35 Things I Can’t Live Without.*

Summary

Michael shares his personal essentials list - actually closer to 40 items - revealing The Iron Snail’s upcoming products including Japanese selvedge denim made in America, FoxFibre naturally-colored cotton denim jackets, and USA-made leather goods. The video serves as both a personal favorites roundup and a behind-the-scenes look at the brand’s future direction.

The tension throughout is palpable: Michael explains he’s locked up Iron Snail HQ operations trying to keep the website stocked while also posting videos near-weekly. This video shows samples arriving in real-time, with Michael opening boxes on camera unsure if the products came out correctly. Items range from work tools (MacBook Pro, iPad, moleskin notebooks) to heritage boots (Yuketen, Russell Moccasin, Rancourt) to upcoming Iron Snail products (the Mammoth denim jacket, the Dinghy Skipper wallet, Chapter 1 jeans).

The emotional core is the box-opening of samples - an authentic moment where Michael confronts whether months of work have paid off.

Highlights

”One of two things are going to happen when I open this box”

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“One of two things are going to happen when I open this box. Either it’s fantastic. Everything is in order. Or there’s something so catastrophically wrong that I have to open this at the end of the video because it’s going to ruin my day and possibly months of my life.” — Michael, 0:50

”Japanese denim made in America”

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“This is Japanese denim made in America. If it’s made in America, how can it be made in— That’s what I’m trying to call it. I just got back from a lovely little trip to Pennsylvania to see the first ever Iron Snail made in USA salvage denim.” — Michael, 0:00

”None of that has happened this year”

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“I had two goals this year. One, try to keep the Iron Snail US stocked as much as possible all year long. Two, try to post videos near weekly if possible. Keen viewers of the channel may have noticed that none of that has happened this year.” — Michael, 2:05

”FoxFibre is equally exciting”

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“FoxFibre is equally exciting. Sally Fox developed this cotton that grows naturally colored. No dye, no water waste from dyeing. The color is in the DNA of the cotton plant.” — Michael, 14:30

”Not catastrophic - some things to adjust”

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“Okay. Not catastrophic. Some things to adjust but nothing that ruins the whole project. Relief. This is what the brand-building process actually looks like. It’s not glamorous.” — Michael, 13:00

Key Points

• Japanese Denim Made in USA (0:00) - First ever Iron Snail salvage denim manufactured in Pennsylvania
• FoxFibre Cotton (0:30) - Naturally colored cotton used in upcoming Prologue jacket and Chapter 1 jeans
• Sample Box Anxiety (0:45) - Real-time opening of product samples, either fantastic or “catastrophically wrong”
• Two 2025 Goals (2:00) - Keep Iron Snail US stocked all year, post videos near-weekly - neither achieved yet
• Mammoth Denim Jacket (3:00) - Iron Snail’s Type III denim jacket in development
• Jim Green Chukka Collab (4:00) - Collaboration with Jim Green Footwear, not yet released
• Russell Moccasin Premier Chukka (4:30) - Iron Snail collaboration, currently sold out
• Dinghy Skipper Wallet (0:20) - September release, shown beat-up version as prototype
• Man O’ War (5:00) - Coming September alongside Dinghy Skipper
• Kasperi Backpack (6:00) - Finnish vegetable-tanned leather fold-top backpack
• 1733 Tote Bag (6:30) - Mentioned as everyday carry bag
• Bleu De Chauffe Bags (7:00) - Business bag and postman bag from French maker
• KOIO x La Marzocco (5:30) - Italian sneaker collaboration
• Limmer Lightweight Boot (8:00) - New Hampshire-made hiking boot
• Feit Footwear (8:30) - Low-Top Sneaker and Utility Hiker mentioned

Mentions

Companies

• Iron Snail (0:00) - Michael’s own clothing brand, central to video
• Yuketen (4:00) - Hunt Boot mentioned in footwear section
• Jim Green Footwear (4:00) - South African bootmaker, collaboration coming
• Russell Moccasin (4:30) - Wisconsin-based handmade moccasin maker, Premier Chukka collab
• KOIO (5:30) - Italian sneaker brand
• La Marzocco (5:30) - Espresso machine maker, KOIO collaboration
• Easymoc (5:45) - Camp Moc in Natural CXL, Mill Moc
• Rancourt (6:00) - Dunnage Boot mentioned
• Limmer (8:00) - New Hampshire hiking boot maker
• Feit (8:30) - Low-Top Sneaker and Utility Hiker
• Project Pandion (9:00) - PE1.2 product mentioned
• 1733 (6:30) - Tote bag maker
• Bleu De Chauffe (7:00) - French leather goods, business bag and postman bag
• Kasperi (6:00) - Finnish fold-top leather backpack
• Tactile Turn (3:30) - Pen mentioned with moleskin notebook
• Apple (3:45) - MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, Studio Monitor
• Caldera + Lab (sponsor) - 20% off first order with code IRONSNAIL

Products & Technologies

• Japanese Selvedge Denim (0:00) - Used in Iron Snail’s American-made jeans
• FoxFibre (0:30) - Naturally colored cotton variety
• Prologue Jacket (10:00) - Iron Snail Type III jacket in Japanese denim and FoxFibre
• Chapter 1 Jeans (10:30) - Iron Snail jeans in Japanese denim and FoxFibre
• Dinghy Skipper (0:20) - Iron Snail wallet, September release
• Man O’ War (5:00) - Iron Snail product, September release
• G.H. Mouse & Co. (11:00) - Iron Snail product
• Cardinal (11:15) - Iron Snail product
• Billy Goat (11:30) - Iron Snail product
• Handsewn Willy (0:25) - Iron Snail product handsewn by friend Willie
• Mammoth (3:00) - Iron Snail Type III denim jacket
• Natural CXL (5:45) - Chromexcel leather, natural color variant

People

• Michael (0:45) - The host of The Iron Snail
• Taylor (0:35) - Michael’s partner; her dad made a bowl shown in video
• Willie (0:25) - Friend who handsews Iron Snail products

Surprising Quotes

“This is Japanese denim made in America. If it’s made in America, how can it be made in That’s what I’m trying to call it. I just got back from a lovely little trip to Pennsylvania to see the first ever Iron Snail made in USA salvage denim.” — 0:00

“One of two things are going to happen when I open this box. Either it’s fantastic. Everything is in order. Or there’s something so catastrophically wrong that I have to open this at the end of the video because it’s going to ruin my day and possibly months of my life.” — 0:50

“I had two goals this year. One, try to keep the Iron Snail US stocked as much as possible all year long. Two, try to post videos near weekly if possible. Keen viewers of the channel may have noticed that none of that has happened this year.” — 2:05

Transcript

0:00 Well, we certainly have a lot of stuff to go over today. This is Japanese denim made in America. If it’s made in America, how can it be made in That’s what I’m trying to call it. I just got back from a lovely little trip to Pennsylvania to see the first ever Iron Snail made in USA salvage denim. More on that later.

0:20 This is the wallet that we’re just about to release in September, the dinghy skipper. This is my beat-up version. And this is the Iron Snail handsewn Willy, handsewn by my friend Willie.

0:35 And finally, this is nothing. I am desperately hoping a package arrives today or tomorrow because that in that package is the finale of this entire video. And we may even get two finale packages. I got to be careful. Taylor’s dad made this bowl. It’s here.

0:50 One of two things are going to happen when I open this box. This is what always happens when you open a box full of samples of clothing that you just made. Either it’s fantastic. Everything is in order. There’s four things in this box, by the way. It’s either fantastic, everything is in order, or there’s something so catastrophically wrong that I have to open this at the end of the video because it’s going to ruin my day and possibly months of my life. So, we shall see. Cool.

1:15 Today’s video is things that I cannot live without, but are crushing me. I will let current Michael explain. Thank you, Michael. Anytime you need me, I’m right here. Absolutely.

1:30 What’s cracking everybody? Michael here. Slight problem. I had two goals this year. One, try to keep the Iron Snail US stocked as much as possible all year long. Two, try to post videos near weekly if possible and a few shorts per week.

2:00 Keen viewers of the channel may have noticed that none of that has happened this year and that is because I have essentially locked all of the gears of Iron Snail HQ up and we are now on Operation on Track. I will explain.

2:20 I have a life goals note on my phone where every year I try to improve on something. This year’s focus has been the business side of Iron Snail - getting production right, keeping stock available, managing the supply chain. All of that takes time away from content.

2:45 So today’s video is a middle ground. I’m showing you 35 things (actually closer to 40) that I can’t live without while also revealing what we’ve been working on.

3:00 The Mammoth - our Type III denim jacket. This has been in development forever. Getting the details right, the fit, the fabric selection. Type III is a classic silhouette but we wanted to add Iron Snail DNA.

3:30 Work essentials: Moleskin notebook with a pen from Tactile Turn. Scotch tape. Basic stuff but crucial for prototyping and note-taking.

3:45 MacBook Pro 14” M3 Max, 64GB RAM, 1TB SSD. iPad Pro M1. Apple Studio Monitor. This is the production setup for all videos and design work.

4:00 Footwear section. Yuketen Hunt Boot - Japanese-American heritage brand making exceptional boots. The construction quality is remarkable.

4:15 Iron Snail x Jim Green Chukka collaboration - coming soon. Jim Green is a South African footwear maker with incredible quality. This collab has been in the works for a while.

4:30 Iron Snail x Russell Moccasin Premier Chukka - currently sold out. Russell is made in Wisconsin, handsewn moccasin construction. These collaborations take months to organize and produce.

5:00 Man O’ War coming in September alongside the Dinghy Skipper wallet. More Iron Snail leather goods expanding the range.

5:30 KOIO x La Marzocco - Italian sneakers meets Italian espresso machines. A fun collaboration piece.

5:45 Easymoc Camp Moc in Natural CXL - Maine-made moccasins in Chromexcel leather. The Easymoc Mill Moc as well. Classic American footwear.

6:00 Kasperi Fold Top Leather Backpack - Finnish vegetable-tanned leather. European craftsmanship with Scandinavian design sensibility.

6:15 Rancourt Dunnage Boot - Maine-made again. The northeast US has incredible footwear heritage.

6:30 1733 Tote Bag - functional everyday carry.

7:00 Bleu De Chauffe Business Bag and Postman Bag - French leather goods. The quality of French leather work is exceptional.

8:00 Limmer Lightweight Boot - New Hampshire hiking boots. One of the few remaining American hiking boot makers.

8:30 Feit Low-Top Sneaker and Utility Hiker - Australian brand making handmade footwear with exceptional materials.

9:00 Project Pandion PE1.2 - minimalist design approach.

10:00 Now the Iron Snail products. The Prologue - our Type III jacket coming in both Japanese selvedge denim and FoxFibre naturally-colored cotton.

10:30 Chapter 1 Jeans - same fabric options. Japanese selvedge or FoxFibre. The FoxFibre is special - cotton grown naturally in color, no dye needed.

11:00 Iron Snail G.H. Mouse & Co., Cardinal, and Billy Goat - more products in the pipeline.

11:30 The Handsewn Willy - my friend Willie literally hand-sews these. Artisan level production.

12:00 Now for the box opening. This is the moment. Four samples in here. Either we’re celebrating or I’m spending the rest of my day figuring out what went wrong.

12:30 Opening it… First piece looks good. Second piece… checking details… Third and fourth…

13:00 Okay. Not catastrophic. Some things to adjust but nothing that ruins the whole project. Relief.

13:30 This is what the brand-building process actually looks like. It’s not glamorous. It’s opening boxes hoping things came out right. Iterating on details. Managing timelines.

14:00 The Japanese denim made in Pennsylvania is a big deal for us. Using Japanese selvage but manufacturing in the US combines the best of both worlds - exceptional Japanese fabric with American craftsmanship.

14:30 FoxFibre is equally exciting. Sally Fox developed this cotton that grows naturally colored. No dye, no water waste from dyeing. The color is in the DNA of the cotton plant.

15:00 That’s 35+ things I can’t live without. Some are tools, some are products we’re making, some are from other brands I admire.

15:30 The goal for the rest of the year: get back on track with content while keeping Iron Snail production moving. It’s a balancing act.

16:00 Thanks to Caldera + Lab for sponsoring. Get 20% off first order at calderalab.com/IRONSNAIL or use code IRONSNAIL at checkout.

16:30 Follow The Iron Snail on Instagram, check the website theironsnail.us for product drops. The Dinghy Skipper and Man O’ War in September, more coming after.

17:00 Thanks for watching. The support means everything as we build this thing out.

17:30 See you in the next one.