The Techy Evolution of Hard-Wearing Denim
Vancouver’s technical fashion experts have cooked up a new kind of denim. Between rugged workwear and utilitarian military-inspired outerwear, HAVEN’s summer 2025 collection includes its latest denim invention.
It looks relatively ordinary at first glance. Wide-leg pants, a boxy button-down shirt, and a baseball cap are all rendered in the distinctive dark indigo of raw denim. However, this isn’t the hard-wearing denim it's posing to be.
Built for summer, this matching HAVEN set is engineered to be breezy and lightweight.
Almost half of the fabric composition is French linen (37%, to be exact), injecting this denim with the breathability of a staple summer fabric. The other portion of the material is air-spun cotton, providing some of that signature denim toughness and a more rigid structure.
After having made a rain-proof two-piece suit earlier this spring, HAVEN turns its sights to a different kind of two-piece. The Canadian Tuxedo has been re-engineered by the Canadian outdoorwear label.
While its roots are stuck firmly in robust workwear, denim has been evolving for some more unexpected environments. Levi’s, the most famous maker of jeans, has been putting a strong focus on similarly lightweight linen-blend denim this summer.
Meanwhile, Canadian running label Ciele Athletics developed a Canadian tuxedo for running earlier this year (it is produced using a hemp cotton blend of 7.5oz denim). Satisfy Running, on the other hand, created a pair of running jorts with a trompe-l'œil print as well as jeans for rock climbing.
This trio of hi-tech, function-oriented brands (Ciele, Satisfy, and HAVEN ) are all pushing denim into the category of activewear. They're finding new ways to make the time-honored fabric lighter, more breathable, and more versatile.
Denim is no longer just a sturdy fabric for jeans.
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