The Japanese design guru teams up with Spanish leather house LoewE to make an unlikely combination of materials sing, Kitty Go reports.

How do denim and leather become stealth luxury?

When they come together in a collaborative collection by celebrated Japanese designer Junya Watanabe and Spanish leather house Loewe (pronounced "low-ay-ve"). This is not just a project thrown together by two international fashion greats who met over tea (even if they really did meet over tea), but a creative exchange that highlights culture, style and craftsmanship from both countries and their renowned designers.

To leather connoisseurs, Loewe's Spanish leather is one of the best. Its establishment in 1846 makes it one of the oldest purveyors of leather goods in the world. To denim aficionados, nothing comes close to the quality and special treatments of Japanese denim.

Together, Loewe and Junya Watanabe Comme des Garcons have married the best of Spanish and Japanese fashion for the first time in a collection sure to rock and impress everyone from a contemporary punk to a Park Avenue princess.

Loewe's former creative director Stuart Vevers first met with Junya Watanabe in Tokyo last November. Vevers, like many industry insiders, always admired Watanabe's work and was keen to create a collection with him. Watanabe is a protege of Comme des Garcons founder Rei Kawakubo and his name on the label makes him her appointed successor.

"We had a nice chat over a cup of tea. From there, the collaboration began in an informal way," recalls Vevers. "I have always been a fan of Junya's work, of the way he twists classics, and I wanted to see his take on Loewe."

The collaboration is also timely as 2013 is the anniversary of two historical milestones in the relationship between Spain and Japan. Four hundred years ago, the two countries first established a formal dialogue when a diplomatic entourage set out from Tokyo to Madrid to create a trade agreement with the Spanish royal family. On a fashionable note, it has been 40 years since Loewe first became available in Japan.

"We had been talking about special projects during this year of Japan," says Vevers. "And everything came together."

The two designers set about building the collection, sending ideas back and forth by e-mail. Although a seasoned designer and certainly not a stranger to collaborations (he has worked with Converse, Levi's and New Balance), the project still worried Watanabe.

"I have participated in collaborations before," says Watanabe, "but this is the first time I have collaborated with a specific designer at a brand. So I was nervous at the beginning. But all along, Loewe's approach has been, 'Request whatever you want and we will listen.' They have been really good to me. When I rather selfishly presented what I wanted to do, Stuart just said, 'Okay, let's do it.'"

Watanabe traveled to Madrid in January this year to view prototypes that included the brand's iconic Amazona bag in a patchwork interpretation and one with diagonal cross-stitching.

"I was amazed by the way in which Junya's interpretation of Loewe's iconic elements was completely different," says Vevers. " I'm confident that we have created a collection which will shake up the general perception of Loewe."

The irreverence and beauty of this collection is that it is casual and utilitarian but executed to the highest luxury standards usually reserved for more precious and formal items. These standards are evidenced by the quality, intricacy of workmanship and the use of top-quality materials.

And yet, the irreverence did not end with the treatment of the clothes. It started at a show in Tokyo last May where these expensive clothes were sur-really presented to the tune of Japanese punk rock with a background made of photographs of the Alhambra.

The limited-edition collection consists of jackets, bags, jeans and skirts that embody the "urban punk" aesthetic which Watanabe is known for. Loewe's super-soft nappa and Japanese denim pieces feature a patchwork of tartan, polka dots, denim and leather of various textures. Bags are priced from HK$22,000 ($2,837) to 27,000 ($3,481), zippered pouches HK$2,700 to 5,300 and clothing starts at HK$10,000 for a denim and leather patchwork skirt to HK$35,000 for a nappa leather jacket.

Loewe has since manufactured several pieces for Junya Watanabe main collection for autumn/winter 2013. Which means that Watanabe's search for a leather manufacturer may be over.

"For me, when it comes to selecting a collaborative partner, the deciding factor is whether their factory has the best know-how. This is what makes Loewe such an attractive partner The timing is perfect, as I had been trying to find the best leather factory to work with," says Watanabe.

The Loewe and Junya Watanabe Comme des Garcons capsule collection will be available worldwide at select Loewe boutiques in September.

Contact the writer at sundayed@chinadaily.com.cn.

Top: Three bags from the Loewe and Junya Watanabe Comme des Garcons capsule collection. Above: Models display some of the jackets, bags, jeans and skirts designed by Junya Watanabe for Spanish leather house Loewe. Photos Provided to China Daily

(China Daily USA 09/09/2013 page8)