In the industrial district of Kojima, Okayama Prefecture, the shuttle looms run at a pace that belongs to another century. Each loom produces approximately 60 centimetres of fabric per hour — a speed that modern projectile looms exceed by a factor of ten. But speed was never the point.
Selvedge denim is defined by its self-finished edge — the tightly woven band that runs along both sides of the fabric, preventing fraying without the need for overlocked seams. This edge is only possible on narrow shuttle looms, which weave a continuous weft thread back and forth across the warp.
For adsurdam, the appeal is both aesthetic and philosophical. Selvedge represents a rejection of industrial optimisation in favour of material integrity. The fabric is slower to produce, heavier in hand, and more resistant to the degradation that makes mass-produced denim disposable.