Featuring a label synonymous with Americana, Kiki by Kylee debuts a new collection reimagining the Levi’s® Trucker Jacket with the luxury of fur
Inspired by the tradition of American craftsmanship and traditional heritage brands, the debut collection from Kiki by Kylee features reconstructed Levi’s denim jackets remixed with premium fox fur, creating an updated perspective on sportswear for women.
The development of this collection has largely been based on my own personal investigation into my wardrobe: what I wear, what I hold on to, and why these pieces bear significance to me. Many of these pieces are truly one of a kind - either handmade by myself or others, vintage, or made from some combination of feathers, sequins, and fur. My own methods of acquiring clothing have been recently dictated by the slow fashion movement: recognizing the value in existing clothes and materials, deconstructing and reconstructing them or else engaging in the arduous process of designing, fitting and constructing garments from scratch for myself. This combination of processes ultimately helped me to redefine what I enjoy making - simply put, clothing I want to wear.
The first denim jacket came to me in the middle of winter - dreaming of spring, transitional weather, and a way to incorporate the luxury of fur into my everyday wardrobe. I discovered working with fur my thesis year of college, and had been longing for years to find a way of sustainably and economically introducing it into my own wardrobe. Of the fur coats I own, the majority are vintage and decidedly formal, not reflective of the streetwear I tend to gravitate toward in my everyday style. In looking to introduce fur into garment I decided the best practice would be to redesign an existing garment, upgrading it with premium fur. My natural choice came in the form of a Levi’s® jacket; a brand I believe in for having its origin so deeply entrenched in Americana, and a staple of my own wardrobe. I acquired silver fox pelts from Glacierwear, and began the redesign process in the middle of the polar vortex.
Considering the direction of fur, the placement of the pelt against the human body, I began to stitch each sleeve, completely enveloping what was before solely cotton denim. Over the course of two days, a jacket emerged. Inclement weather should have prevented me from wearing it; but instead I immediately booked a photoshoot with my photographer, Melody Bilbo. In the teens, we shot the jacket, both of us freezing and me unable to feel my feet in open toe platforms. But once it was made; it was all I wore. It was the first time I made something that I could wear to dinner, to work, to the doctor - enveloped in fur and surprisingly warm in a jacket now totally of my own.
Much of my education, and what I now profess focuses on fashion as a conceptual art. I have spent years researching and lecturing on the avant-garde, even going so far to incorporate it into my debut collection. But the experience of making conceptual pieces left me somewhat unfulfilled. I spent hundreds of hours creating garments that were documented repeatedly in photoshoots, but never owned by anyone. These sculptures still reside with me; taking up real estate in my closet. The void for me lay in knowing that these garments felt unsuccessful to me because I never saw them reflected on others on the street - out to dinner, to work, to the doctor - existing in the daily lives of others. For me, Kiki by Kylee is more than a relaunch of my label. In redefining my practice as a designer, I sought to prioritize the wearability of my fashion identifying practicality as a virtue, and emphasizing the importance of small-batch production and a handmade aesthetic. Kiki by Kylee is emblematic of slow fashion methods of making, creating one of a kind pieces with an emphasis on material. Under this new label I am able to completely immerse myself in the process of designing original textiles; redesigning existing labels, researching the culture of clothing, of making, and the essence of style and ultimately rebuild the construct of luxury as it applies to contemporary womenswear, shifting the paradigm toward the kind of clothing I want to see and wear in the world of today.
The process of making was paramount in creating the jacket; for me it was a rediscovery of the techniques in working with fur. The response it would generate was an unknown; but once I wore the garment into the public space, it generated an overwhelming reaction I had not anticipated. People inquired about where I got it - most memorably in the middle of Chanel. It was at that moment, inside an iconic fashion house, when my jacket became the biggest point of interest in the entire boutique that I realized a collection was not only feasible to create - but would actually be a viable product with an existing consumer base. For the next six months I researched fur types and suppliers, techniques, processes and defined my practice of creating a contemporary take on luxury sportswear. At SAIC, I was able to discover fur machines and how to use them, which resulted in developing a quilting technique later reflected in one of the jacket styles. The spring and summer spent developing the first collection of Kiki by Kylee proved to be as formative as a reeducation of sorts - for once I was learning how to do what I wanted to make, and implementing it into my practice as a both an art and a viable business.
Photographed at the edge of Lake Michigan on the last day of summer, a collection of six reimagined Levi’s jackets memorialized the beginning of Kiki by Kylee, a label dedicated to redefining the paradigm of luxury utilizing fur as a medium for contemporary womenswear. Focused on small-batch production, each collection is sustainably crafted by hand with love from my Chicago studio. I am forever grateful to my team that day for bringing those six months of work to life: to Melody Bilbo and Tia Mitchell in collaboration with photography, and models Lily Parker, Elsa Shao, and Emily Workman for modeling each jacket, and impeccably embodying the spirit of this new label, Kiki by Kylee.
Photography by Tia Mitchell in collaboration with Melody Bilbo