Snail Mail #6

Greetings, Snail Mail recipients, it’s Mikey boy. As the saying goes: we have some good news and we have some bad news. I’ll start with the bad news first.

Bad News: Denim Delays

As the saying goes, “There are no emergencies in the clothing business.” However, there are certainly bummers, and this is a bummer (although if you saw the way I first reacted you'd think there was an emergency).

Anyway, in short, the Prologue V2, Chapter 1, and their accompanying ‘Leaf Line’ partners are delayed until around next month or the month after (I’ll keep you updated on the timeline). The production samples came back to me and weren’t quite there yet. There was some sort of miscommunication between me and the manufacturer. The Prologue V2 came back looking like a belly shirt (not what I was aiming for). I spent Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday sprinting around the city meeting with people to get it fixed.

Apologies again for the false start. I live and I learn! I'm destroyed! Now, onto the good news!

Good News: Special Edition Mammoth

As the saying goes, “That’s not an earthquake, that’s the Mammoths.” I am the person saying that, and only really to Taylor.

My master plan was to release everything at the same time. That failed. However, ‘The Special Edition Mammoth’ did not. Its official release is on Wednesday, July 3rd at 5pm EDT. That is 5pm New York City time. I only say this because I know there is something weird with daylight savings time here. A few of you emailed me about that.

The site has 'The Special Edition' posted so you can peruse and ask me questions over the weekend and up until Wednesday evening. Click any picture on this email to get to the page.

Anywho, WE RIDE! So please, take your seats and enjoy part 3 of 3 of ‘The Special Edition Mammoth Mega Email.’

Bits and Bobs

The number one piece of feedback I received about Mammoth V1 was: the storm cuffs should be tighter on the next go and made from wool if possible. 

The storm cuffs on the Special Edition (and from here on out) are now tighter and made from 100% merino wool interlock (think heavy yoga pants). I had a raincoat with a very cool interlock polyester fabric that felt like the future. So I found essentially the same fabric in merino and am now in the process of custom knitting our own.

Canvas fabric reinforcements.

Part of the reason the Special Edition took quite a bit of time was due to it being a very different fabric to work with compared to the standard wool. The difference in weave tightness changed how the fabric moved under the needle, how it looked when rolled, how it sat under buttons, so on and so forward, so….

We lined the pocket flaps and inner cuff (surrounding the storm cuff) in a 12oz duck canvas made in South Carolina. The canvas layer helps button and unbutton pockets, the cuff lining holds the storm cuff a bit better, etc. Very small improvements that I hope you won’t notice for at least 25 years. 

The inner lining pockets are also fully canvas lined so you can carelessly drop your razor sharp keys in them.

Seam and stitching improvements

I will go on record as saying that these changes were done for me and only me. The side seams on the jacket look cleaner now and are technically stronger.

Unless you are around 10 sizes too big for your Mammoth and you have to button it up with a crowbar, you won’t notice these changes.

Sizing

These jackets are a tad smaller than the standard Mammoth due to how the fabric reacts under the needle. Measurements are on the site and on the product listing but generally, my suggestion would be to:

Measure a current jacket you own (and like) and purchase the Mammoth that most closely matches those measurements. The Mammoth measurement guide can be found here:

HOW TO MEASURE FOR A MAMMOTH.

If you already own a Mammoth and are buying the Special Edition as well: size up 1.

Still not sure? Email me! Never a problem to ask. However, I always suggest measuring a jacket you like. Height and weight is an okay guide but with a purchase like this it’s important to be as close to perfect as possible.

Pricing

$750

Time will tell if I’m a good businessman. I’d like to think so (or at the very least, hope so) or else the Snail will eventually go down in a swirling, twirling ball of flames, and I won’t be able to make the things I find cool.

That being said, I’ve decided to take a loss on this run of ‘Special Edition Mammoths,’ and a pretty significant one at that. However, I’ve learned quite a bit about the inner workings of making a garment, and this whole ‘loss’ thing won’t happen next year…we’ll break even (or pretty close to it).

The Special Edition Mammoth is an extremely limited batch of jackets meant only for the most devoted fabric nerds out there. Sam and I plan on doing a run every year, and we’ll never use the same cloth again. All that is to say, this is the piece where I can loosen my business-owner tie and see what’s possible (and it’ll only get crazier).

In Conclusion

And that, my friends, is ‘The Iron Snail x Woven in The Bone: Special Edition Collaboration Mammoth Version 1’. I do hope you like it. It’s already served as some great “R&D” for the next run of standard Mammoths. Also, Sam and I are already working on another collaboration, code name: ‘The Kelpie’. I’m attaching a little hint above.

Thanks and sorry for the delay. Happy Friday!

- Michael