The Mother Lode

By Beth Whiffen
July 1, 2011

Mother Denim

Mother Denim, a new denim line out of Los Angeles

It might seem like there’s nothing left to do with denim. We've got jean skirts, suits, jackets and jorts, not to mention jorjeggings and denim tuxedos. And at one time or another, denim’s been given every embellishment imaginable, from studs to Swarovski crystals to contrast stitching and embroidery. So when you hear that there’s yet another new premium denim line, it would be natural to think: Why reinvent the wheel?

But denim industry veterans Tim Kaeding (former Creative Director, 7 For All Mankind) and Lela Tillem (President of Sales and Marketing, Citizens of Humanity) may have done just that just with Mother, their cashmere-soft premium denim offering that merges sexy, high-waisted, wide-leg '70s silhouettes that hug all the right curves with a level of comfort previously relegated to Pajama Jeans (yes, those do exist). The new brand is quickly gaining a cult following and flying off the shelves of high-end fashion boutiques in Los Angeles, where the company is based, and elsewhere. To find out more, The Inside Source chatted with co-creators Kaeding and Tillem.

The Inside Source: The name Mother seems almost ironic, as we’ve all seen Saturday Night Live’s “Mom Jeans” skit. Is that how it was intended?

Lela Tillem: It is definitely ironic and fun in that regard. There was a lot of skepticism at first, which of course solidified the name for us. We also like the various ways the word "mother" can be used in popular culture—the rocking ‘motha’, the bad mother, the tattooed biker mother, the domineering mother in Hitchcock films... The name really just stuck a chord; it sounded so powerful and tough.

The Inside Source: The two of you have both worked in denim for a long time. What void did you see in the existing premium denim offerings that made you want to launch Mother?

Lela Tillem: We felt like no other brands were still making the kind of jeans that we love and that originally sparked the denim craze. We wanted to move on from what’s currently happening in premium denim—dark boring rinses, leggings, slouchy silhouettes—and make jeans classic and sexy again. We went wide-leg, high-waisted and minimal with lots of bright colors. It feels really fresh. We did away with grunge in favor of beauty.

Mother Denim

The Inside Source: What do you see as the next big thing in denim after '70s silhouettes?

Tim Kaeding: Grunge? Just kidding. Although we have gotten some press as “The 70s Brand," it’s also part coincidence. At Mother, I am trying to explore different silhouettes in denim, so a flare, for example, will look very '70s. Every season we have a new take on our styles—some will look '50s or '60s I guess.

Moving forward, we are doing a lot with our straight leg, "The Rascal," playing with the waistlines and bottoms—for example, high-waisted straights and frayed bottoms. For fall, there’s “The Tattler" that is a cropped flare—think Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction. We have been doing a lot of color as well. Fall and Holiday have a pretty radical range of color including a big corduroy program with panel pocket flares in a range of colors from sorbet, violet and cherry to sandy mustards and cognacs.

The Rascal; The Tattler; The Hazer in mustard

Mother Denim: The Rascal, The Tattler and The Hazer

The Inside Source: Does that mean skinny legging jeans should be shoved to the back of the closet?

Lela Tillem: No way! Girls look great in skinny jeans, always. But we are really having fun making jeans that look great and we don’t rely on them being a legging.

The Inside Source: The biggest surprise about Mother comes when you put them on. The silhouettes and fit are fabulous, of course, but it’s the fact that the denim is cashmere-soft and uber-comfortable that seals the deal. How did you achieve that texture?

Tim Kaeding: A little magic, a little love and a lot of hard work...

Lela Tillem: Over the years we’ve developed great relationships with all of the laundries and mills, which allow us to really work hands-on with every new fabric we come across. We have worked with our fabric mills in developing our own denims as well.

The Inside Source: What denim trend do you hope will bite the dust?

Tim Kaeding: Over-embellishment. So often when I’m shopping I’ll see something that I like and then there’s just that one thing, and I think, “If only they didn’t do that.” I could do with out the gimmicks in general. These are the things that get old fast and sit in your closet.

The Inside Source: What’s your strategy for shopping on eBay?

Tim Kaeding: I often see cool vintage items I like on eBay but I don't have the patience to wait it out and bid. Thank god for Buy It Now.