Japanese brand makes entrancing grand entrance

Entering the international marketplace is a scary thing: will your product transcend economic and cultural barriers to become indispensable in other countries, or will it burst into a downpour of tears after yet again receiving nul points? Boldly leaving their native land: Spellbound. Making an inaugural international push with their Spring/Summer line, Spellbound was born in the '80s as an offshoot of Japanese denim heavyweight Domingo Clothing, and maintained the parent co's tradition of stylishly clean-cut duds sturdily constructed on traditional shuttle looms, which amazingly will stay in use past the looming end of the less traditional shuttle. Shirts include a light/med/dark trio of denim indigo designs with rough lines and uneven pre-fading suggesting you've loved them far longer than a week; a pair of light/dark blue cotton pullover work shirts (cutting the buttons off just below the chest); as well as a colourfully checked madras button-down that'll be hot no matter what the weather. Outerwear sees a sturdy triple-stitched woolen navy bouson with a concealed hood, plus a four-front pocket denim work coat, and a similarly styled, two-tone light brown number that looks like a cross between an Old West outfit and a private eye's standby -- people won't know if you're going to shoot them with bullets, or satire. The one pair of jeans is a classically straight-cut "one wash", which means they've been shrunk, but the indigo hasn't faded much, and the dye will stay even throughout the pants' life -- so, Blue forever!