JJJJound And Eddie Bauer Team Up For The Platonic Winter Layer
If Virgil Abloh’s design approach follows what he calls the 3% Rule—instead of changing something wholesale, tweak something existing just a touch—you could say that Justin Saunders follows the 1% rule. And, occasionally, the please-don’t-touch-anything-at-all rule. Saunders is the brain behind moodboard-turned-design agency JJJJound, and in recent years his barely-nudged takes on classic objects have become reliable hits. Gray New Balances, white-and-beige Reeboks, and green Vans look less like special-edition sneakers than versions that should have been released years ago, and a collaboration with the legendary minimalists at A.P.C. prompted founder Jean Touitou to describe Saunders as “driven by a search for perfection that is almost impossible to attain.” The guy is deeply discriminating when it comes to objects, and now he’s got a new one: Eddie Bauer’s Canadian Vest. The Seattle “expedition outfitter” made the down-filled piece for more than 40 years before discontinuing it, and now it’s coming back to life in three colors—and, notably, in a jacket version with sleeves. See more at GQ.