Levi’s® 501® turns 150 and Levi’s® Vintage Clothing celebrates with new collection

In 1873, Levi’s Strauss and Jacob Davis earned their patent for improved pockets, an innovation that perfected workers’ overalls and was a key game changer in the way people around the world dressed. Now, to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the 501®, the SS23 Levi’s® Vintage Clothing collection pays tribute to the innovation and collaboration behind the birth of the legendary Levi’s® 501®.

 

Levi’s® Vintage Clothing has dug through the brand‘s archives and has managed to recover old images from the period in order to create a selection of garments that reproduce the work clothes of the late 19th and early 20th century. This is exactly the kind of clothing that would have been worn by miners, ranchers and workers 150 years ago.

Among the key pieces that make up the Spring/Summer 2023 collection are the 1870s Waist Jumpsuit, a duck-loan garment modelled on one of the first pairs produced after the patent was granted. It features a relaxed fit, unmarked buttons and rivets and no pocket seams, a cinched waist and the first Levi’s® leather back patch at the centre of the waist.

Then there’s the Closed Front Jumper, an 1870s overbed made of duck canvas with rivets and stitching on the front pockets, as well as a Levi’s® leather patch on the inside.

The Levi’s® 1880s Chino is a reproduction of a period chino trouser in broken-in cotton, with button fastenings at the tapered waist. It also has a piped pocket at the back and is combined with a coat made in the same way.

Finally, to complete the collection, the Levi’s® Sunset Chambray Shirt has been designed, an iconic 1920s popover style piece structured in indigo dyed natural chambray fabric. Sourced from Japan, it features the Sunset label from the popular sub-brand of the era.

“The 501 is an icon because it has always been true to itself. It has never tried to capture fashion. It has never changed to adapt to trends. Instead, it waits for people to find it and bring it into their world. Almost every culture has adopted it over the years, whether the mods wore them small and cropped or the punks bleached and tapered them, or the hippies inserted panels in the hems to create flares. They’ve always been the denim that people can make their own. The ultimate blank canvas,” says Paul O’Neill, design director of Levi’s Collections at Levi Strauss & Co.