I've been working toward becoming a better peasant this year and have a couple of really neat purchases to share: a Bergfabel long Tyrol jacket and Cherevichkiotvichki derbies. These are two of my favorite brands and there's very little information available about either of them, so hopefully this will be helpful to any other aspiring peasants out there.
First up is the Bergfabel long Tyrol jacket.
Bergfabel's jackets are inspired by the traditional clothing of designer Klaus Plank's hometown of North Tyrol in Italy. The jacket comes in two types: the short Tyrol, which is a typical waist length jacket, and the long Tyrol, which is thigh length. Usually the same jacket is reinterpreted each season in different fabrics and with some slight adjustments to the shape. This is an older version which has more of a morning coat or swallowtail shape than the more recent iterations of the Tyrol jacket, and the fabric is 100% linen. Due to the extended length of the jacket it has four buttons rather than two or three.
Branding is minimal, the only tag I can find is the label sewn onto the inside of the jacket. If there's a care tag I've been unable to locate it. I assume the laundering instructions are stringent.
The cut is quite slim, more so than I would have expected. This is a size 48, which is my typical size.
The fabric is fantastic. It's more or less permanently wrinkled, which is part of the charm of linen. This makes some of the pockets and hems sit a little funny, which gives it a handmade, imperfect feeling. This might bother some people, but I really enjoy this since it means every jacket is a little bit different. Pockets are pretty typical, there's a ticket pocket on the inside, a breast pocket, and two flap pockets at the waist. The entire body and sleeves of the jacket are lined in a lightweight cotton fabric.
The jacket also has operable surgeon's cuffs with two buttons. Normally I think that surgeon's cuffs are a bit self-indulgent, but I find them to be useful since the sleeves are pretty long. Turning up sleeves also helps with that artistically disheveled look. The buttons are okay. They're not bad enough to warrant criticism, but they're also a lot less exciting than most of the other details. I've seen much less expensive brands use nicer buttons, so they clearly weren't a focus, but they don't detract from the rest of jacket either.
My favorite detail is lapel, which looks like a peak lapel where the lapel is stitched to the collar with a series of x-shaped stitches. This is a typical detail for Bergfabel, and allow you to turn up the collar into a mock stand collar. This makes sense to me, since most of Bergfabel's shirts have band collars. I also really like the locker loop on the inside of the collar. While I recognize this probably isn't traditional, it is very useful.
I've been very impressed by this jacket. It looks pretty basic at first glance, but it's got a certain glamour that comes out in the little details. This is on par with some of the best brands I've seen, which would explain why IF Soho is one of the only American stockists.
Next are the Cherevichkiotvichki derbies.
Another niche brand, Cherevichkiotvichki is primarily a women's shoe brand, with a limited women's clothing line and men's shoe line. The designer is Victoria Andrejeva, who got her start working for Dover Street Market before launching Cherevichkiotvichki. I've been unable to find much more information on the brand, but I was immediately attracted to the shoes, which use antiquated designs and heavily treated leather reminiscent of Paul Harnden.
The only branding is the label and size on the sole. I'm typically a US 10.5 and these are an EU 43. Lengthwise they work, though there's a lot of volume in the shoes. I find they fit better with some decent socks, they tend to flop around a bit if I wear them barefoot. They're leather soled, but the previous owner had rubber soles added for protection.
I love the look of wholecut derbies, which was part of the appeal for me. The only visible seam on the outside of the shoe is at the heel, which helps to draw attention to the shape of the shoe rather than the construction. They're a little bit chunky and bulbous, but not ridiculously so. There is a tongue, but it's so small that it's almost invisible once the shoe is laced.
The texture of the leather is fantastic. I don't know what type of leather was used, but it has a gravy, wrinkled feel. Again, I believe this is due to the treatment of the leather, which (I'm assuming) caused it to shrink unevenly. The red stitching accepted the black dye unevenly, which further leads me to believe that these were dyed repeatedly in order to achieve the final color and texture.
Based on the look of the leather, I expected these to be extremely soft and flexible. They're not. The shoes are heavy and feel extremely sturdy. Both the toe of the shoe and the heel counter are very stiff. I busted up my feet the first few times I wore these because they were so stiff, though they've broken in since then. The leather sole insert is comfortably squishy and has the same pleasant wrinkly texture as the rest of the shoe, which is a shame since I doubt I'll wear these barefoot too often.
The laces look and feel like a soft twine. They're cut at the end, so they'll unravel over time. Just like the stitching on the shoes, it's clear that as much attention was paid to dying the laces as the leather itself. The laces are a deep blackish purple color, which provides a subtle contrast to the black leather and red-black stitching. The laces are also the extra long kind meant to be tied around the shoe before being knotted, similar to Guidis.
I'm also very impressed with the derbies. I was very relieved that I managed to find the pair I wanted in my size since distribution is super limited in men's sizes. Would highly recommend checking them out if you have the chance. Again,I wish there more American stockists beyond IF Soho. It seems like a lot of favorite peasant brands cater to women's clothing. I guess there isn't much of a market for men's clothing from these sort of brands?
