Kova and T
Kova and T's Philosophy
Style is usually intangible often inimitable. Picture the most stylish girl you know. You don’t admire her for her blatantly designer items or for her head-to-toe perfection, but rather for something you can’t quite place your finger on. She might have dirty hair but carry a Chanel purse, or rock a couture dress with beat-up Nikes. Every piece she wears is a part of her sensibility, and no item calls so much attention to itself as to take away from the whole picture. That symphony of contrasts is a marker of true style.
With this notion in mind, Kova & T was established as a rebuttal to the over-stylized jean brands prevalent in today's market. Foregoing the bells and whistles of excessive stitching, whiskering, and fading, these jeans serve as staple items, complementing any wardrobe and style of dress. There is no visible branding, only the faintest subtle embroidery on the side seams that blend naturally. The jeans are offered in the highest quality Japanese denim and retain their shape even after multiple washes. Kova & T is meant to do two things that other jean lines have long forgotten in their pursuit of grommets and appliqués: high-quality and flattering fit. Nothing detracts from a women’s look more than ill-fitting clothing, so the pair set out to design denim (and clothing) that they themselves would wear. Says co-founder Dasha Zhukova, “I never had any intention to be involved in fashion. Then I couldn't find a pair of jeans the way I wanted it, and then I couldn't find a plain white tee exactly the way I wanted it, and so on.”
Work custom denim
Women still reminisce about Rebecca Danenberg's epynomous label from the '90s, which ended in bankruptcy in 2000. She went on to Seven for all Mankind, and then we lost sight of her. Then she showed up at the Design Suites of Los Angeles Fashion Week in 2005, launching a label Three Girls Running. We lost her again. WWD reports that "another company owned the rights to the Three Girls name. That, combined with operational difficulties, forced the project to fold after two seasons."
But Danenberg is back again with a premium denim label Work Custom Shop, backed by a silent partner. If the name sounds familiar, it's because it has LA roots:
"The line's inspiration came from an existing store in Los Angeles' Echo Park founded by two artists and musicians who offered custom jeans. The store's name, naturally, was Work Custom Shop. Danenberg and her backers purchased the store and decided to create a brand around the concept. Although she is focusing on establishing the bottoms business, Danenberg will look to extend the custom concept to new product categories."
The designer describes the collection as "very slick, clean, modern and edgy"—an early philosophy at Seven which she feels the brand "went off in another direction"—and "uses Japanese and Italian denim" in styles, such as "skinny, straight and flared-leg styles, as well as fashion pieces like a sailor pant and a twisted leg seam."