All About The Hardware

Buttons are a detail that is often taken for granted, but they strongly affect the quality, look, and feel of a pair of jeans. Here is a bite-sized deep dive into Kato Brand’s buttons.

Double-Circle Tack Button

The classic double-circle button has been a staple of denim history since the 1890s when jeans first emerged. The history of vintage denim is inseparable from the story of this button.

Hiroshi Kato’s signature button faithfully reproduces this historic vintage button style. The very first pair of Kato Brand jeans featured faded silver double-circle buttons. Today, we use an assortment of white, copper, polished silver, and black, depending on the type of Selvedge denim fabric.

Two-Prong Donut Button

During the Great War from 1940 to 1950, resources were heavily allocated to wartime efforts, leaving little for everyday goods. Jeans were no exception, as the government prohibited brands from using their signature buttons, forcing them to rely on the inexpensive and widely available donut buttons.

Hiroshi Kato has revived the iconic donut button that symbolizes this era, using it exclusively on our 100% cotton selvedge denim. These Kato Brand engraved buttons are featured as top buttons and throughout the button fly. A brief yet significant detail in the rich history of jeans, the donut-shaped button has become a hallmark of vintage denim design.