Mister Freedom® “The Sportsman”, Fall 2014 preview

 

 

 

 

Mister Freedom 2014

Hayadoin, 1931

Mister Freedom 2014

Gift from Mike “Jeans of the Old West” Harris, date unknown.

Mister Freedom 2014

Bingo, anyone? 1929

Mister Freedom Sportsman Fall 2014

Mister Freedom Sportsman Fall 2014

Hello.
So we will briefly interrupt our summer of field trips with donkeys and beach blanket bingo events to introduce a few additions to the Mister Freedom® “The Sportsman” Fall 2014 catalog.
All made in USA, available on www.misterfreedom.com sometime in Sept/Oct 2014.
The sales pitch this season:
“When you come across something you don’t need, occasionally remind yourself not to purchase it.”

Happy Summer! 😉

cl

Mister Freedom® “SEA HUNT” Collection, Fall 2014 preview

Mister Freedom Sea Hunt Fall 2014

Mister Freedom Sea Hunt Fall 2014

Mister Freedom Sea Hunt Fall 2014

 

Mister Freedom Sea Hunt Fall 2014

Mister Freedom Sea Hunt Fall 2014

Mister Freedom Sea Hunt Fall 2014

 

The “SEA HUNT” Collection
mfsc Fall 2014

To the intrepid few who have survived Season One of our “Sea Hunt” venture, we recommend a hard-training summer.
Because, my friends, things are about to get silly agitated comes Fall, à la Bebel!

Le Guignolo Bebel Le cerveau 1969 Le Casse 1971 Peur sur la Ville 1975 L'Animal 1977

As a Spring 2014 boot camp survivor, it is clear you will have no issue with the ‘jump out of airborne helo/land on speeding zodiac’ routine of the up-coming Fall season. The several jungle incursions and a secret mission in the unforgiving Atacama Desert should also be a breeze. And for the hard-to-thrill, we will also offer ice diving with Greenland shark feeding.

Due to demanding ops, we have developed new exclusive fabrics for Fall 2014, along with some rather intricate original patterns. All that to be fully disclosed in details sometime around September 2014, if all our stunts go as planned.

The sea bag of the Int’l Man of Action for the next “Sea Hunt” chapter will include:

* Two “Helo” Jackets, nylon.
* One “Okinawa CPO” shirt, SC301 denim.
* One pair of “Pantalon de Pont“, indigo jungle cloth.
* One ERDL “Jungle Leaf” Patrol Shirt, cotton ripstop.
* Three “Map” Shirts, indigo denim twill/M1942 camo/Marine Nationale denim.
* One pair of “Mechanic” Trousers, indigo denim twill.
* Two Watch Caps, wool knit.
* One “Blouson de Quart“, khaki jungle cloth.
* One pair of “Topsiders”, Marine Nationale denim.
* One zboub.
You will hear the signal.
Your gear will be lined up on your cot by 0500.
Your mission orders will be forwarded to the usual rally point.
Thank you and good luck.

Mister Freedom® HQ,
Los Angeles, CA.

Props courtesy of HMCS Saskatoon, USCG, Windward Aviation Inc and Hasbro Inc.

 

For the worn look, WEAR the clothes

Sportsman Indigo Mister Freedom 2013

Sportsman Indigo Mister Freedom 2013

Sportsman Indigo Mister Freedom 2013

Sportsman Indigo Mister Freedom 2013

Sportsman Shirts lineup 2014 Mister Freedom

 

 

We now have strong reasons to believe that one of the suspects of the Mister Freedom® 2013 Sportsman shirt line-up was not colorfast.
Beware that should you chose to wear this garment outside after sunrise, the Indigo popeline culprit will start changing color. Literally within an hour.
Exposure to the sun, normal wear and the necessary home laundries will not help its case.
Messieurs, you have been war-ned.

Mister Freedom®. Yet another case clo-sed: For the ‘worn look’, wear the clothes.

Clouseau

Mister Freedom® Spot Camo Chute “Jump” Scarf

Mister Freedom Jump Scarf 2014

Mister Freedom Jump Scarf 2014

Chute-Scarf-(2)

Mister Freedom Jump Scarf 2014

 

WW2-DZ-camo-chute

Ruediger Richter 1966 AP photo Henri Huet

US Army Ruediger Richter, with “1er Régiment Etranger de Parachutistes” tattoo, Vietnam 1966. Photo AP Henri Huet.

 

 

Mister Freedom® “CAMO CHUTE SCARF”
June 2014 Edition

 

On a chilly day of December 1783, French physicist Louis-Sébastien Lenormand figures it would be good idea to challenge gravity by  jumping from the 150 feet-tall Babote Tower in Montpellier. Ever the prudent, he is holding what is basically a large umbrella. Betting galore in the assistance. Sacré bleu
He renames it PARA (against, in Greek) CHUTE (fall, in French), on his way home.

"I got this, guys"

“I got this, guys”

On August 16th 1940, Bill Ryder feels a firm slap on his thigh.
He then instinctively proceeds to jump out of a Douglas C-33, flying 1500 feet above Georgia.
1LT William Thomas “Bill” Ryder had just made the first paratroop jump in the history of the US Military.
On the same sortie, Pvt. William N. “Red” King moves into position, slap… GO! GO! GO!
Red King had become the first American enlisted man to jump out of a flying airplane.
The 48 volunteers of that “U.S. Army Parachute Test Platoon” paved the road for the future paratroopers of the five Airborne Divisions of the US Army.
WW2 was just around the corner, and a mustachioed psychopath had great plans for them.

William-Thomas-Ryder Parachute_Troops

Exiting a flying machine rigged to 65 lbs bundle of white silk fabric, in the dark, over unknown swampy territories, weighted down with some 100 lbs of gear, with angry people shooting at you, will appear to most like a questionable career move. “You fly to work” they said…
But men stepped up to the plate when it counted, and Operation Neptune scattered just enough of these jumpwing-pinned daredevils on the Normandy countryside to get the Kommandantur totally confused on where exactly the invasion was happening. Confused enough to miscalculate the necessary reinforcements needed to block the beachheads.
If it weren’t for the courage of those who bet the pot on that morning of June 6, 1944, and the loooong days ahead, the French would probably be speaking German today, as the saying goes.

D-Day Map Normandy458

It is usually perceived that paratroopers are quite proud of their legacy, training and accomplishments. Some consider themselves above the ‘legs‘ (non-paratroop infantry). They like to stand out in crowds, and won’t mind ruffling brass feathers from time to time. The men of the Filthy Thirteen took this next-level on D-1…

C. Ware & C. Plaudo, England June 1944 Filthy 13, June 5, 1944 Jake McNiece 101 Airborne McNiece Filthy Thirteen

Once airborne, a paratrooper’s best friend is the piece of fabric above his head, hopefully carefully inspected, repaired and folded by the expert riggers. For US paratroopers, it was common practice during WW2 to cut off a piece of the T-5 parachute with your trench knife after your first combat jump. The shredded piece of spot camo fabric would then be used as an ascot to show others you had seen action. This also rendered the canopy un-usable by the enemy, prevented neck rashes from the M37 wool shirts…
As the war progressed, scattered DZ would provide ample camouflage parachute material for troops to use as helmet covers as well.
The fancy neckwear practice also spread to Special Forces units, its popularity extending to the Vietnam conflict.

Maj Roger Donlon 67

Major Roger Donlon, 1967

Now, back on the safe and peaceful shores of sunny California.

The original US Army canopy we used to cut out our “CAMO CHUTE SCARF” from, came out of the dusty storage room of an old Army-Navy store…
I originally thought the fabric was silk but that canopy actually proved to be nylon (a burn-test produced a celery-like smell).
It is of the smooth nylon type (1rst pattern), not the 2nd pattern rip-stop camouflage parachute.
Because incomplete when found (missing sections, chopped suspension lines) there were no markings left to ID it precisely. Later on, when deciding on the stamp for the MF® scarf, I would arbitrarily settle on 1954, as all this happened back in early May 2014, a date marking the 60 years of the fall of Dien Bien Phu.
Not an expert on chutes but it seems nylon replaced silk in parachute production sometime between 1941 and 1943. Camouflage chutes in the U.S. Army were discontinued in the late 1950’s.

Although the canopy is 100% authentic, by respect for the story behind legit paratroopers jump scarves we decided not to make a replica of an original with shredded edges.
Instead we have adapted it a bit, overlocked the edges, added a (faint) blue ink stamp reminiscent of the original chute marking, and the “Sportsman” Made in USA label. They are still rough though, and are no Hermès square.
Each  scarf is unique in shape and size, as we respected the original panel shape. We also left the original splicing of sections (the white stitching flat felled seams).
Again, none of the scarves are perfect rectangles and size/ shape vary.
To really geek-out, the original nylon fabric is selvedge, with green ID, as revealed when we opened one of the seams of a torn panel.

Mister Freedom 2014 Reliance Chute 1943 Reliance-Manufacturing-Co-1942

And that, my friends, is the short story behind the MF® CAMO CHUTE SCARF!

This vintage scarf was re-purposed in California by Mister Freedom®. Limited edition.

SPECS:

FABRIC:
Original vintage U.S. Army T-5 type parachute canopy, 100% smooth nylon, silky touch. Beige/olive/green Spot camouflage.

DETAILS:
* Inspired by a US Airborne WW2 paratrooper tradition.
*  Overlocked edges
* Soft hand, silk-like.
* Scarf may include original flat-felled seam panel splicing
* Original MF® ink stamp.
* Sportsman label
* Re-purposed in the USA
* Limited edition.

WASHING:
The scarves have been laundered.
Hand wash with mild detergent. Line dry.

Available washed, one size
Retail $129.95

Call the store at 323-653-2014 or email sales@misterfreedom.com with questions.
Soon available on www.misterfreedom.com
Thank you for your support.

Credits:
* Photo of
Captain Roger Donlon courtesy of Peter McQueen ©Stars and Stripes
* Photo of Jake McNiece courtesy of
Johan Romin.
* Some historical references collected from comments and photos of members of www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/ , kind enough to make their knowledge public.

This post is dedicated to “Tonton Jean-Claude“, my Uncle, photographed here sometime in 1957  in the Djebel Grouz (border of Algeria and Morocco),  during his 2LT days in the 14e RCP (Régiment de Chasseurs Parachutistes), 1ère Section.

Sous-Lieutenant Jean-Claude L'Huillier, circa 1957

Sous-Lieutenant Jean-Claude L’Huillier, circa 1957

Boro Ties Shorties, scarves made from antique Japanese indigo textiles

Boro Ties Mister Freedom 2014

Boro Ties Mister Freedom 2014

 

Boro Ties Mister Freedom 2014

 

Boro Ties Mister Freedom 2014

Mister Freedom® BORO TIES “Shorties”

We put together another fresh batch of ‘shorties‘ this week, made from antique textiles loomed in Japan a long time ago.
These are the shorter version of our Indigo Boro Ties, originally introduced in 2011. Still sans leather ring.
The fabrics of this batch were hunted down during a recent trip to Japan.
These narrow shuttle loom fabrics are of assorted patterns, textures and colors, all one side selvedge and the other side frayed. They range from the turn of the century to the 1950′s.
A mixture of home spun, cotton, hemp, natural indigo, katazome prints, kasuri weave, plaids, solids… these vintage textiles scarves are all one of a kind.
We classify them in related groups but they all vary from one another, with specific fade/condition/size/repairs/holes/yellowing due to age.
Please understand this is ‘rough and rugged’ neckwear. The condition of some of these fabrics are beyond the wabi-sabi of a little imperfection.
As the fabric will continue to age with wear, your own hand-made repairs will add character.

To be clear, those into fancy Italian fashion silk ties might wonder why anyone would want to wear a rag around the neck…
That’s when we call in Mr. Rizzo. We just hired Frank, promoted him head of Sales, right on the spot.
If you see Frank Rizzo at a street corner near you, go say hi.

Frank Rizzo

“That’s right there, sizzlechest, whatever you need sold, I’ll sell it”

Wrapped once around the neck with a simple single knot, they’ll work with different outfits, dressed up or down. These scarves are, in my opinion, less of a statement than the traditional Bandana, somewhat easier to pull off for some.
Due to the age of the vintage textiles we selected, some more than a 100 years old, the fragility of the yarn at times calls for hand washing and line drying when laundry is needed.

Retail: $89.95

Call the store at 323-653-2014 or email sales@misterfreedom.com with questions.
Available from www.misterfreedom.com.
Thank you for your support.