Long standing patrons of Pickings and Parry will already be familiar with the top notch footwear of California-based Yuketen. As well as recently receiving a batch of their luxe, Birkenstock-inspired sandals, we’re also proud to announce the arrival of a new brand to the roster; Monitaly. Yuki Matsuda is the man behind Meg Company, the parent company behind Yuketen, Monitaly, Epperson Mountaineering and Chamula. The eclecticism of their ranges is astounding, drawing inspiration from a full century of American design and dragging it kicking and screaming into the present.
"I'm determined to make clothing that I would love to wear. My background is in vintage so I've seen so many great vintage clothing pieces, but vintage fit is usually two-dimensional or disproportionate, and it's not comfortable to wear in any practical manner. But I know how to fix these discrepancies, so I decided to overcome my frustration with ill-fitting clothing by making my own. My goals for Monitaly are great fit with impeccable attention to detail. Made in U.S.A. is very important to me too."
All Meg Company products are made in the USA and Mexico.
Monitaly (if you’re wondering; Monica (Yuki’s daughter + Military + Italy) is certainly not a purists heritage brand. Largely influenced by the brand’s Hermosa Beach headquarters, Monitaly see’s classic Americana silhouettes filtered through Yuki Matsuda’s wild imagination.
Their artisanal approach sees formal and casual garments re-contextualised, details exaggerated and fabrics re-appropriated. The end results are well-considered, functional modern menswear.
Despite a playful approach to design, quality and manufacture are treated with the highest respect at Meg Company;
"I like things made slowly with care and attention to detail. That's why I collect a lot of vintage shoes and clothing. As you know, back in the old days people cared and appreciated how to make things by hand and were therefore proud of the products they created with their own hands. I have the same feeling. I care about what we make and I'm always thinking of ways to improve our products, and in many respects, I think what we are doing is like fine art. But at the end of the day, the most important thing to consider is how much I care for each product we make."
To kick off we’ve selected a mid-40’s inspired Zoot Pant in mil-spec Vancloth, a heavy linen Vactation shirt and Vancloth Smock.
Vancloth is a fairly incredible, high density cotton fabric specially developed by Monitaly to be both lightweight and tough as nails. It also happens to be water resistant. Nifty, huh? As a testament to it's powers I recently took a pretty impressive fall off my bike and grazed a fair chunk of my left side. My Vancloth pullover? Unscathed. Painful field testing of quality fabrics is just one of the many services we offer here at Pickings and Parry.
Shop the collection in-store and online. The weather outside is soon to turn dull and grey, but that certainly doesn't mean you have to as well.
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