Brothers Hope to Revive Local Industry With New Menswear Line
New York, NY (PRWEB) April 05, 2014 -- Miles and Zen Endo launch their new line of menswear on Kickstarter and pledge to source their pieces to local manufacturers. Inspired by the American industrial heritage of the cities they live in and tools of American craftsmanship, the look of their pieces comes from the contrast of two textures: a raw sand casted surface and a machined edge. The same textural contrast can be found on cast iron combination squares, metal hand planes and machined engine parts. The initial pieces in the line are a tie clip, money clip and ring.
To check out the project visit: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/zenendo/iron-and-blood
The founders are raising money for the first production run of the line and the pieces are now available for purchase through the crowdfunding website, Kickstarter. Although headquartered in New York, their pieces will be made in Providence, Rhode Island. Providence was one of the first American cities to industrialize and was once the jewelry capital of the world. Iron and Blood honors that history and hopes that their efforts will help contribute to the domestic revival of that industry. The project, which launched last week, has gained significant traction and support from members of the Kickstarter community. Prices start as low as $35 for the tie clip and have free shipping for orders in the United States. Iron and Blood also has plans to launch a full-scale eCommerce website in June, if the project meets its funding goal.
In the development process, the founders experimented with waxes and other traditional jewelry making methods, but in order to accurately preserve the unique texture, their prototypes were made from sand casted iron plates and rods, in authentic industrial tradition. They used heavy machinery designed for cutting and shaping metal, in order to make them. The final pieces are being casted out of silver and white bronze as the original material, iron, is prone to rusting. The ring is made of pure silver and the clips of white bronze. The edges are then sanded, cleaned, and polished. Finally, a natural patina is added at the finishing stage to highlight the textural contrast.
About the Founders
Miles and Zen Endo founded the company in late 2013. The Endo brothers are from Honolulu, Hawaii but now live on the east coast. Zen is a graduate from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at NYU and Miles from the Rhode Island School of Design. Miles is an industrial designer and runs a firm called Studio Endo. Studio Endo specializes in product development for startups, low volume prototyping, digital modeling, manual fabrication, custom furniture and ceramics. The fully equipped metal and wood shops at Studio Endo, is where the founders designed and developed their menswear line. Zen is an entrepreneur who has been an active member of the New York Start-Up community for years. His background is primarily in software and technology but he is passionate about building all kinds of things. He specializes in digital marketing, videography and building websites. Prior to Iron and Blood, he worked at an eCommerce software company that specialized in the jewelry vertical.
About Iron and Blood
Iron and Blood is a line of menswear headquartered in New York City and based on the aesthetic of industrial machinery. The goal of Iron and Blood is to make a guy stand out in a way that is edgy yet sophisticated. Founded by brothers Miles and Zen Endo in 2013, the company continues to be a small, family-run business that sells directly to consumers online.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ironandbloodco
Contact: info(at)ironandblood(dot)com
Zen Endo, Iron and Blood, +1 (929) 224-2054, [email protected]
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