With July 4th quickly approaching, The Manual decided to pay homage to a handful of brands that are proudly made coast to coast in the grand old United States of America. Why not support America by shopping at one of these cool labels, which makes everything from handcrafted wood sunglasses to retro-inspired swim trunks.
Welcome Stranger (San Francisco)
“Since the very beginning, we’ve found inspiration in our surroundings: the vast landscapes of Northern California, the rich counterculture history of the Bay Area, and the generations of brave souls who’ve ventured West with nothing but a dream,” say the founders of San Francisco based Welcome Stranger, which started in 2010. Each item, from its pocket t-shirts, to its selvedge twill shirts and chinos are designed and crafted in the City by the Bay.
Shown above: L/S Clean Seam Shirt, $155 at welcomestranger.com.
Retromarine (New York)
With swim season in full force, these retro-inspired expertly tailored trunks are sure to turn heads in the pool and on the beach. The brand looked the evergreen cool of Alain Delon, Sean Connery and Julio Iglesias in the 60’s and 70’s to make swim trunks that are “constructed with premium optimum quality polyester, submitted to extensive water repelling processes and embedded with UV filters.” They even come with 100 percent handmade finishings. Let Retromarine take you back to the golden era of way back when.
Shown above: Retromarine Medusas, Navy Blue, $135 at retromarine.nyc.
Shwood (Portland)
Shwood is the master of wood sunglasses. Based in Portland, Oregon, these guys pay attention to each detail: “Every step from veneering and precision lens cutting, to shaping and finishing is conducted in our own Portland-based workshop to promise an entirely handcrafted piece of wooden eyewear.”
Combatant Gentlemen Selvedge Denim (Los Angeles)
This Los Angeles-based online retailer, which has been around since 2012, uses a vertically-integrated supply chain and makes $160 Italian wool suits. Need we say more?
Shown above: Combatant Gentlemen Deep Indigo Slim Selvedge Denim, $70 at combatgent.com.
