Mister Freedom® TORPEDO Jacket, black tea-core cowhide leather, FW2024 mfsc SUBMARINER. Made in USA.
Mister Freedom® STANLEY T-Shirt, all-cotton tubular slub knit. We introduced the Mister Freedom® STANLEY T-Shirt in 2015, initially released in 7 classic original colors, white, black, red, royal blue, jungle green, and gold. An aqua blue version followed in 2020. For our SS2025 Hi-Desert escapade (to be released in the coming Spring!), we thought of adding a new color palette to the STANLEY family. We dug in the stash of vintage T-Shirts of the MF® archives, selected a “pastel” grouping of four color references complementing each other perfectly. The hardest part was yet to come: naming the new candidates. Desert Sand, Sky Blue, Coral Pink, and Seafoam Green it would be. On a production note, not everyone may realize that actually getting our STANLEYs made is no simple task. For a “simple” finished T-Shirt to eventually land at Mister Freedom® HQ, the reality involves a complicated chain of events, many challenging manufacturing levels, and the hard work and expertise of many. If our easy-to-navigate webstore makes it a click away for the end customer, the journey to get each shirt produced — and in the USA for good measure — is a wild ride. From growing the cotton to harvesting the crop domestically at farm level — granted the weather and boll weevils cooperated that year —, to spinning the fiber into yarns at the mill, to producing the tubular knit fabric in a complex process requiring industrial circular knitting machines (different size = different machine) and skilled operators, to garment-dyeing (locally in LA) hoping the reactive dye — a dyestuff popularized in the 1950s — will produce a consistent color (on inconsistent yarns sourced from various cotton farms), to all kinds of unforeseen challenges in between that necessitate a string of pre-production prototypes to limit snafus, it is always with great excitement and relief that our team welcomes a restock of any of our knit shirts (STANLEYs, SKIVVIEs, HENLEYs, CREW CHIEFs etc) at HQ! Considering all the above variables and Murphy’s Law, it is no surprise that some production batches will vary slightly through the years, be it in the cotton staple length, slub of the jersey knit, dye colorfastness, depth of color, fabric feel, mechanical stretch, perception of fit, etc… On that note, as we processed the latest batch of SS2025 STANLEYs back for the dye house for QC, we noticed a few irregularities in dye distribution on some pieces. For whatever obscure reason, a few unicorns feature slightly contrasting panels (lighter body with darker sleeves — B-Stock Type 2 — , or darker body with lighter neck band — B-Stock Type 3 —) Also noticeable on the side on those few T-Shirts is a darker dye streak (slanted line referred-to as B-Stock Type 1), that shows how much the raw cotton tubular knit fabric twists during the wash/dry process. Similar to the “twisted leg” of premium denim jeans, when the fabric torques after the initial rinse, and the selvedge outseam ends up on the shin bone. I personally think those “Two-Toners” STANLEYS look killer, carrying the vibe of vintage “Ringer” tees with heather jersey knit bodies, and regret that not all of this batch was like that! Unfortunately, no size Small unicorn for me, as the fluke is mostly limited to size Large, and to the Sky Blue color. Go figure. For the lucky few, those “irregulars” will be available as B-Stock, a grouping combination of Type 1, Type 2, and Type 3 inconsistencies.
Side remark on this new palette, these are ‘straight up’ colors, in the sense that we do not over-process with a ‘vintage wash’ to artificially age our T-Shirts. Contrary to the dictate of the garment distressing industry — who would love to convince consumers that one look one’s best in factory-ripped jeans and shirts —, we strongly believe at Mister Freedom® in “letting the wearers put in the years”, and that a new garment should only be offered with 100% of its longevity potential, and not pre-distressed, just to fall apart after a couple of months of wear. The MF® STANLEY T-Shirt is designed in California by Mister Freedom® and manufactured in the USA. SPECS: Available from www.misterfreedom.com, our Los Angeles brick & mortar store, and fine retailers around the World. Christophe Loiron
Mister Freedom® SEAWOLF Trousers, 57/43 Cotton/Wool Indigo Twill. The SEAWOLF Trousers are a Mister Freedom® spin on fine piece of US Navy uniform gear, a pair of vintage 1950s-60s Undress Blues — Contract No. DA-30-352-TAP-2340 in US military Quartermaster nomenclature —, yet another classic design courtesy of Uncle Sam’s “Clothing Supply Office”. These are not the typical WW2 broadfall enlisted man issued winter trousers, but a later zipper-front model, issued I believe to Chief Petty Officers. They still feature the traditional naval wrap leg (no outseam) and wide bottoms, but the zip-fly/flat front/slash front pocket combo gives the trousers more of a dressy civvy garment vibe. As always, we took liberty with the original military design and interpreted proportions/fit/materials/trims to our own liking. Originals from the “Naval Clothing Depot” were issued in a classic USN dense 100% wool material. Our fabric of choice is a very fancy blend of 57% cotton and 43% wool, selvedge twill, featuring all-cotton indigo-dyed warp yarns and charcoal grey wool weft yarns. Yes, the face of the fabric is 100% cotton, the reverse is 100% wool, milled in Japan on narrow shuttle loom slow-producing machines. The selvedge ID is concealed in the two rear welt pockets facing construction. For pocketing/lining, we opted for the 10 Oz. all-cotton indigo pincheck fabric that ties-in our SUBMARINER line-up. The “naval” wrap leg of our SEAWOLF is a different cut from that of traditional USN denim dungarees (see our Swabbies write-up for more on the whooping 11.5’’ leg opening), with the leg flare starting at the hips — rather than the dramatic inseam curve-out at the knee of the denim models — giving our trousers more of an overall wide profile while keeping a fitted top block. The wider hip cut makes the SEAWOLF a good candidate for the stylish lady into period silhouettes and classic styles, whose ethics prevent shopping on SHEIN or the likes. We kept the garment construction utilitarian, true to the originals, with overlocking becoming ubiquitous in 1960s garment construction. The two-piece waistband is split in the rear, with the plain (aka superimposed) seam of the seat allowing for easy alteration should one desire to take-in the waist. The “modernized” zip-front is definitely a functional improvement over its 13-button broadfall closure system, for obvious reasons. And, in our modern world, hardly anyone will need to wrap that obsolete front flap around a ship’s mast to mend sails. The top waist button (A) and its concealed lower companion (B) are of the classic USN fouled anchor black plastic type. We recommend buttoning B first, then A. Style-wise, the SEAWOLF Trousers can be paired with all kinds of period naval-inspired gear (Skivvy Ts, Chambray-type work shirts, nautical-vibe sweaters, peacoats, etc…) They can also look very sharp for one exploring a moderate 1920s Oxford Bags vibe, or an elegant 1930s trousers cut. The MF® SEAWOLF Trousers are designed in California, USA, by Mister Freedom®, and manufactured in Japan in collaboration with Sugar Cane Co. (SPECS soon)
 Mister Freedom® “Bubblehead” CPO Shirt with VEB Leather card case ©2024
 “Please don’t do that…” The Joe Greene ©2024 Mister Freedom® BUBBLEHEAD CPO Shirt, 10.5 Oz. Selvedge Left-Hand-Twill “Okinawa” Fiber Denim. The “blue shirt” is back!
It made no doubt that our 2024 Submariner venture called for a new twist on the pattern! The fabric is an old favorite: 10.5 Oz. Okinawa fiber denim, left-hand twill, fancy blend of 70% cotton x 30% Okinawan recycled sugarcane fibers, solid white selvedge ID, milled in Japan. It is stiff, slubby, neppy, and notorious for developing stunning patina over time, with normal wear/wash routine. The endearing term “Bubblehead” is military slang for a US Navy Submariner. The Mister Freedom® “BUBBLEHEAD” CPO Shirt is designed in California, USA, and produced in collaboration with Sugar Cane Co in Japan. SPECS: SIZING/FIT:
Note: The resulting stiffness of the shirt after it has fully dried is due to the starch present in the denim yarns. The rigidity will subside with wear. CARE: Available from www.misterfreedom.com, our Los Angeles brick & mortar store, and fine retailers around the World. Christophe Loiron
Mister Freedom® FAIRWATER Duffle Coat, Charcoal 30 Oz. Double-Cloth HBT Wool. “Formality did not flourish aboard submarines where performance counted more than appearance.” The all-original pattern of the Mister Freedom® FAIRWATER Duffle Coat is another might-have-been hybrid, inspired by a combo of traditional vintage British duffle coats, 1940s Royal Navy-issued fearnaught duffle coats, and rare 1941 USN Submariner HBT wool jackets. For this “Experimental Garment” our “Clothing & Textile Research Unit” took a vintage 1950s “Made in England” civvy duffle coat as a starting base, and blended it with a 1943 British Royal Navy duffle coat with its shorter hip length and rounded shawl collar pattern. The single layer collar can be turned up and secured by the large chinstrap — of civvy heritage — that can be left dangling or buttoned in the back of the collar. The two patched hip pockets are complemented with two concealed chest pockets. The rather simple construction and streamlined design are typical of vintage 1940s military duffle coats. We just cleaned up the seaming a bit, as period pieces often display some manufacturing “funkiness”, depending on the contractor’s QC. The specific toggle-and-rope fastening system was lifted from the 1943 British duffle, with its characteristic one-sided twisted rope style.
Semantically, our FAIRWATER Coat is not a “duffle” coat per se, as the term allegedly refers to the actual coarse wool fabric initially milled in the city of Duffel, Belgium. It is more of the “toggle type”, and definitely in a league of its own considering our jambalaya-style design process. Style-wise, the Mister Freedom® FAIRWATER is pretty versatile, depending on what one chooses to pair it with. It can carry its rugged military WW2 nautical heritage when styled with utilitarian pieces, add an elegant Old World touch to a rugged denim outfit, go 1960s British swinging Mod, vintage American Ivy, laid-back Beatnik style, preppy bon-chic-bon-genre etc…
The duffle coat design also just works as a functional, easy-to-throw-on winter coat that does the job. That classic “toggle coat” style is definitely not going out of fashion anytime soon, unlike fast-fashion disposables predestined for the landfills of the Atacama desert. But I digress. Fabric-wise, we opted for a rare little-known vintage classic material, a dark charcoal-colored double-layer (double cloth) HBT wool, 30 Oz., a period-correct reproduction of the shell fabric of the short-lived 1941 USN Submariner HBT wool jacket. Our friends at Buzz Rickson’s had made a replica of that unicorn a few years ago, and we were lucky to secure left-over yardage for our FW2024 coat project. Just like the 1940s originals, the material’s wide-weave herringbone pattern — hardly noticeable at first — will gradually appear with extensive wear. The Mister Freedom® FAIRWATER Duffle Coat is designed in California, USA, and produced in collaboration with Sugar Cane Co in Japan. SPECS: Available from www.misterfreedom.com, our Los Angeles brick & mortar store, and fine retailers around the World. Christophe Loiron |
