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Essex Black Jeans $ 510.00
The Essex Black Jeans are a statement in upcycled denim fashion, blending authentic Maasai beadwork with modern design. Hand-beaded by the Maasai woman holding the detailed horizontal pattern.
Elevating classic Wrangler black jeans into a contemporary cultural piece.
The beadwork features a striking palette of white, golden copper, blue, orange, and green, symbolizing heritage, identity, and craftsmanship.
Upcycled from original Wrangler denim, these jeans reflect sustainable fashion practices while honoring traditional African artistry.
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Faded Black Denim – Akire Beetle & Vertical Beadwork, DC Shoe Co USA Denim $ 546.00
An individually sourced DC Shoe Co USA denim in faded black, selected for its 100% cotton composition and relaxed form, then reworked as a study of motif, line and placement.
The front is composed symmetrically across both sides of the denim.
Each side carries three Akire beetles: a red beetle begins the sequence, followed by mixed-colour vertical beadwork; a black beetle occupies the centre, followed by another passage of vertical beadwork; a second red beetle completes the arrangement.
Together, the two sides create six beetles—four red and two black with vertical lines acting as intervals between each form.
The faded-black denim is important to the composition. Black beadwork sits closer to the ground of the original garment, while red comes forward more distinctly.
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Faded Black Denim – Akire Beetle & Vertical Beadwork, Wrangler Denim $ 546.00
An individually sourced Wrangler denim in faded black, selected for its 100% cotton composition and relaxed fit, then reworked through beetle forms and vertical beadwork.
Across the front, six Akire beetles form the principal composition four worked in red and two in gold.
Between them, vertical strands of mixed-colour beadwork introduce another rhythm, drawing the eye down the denim while the beetles hold their place across its surface.
Out of stock
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Grain-Faded Blue Denim – Akire Vertical Beadwork $ 446.00
The original surface becomes part of the work.
A grain-like fade runs through the blue denim, giving the cloth its own character before the first bead is placed.
Akire responds with yellow, colourless, orange and copper-brown beadwork, tones that sit naturally within the warmth and variation already present in the denim.
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Graphite Black Denim – Akire Beetle Beadwork $ 525.00
An individually sourced Denim House wide-leg denim in graphite black, selected for its 100% cotton composition and reworked through one of the more elaborate expressions of Akire’s beetle beadwork.
Eleven beetles move across the denim in black and red.
Three appear in red, while black beetles recede more quietly into the graphite ground some immediately visible, others revealing themselves through texture and movement.
Within the composition, the familiar form is interrupted.
Graphite Black Denim
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Graphite Black Denim – Akire Beetle Beadwork, Lee Denim $ 425.00
An individually sourced Lee denim in graphite black, selected for its 100% cotton composition and regular silhouette, then given another life through Akire beadwork.
Across the front, six Akire beetles are worked by hand three on either side.
Gold and black beads are mixed within each beetle, creating a play between what is revealed and what recedes against the depth of the graphite denim.
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Graphite Black Denim – Akire Beetle Beadwork, Penman Denim $ 326.00
An individually sourced Penman denim in graphite black, selected for its 100% cotton composition and regular fit, then given another life through Akire beadwork.
The graphite-black wash provides a muted ground for four dark-red beetles across the front two worked along the left side and two along the right.
The closeness of these deeper tones makes the beadwork feel integrated into the denim, with the beetle forms becoming more apparent as the eye moves across the piece.
Each beetle is formed bead by bead.
The motif repeats, but the hand leaves subtle differences within every form an individuality that belongs to the making.
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Grey Denim – Akire Beetle Beadwork $ 346.00
A study in red on grey.
Five hand-beaded beetles define this individually sourced Penman denim. Four are placed across the front, their red forms held in deliberate contrast against the grey ground.
At the back, a fifth beetle stands alone,the final mark within the composition.
Each form is worked individually by hand.
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Grey Denim – Akire Vertical Beadwork $ 323.00
The eye follows the line.
Gold, brown and blue descend across the grey denim, each line worked individually by hand.
What appears ordered from a distance reveals subtle variation up close,the spacing of a bead, a shift in colour, the trace of the hand that made it.
Worn, the work changes again.
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Grey Denim – Horizontal Beadwork, Wrangler Denim $ 336.00
An individually sourced Wrangler denim in grey, transformed through Akire’s horizontal beadwork.
White, copper brown, blue, orange and green move across the denim in hand-beaded lines, bringing colour and rhythm to its muted ground.
At the back pocket, orange appears on its own a singular continuation of the composition.
The original denim remains present; the hand gives it another expression.
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Ice Blue – Twisted Vertical Beadwork, Wrangler Denim $ 426.00
An individually sourced Wrangler denim in ice blue, selected for its 100% cotton composition and reworked by Akire through hand-applied beadwork.
The vertical beadwork is formed through a twisted technique, giving the surface dimension, texture and movement.
Orange, red, white, green, light blue, yellow, black, silver and copper-brown beads are brought together by hand, creating a composition that shifts subtly against the cool tone of the denim.
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Ice Blue – Vertical Beadwork, C.S & Co Denim $ 426.00
A sourced C.S & Co denim piece in ice blue, selected for its 100% cotton composition and regular fit, then given another life through Akire beadwork.
Vertical lines of hand-applied beads move along the denim in brown, gold, yellow, orange and blue the warmer tones sitting in contrast against the cool, pale wash.
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Ice Blue Denim – Akire Beetle Beadwork $ 386.00
Ice Blue Denim -Akire Beetle Beadwork
On ice blue, the Akire beetle takes on a lighter expression.
An individually sourced Hollister denim becomes the ground for five gold beetles.
Four are placed across the front, two on either side, their warmth standing in quiet contrast to the cool clarity of the denim. -
Ice Blue Denim – Akire Beetle Beadwork, Denim Co. Piece $ 385.00
A sourced Denim Co. Piece in ice blue, selected for its 100% cotton composition and original slim silhouette, then transformed through Akire’s beetle beadwork.
Across the front, four Akire beetles are worked by hand,two on either side of the denim. Within each beetle, yellow and blue beads are brought together in a mixed composition, allowing colour to move through the form rather than sit as a single, uniform tone.
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Ice Blue Denim – Akire Beetle Beadwork, Dry Goods Saugatuck Company Ltd $ 325.00
The beetle moves between complete form and abstraction.
Against the ice-blue denim, four Akire beetles appear in full, worked by hand in green beads.
Alongside them, two further beetle forms are deliberately deconstructed.
Their familiar parts are separated and repositioned across the denim, allowing the motif to be read beyond its complete silhouette.
At the reverse, gold beadwork introduces a final shift in colour a quiet departure from the green composition at the front.
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Indigo Wash Denim – Wavy Beadwork $ 326.00
An individually sourced FS Details denim in indigo wash, reworked through an abstract study of line and movement.
Copper brown, blue and yellow beads travel across the denim in a wavy composition, rising and falling in an irregular rhythm.
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Ivory Cream – Vertical Beadwork, Donovan Denim $ 346.00
A sourced Donovan denim in ivory cream, selected for its 100% cotton composition and slim silhouette, then given another life through Akire beadwork.
Against the quiet tone of the denim, vertical beadwork brings together brown, red, orange, yellow, blue, white, green, black, copper brown, clear, and glass-green beads.
Worked by hand, the composition introduces colour, texture and rhythm while allowing the original character of the denim to remain visible.
Donovan Denim
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Light Sky Blue Denim – Akire Vertical Beadwork, Wrangler $ 446.00
A pale ground, marked by colour.
Red, white, blue, gold, dark brown, purple and black are worked by hand across the light sky-blue denim.
Each line carries the subtle variation of the hand, making this sourced Wrangler singular to Akire.
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Light Stone Wash Denim – Abstract Beadwork $ 423.00
An individually sourced Wrangler denim in light stone wash, reworked through an abstract study of shape and colour.
Gold, green, red, black and light-green beads form large, elongated geometric shapes across the denim.
The lines create enclosed forms with the suggestion of stretched squares and rectangles, allowing proportion and colour to shift within the composition.
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Light Stone Wash Denim – Akire Beetle Beadwork, Diesel Industry Denim $ 346.00
An individually sourced Diesel Industry denim in light stone wash, selected for its 100% cotton composition and reworked through Akire’s beetle beadwork in gold colour .
Five beetle forms inhabit the front.
Three are arranged along one side of the denim, with the central motif taking on a more abstract interpretation of the familiar Akire beetle.
On the opposite side, two complete beetles continue the composition in gold colour.
The arrangement allows the motif to move between the recognisable and the abstract without losing its relationship to the original form.
Each is worked bead by bead, with placement and the hand giving a different character to the repetition.
At the back, the beetle is deconstructed further. One pocket carries only the head of the beetle, while the opposite side holds its lower form.
