competitors cited in the mails. I respect all the players that are trying to carve out a niche in building beautiful vintage quality jackets. I of course strive to be the best!

Here is an excerpt from another customer Darren. He bought an Avro and a Kensington:

Dear David,

We were away, and returned a couple of days ago. The jackets arrived shortly before we left, but I have not had a chance to email until now.
The jackets are completely amazing. You said they turned out well, and that was no exaggeration. As much as I liked the two-tone Avro, I like the black better. It is the coolest and best made garment I own, next to the Kensington. I wish you could see a direct comparison between your horsehide and the XXXX XXXXXs. Theirs is shiny, almost like a painted finish, while your’s glows – that is the best way I can describe it. The leather is neither matte and rubbery or glossy and crinkly. You certainly were correct with your choice of Italian/Japanese hides; they are beyond compare. XXXX XXXXX not junk, but when you have them side by side, the differences are obvious.
The Avro is almost too cool. You might remember when Steve Martin was a wild and crazy guy, but almost all dentists are mild and lazy guys. The jacket will elevate me to a stratospheric level of cool. Simply put, it is virtually too unbelievable to wear.
The Kensington is the epitome of understated cool. I will definitely have you make me a pair of pants from that dark brown leather at some point. It is in no way too shiny for me. The feel is almost subtly waxy, and I’m sure that, from a distance, someone would have difficulty telling that they were made from horsehide. I know the pants will be every bit as perfect as the jacket, and I can wait.
I’m not sure what you think of my choice for the Avro’s lining, but I think it is an excellent look, even if no true vintage jacket were similarly lined. I am also very happy with your choice of lining for the Kensington.
I am torn. You are a true master of the medium and you deserve to sell a million pieces. I just don’t want anyone else to have my jacket! A little selfish, I guess.
I cannot wait to do business with you in the future, and I will check your site for anything new. If you do start to make pants, please let me know, so I can be among the first customers.

Thanks!
Sincerely,
Darren

Posted in Customer Profiles, Uncategorized | Tagged avro, Eric, Horsehide, kensington | Leave a comment

New Jackets: Oil Skin Avro and Brimaco

By David Himel on November 7, 2011

Ive been working hard over here making jackets for my clients. Every month I am inspired to work on new experiments, purchase new tannages of leather and try new design ideas. Part of the prototyping process is about finding the right combinations of design features, materials and colour combinations. These two are recently made and sold. The Avro is a standard stock Himel Brothers jacket and this one is a luminescent oil tanned leather. The cut is half way between a sports jacket and a flight jacket and is typical of the period. The other jacket is a pigment finished horsehide with a hair on racing stripe. It is a replica of the famous Brimaco Raider cafe racer jacket. It was my first one and it worked out beautifully!