Stevenson Overall Co. was originally created in the 1920s in Indiana, but it unfortunately didn’t survive the Great Depression. Fast forward seventy years later to friends Zip Stevenson and Atsu Tagaya randomly finding an ancient receipt with Stevenson Overall Co. printed on it, both deciding then to resurrect the brand, which they did in 2005. Zip and Atsu searched and searched for any surviving examples of the original Stevenson Overall Co. work wear, but because most brands at that time used standard buttons with no markings and paper labels that disappeared when washed, this was almost an impossible task. After years of searching they suddenly stumbled upon one single item from those early days that miraculously did have Stevenson buttons. They bought it immediately and now had an original piece to work from.
Stevenson and Tagaya create quality garments that are a mix of old and new, taking vintage ideas and infusing them with a modern sensibility. They use a method called flat-felled stitching which was popular in the first decades of the 20th century, keeping true to the heritage of the brand. This method of single stitching is time-consuming and difficult to do right, but they insist on keeping this old method alive in order to keep their creations as close to vintage as possible. Stevenson Overall Co. jeans are recognizable by their ‘smile’ back pockets, the tops of which come down in a gentle arc resembling a smile. Zip says that this is a nod to the fact that jeans worn and used frequently tend to develop this characteristic over time anyway, while it was a also a way to do something a bit different from the other denim brands and still keep it traditional and subtle.