Vivienne Westwood Brings Stylish Chaos to Levi's 501
From designer vodka to ASICS kicks, Vivienne Westwood's collaborative drops bring together playtime and high fashion like no one else and her latest Levi link-up follows through.
The Vivienne Westwood RED LABEL x Levi's 501 collab serves as the next chapter in Levi's Japan's "Denim de Mirai ~ DENIM PROJECT ~" series, which hones in on the contemporary taste for upcycling by rebirthing old Levi's pieces into new silhouettes.
RED LABEL, launched in 1993, is a womenswear sub-label that's mostly fallen out of use except in Japan, where Westwood's proto-punk apparel is as in-demand as ever.
Dame Viv follows Naomi Osaka and 3.1 Phillip Lim in breathing new life into Levi's denim, reimagining its pre-loved apparel through Westwood's punkish gaze.
What results is a five-piece collection consisting of a bucket hat, tote bag, shirt, those inimitable 501 jeans, and a dainty denim corset, a Westwood signature done up in Levi's indigo-dyed cotton.
Chaos comes by way of the collection's hodgepodge of graphic prints haphazardly layered atop each patchworked piece, including red hearts and phrases like "UNISEX," "TEACH ON THE GO," "BE NICE TO YOURSELF."
The beauty of these whimsical designs is that they work as standalone statement pieces or cohere as a complementary set when worn together — you decide.
Unfortunately for us stateside peeps, getting your hands on this collection will be tricky — unless you're willing to cop a plane ticket to Japan or use a proxy service.
The Vivienne Westwood RED LABEL x Levi's 501 collab collection arrives on March 23 at Isetan Shinjuku's dedicated RED LABEL shop.
Hopefully, a wider release happens sooner than later. I pray I get to live out my summer, carefree in a Westwood denim corset.
