Undercover AW1996 Wire Archive Wool Felt Jacket UC-6W-JK-01, Olive, Grosgrain Chest Tape, Early Takahashi

An olive wool felt work jacket from Undercover’s Autumn/Winter 1996 season, the so-called Wire period, cut with a band of black grosgrain across the chest and made when the label was still a Harajuku secret.

The Piece

Undercover’s mid-1990s output is the foundation of everything Jun Takahashi has done since. In those years the label was sold through Nowhere and a few Tokyo shops, made in small runs, and mixed punk attitude with a surprising tailoring sense. Japanese collectors refer to the Autumn/Winter 1996 season as the Wire period, and pieces from it rarely surface outside Japan.

This jacket carries the season code UC-6W-JK-01 on its inner tag. It is a short, boxy work jacket in a dense wool and rayon felt with a soft, brushed surface, in a muted olive. A band of black grosgrain tape runs across the chest and through the button line, a single flap pocket sits on the left chest, and a vertical welt pocket on the right. The collar is a neat shirt collar with the ‘UNDER COVER Jun Takahashi’ label beneath, and the cuffs and hem close with buttons engraved with the Undercover name.

There is no size label, but it measures 47 cm across the shoulder and 54 cm across the chest, with a 64 cm body and 59.5 cm sleeve, so it wears like a modern medium in a cropped, slightly boxy line.

It is honest archive clothing with visible life, but the cut, fabric and detailing are exactly what collectors of early Undercover look for.

Details

• Designer: Undercover (Jun Takahashi)
• Season: Autumn/Winter 1996, known as the Wire period (attributed)
• Model / ref: UC-6W-JK-01
• Material: 60% wool, 40% rayon
• Colour: Olive with black grosgrain tape
• Made in: Japan
• Tagged size: No size label (approx. M)
• Measurements: Shoulder 47 cm · Chest (pit to pit) 54 cm · Sleeve 59.5 cm · Length 64 cm
• Included: Jacket only

Condition

• Used archive condition with visible wear.
• Soiling above the second button and along the hem (photographed).
• A small tear in the fabric at one button attachment.
• Discolouration and a small hole on the left sleeve.
• Light pilling to the felt surface; buttons all present.

Condition grade C on the Japanese scale; see Japanese condition ranks, explained.

Authenticity & Care

The labels, materials, stitching, hardware and construction are examined together and documented in Japan before dispatch; anything that cannot be confirmed is stated plainly in the description. Every piece carries the Japonista authenticity guarantee. Dry clean only with a specialist used to wool felt, and repair the button tear before heavy wear.

Delivery from Japan

Packed by hand in Japan and shipped insured and tracked by EMS or an equivalent express service. Import duties and taxes, where applicable, are payable on arrival. Every sale is final; please ask anything before you buy, and see our published policy.

Every figure above is taken by hand with the garment laid flat, in centimetres. Lay a shirt or jacket you already love beside them and allow a centimetre or two of margin, the quiet safeguard on a final sale. Our size guide to tops and jackets turns pit-to-pit figures into US, UK, EU and Japanese sizes, and for anything it leaves open the curator team replies within one Tokyo business day.

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