“A good cheetah print is a rare treasure,” remarked Shane Jones with a touch of wistfulness. The intricacies involved in achieving the perfect print are numerous, he explained. The spots must not be too large or too small, the colors must strike the right balance of brightness, and the spacing should avoid unnatural symmetry or excessive artistic eccentricity. These challenges are especially amplified when working with specialty materials like the neoprene sheets, measuring 6 by 4½ feet, that Mr. Jones uses to create his high-fashion surf suits.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call Mr. Jones the Willy Wonka of wet suits. A self-taught designer and tailor, he has crafted wet suits for surfing legends such as Gerry Lopez, Mickey Muñoz, Skip Frye, and L.J. Richards, as well as customers from all corners of the globe, including Japan, Brazil, and Germany.
Operating under the label Jonesea, Mr. Jones produces wet suits in a range of vibrant colors like goldenrod and merlot, as well as eye-catching prints including cheetah and tie-dye. He has even sewn suits inspired by pop culture icons like The Joker, Evel Knievel, Minnie Mouse, and Beetlejuice. Notably, he replicated Freddy Krueger’s infamous murder outfit from “A Nightmare on Elm Street.” In 2016, renowned designer Thom Browne commissioned Mr. Jones to create a trompe l’oeil-effect wet suit, which was then showcased on the Paris runway, retailing for a hefty price of $3,900. In contrast, the starting price for Jonesea label suits is around $300.
Originally from Orange County, California, Mr. Jones now operates his one-man shop in Costa Mesa. During a visit to Brooklyn, he dropped by the store Pilgrim Surf + Supply, sporting a cherry-red pair of Vans, tube socks, and shorts that exuded optimism for the spring weather in New York. Still buzzing from an early-morning surf session in New Jersey, he couldn’t contain his excitement when asked about the waves. “Dude, I’m so stoked. Shoulder-high. Offshore winds,” he exclaimed.
But what about the prevailing trend of black wet suits on the East Coast? Mr. Jones shrugged off the somber landscape, acknowledging that black suits dominate the scene. However, both he and his clients prefer a more expressive color palette. Renowned skateboarder and avid surfer Tony Alva shared his experience, stating, “First he made me a cheetah long john wet suit with a matching jacket. The next was a purple full suit with a psychedelic mohawk stripe on it. His suits are excellent quality. I surf in them whenever I can.”
Handcrafting specialty garments with expensive materials in the United States is not a profitable venture. In 2016, Mr. Jones lived in his 1968 Chevy van and produced wet suits in the tiniest of spaces—a 10 by 30 storage unit. Through 100-hour workweeks and additional day labor gigs, he eventually upgraded to a proper workshop within only nine months. His current workspace accommodates 12 sewing machines and pallet racks to store neoprene sheets, which can develop stubborn dents if not rolled up properly.
On a typical seven-day workweek, Mr. Jones rises at 5 a.m. To minimize waste, all wet suits are made to order, taking around eight hours to complete from start to finish. Beyond designing and sewing, he takes care of menial tasks such as mopping the floor, stock management, writing product descriptions, handling social media, providing customer service, and packaging orders. Surprisingly, many people assume he has a team of employees. He chuckles, saying, “People think I have a warehouse full of employees working for me. They’ll email, ‘Hey you guys…’ and I’m like, ‘It’s just me! I am ‘you guys’.'”
While larger companies like O’Neill, Billabong, Rip Curl, and Quiksilver dominate the wet suit market, Mr. Jones sees the imitation of his work as an opportunity rather than a setback. Due to their slower turnaround times, major brands are less likely to copy truly unconventional designs. To combat the copycat problem, Mr. Jones pushes the boundaries of his creations, focusing on even weirder and more unique designs.
Dion Mattison, who runs the surf media and coaching company Conatus and is writing a book on the philosophy of surfing, highlights the conservative aesthetics and ethics prevalent in surfing. Sporting a bold and flashy suit communicates audacity—a statement that says, “Hello, I surf extremely well and deserve to wear attention-grabbing attire,” or at least, “Hello, I believe I surf extremely well.”
Having started surfing at the age of 5, Mr. Jones comfortably resides in the category of individuals justified in their eccentric wet suit choices. For him, an exuberant wet suit is not so much a provocation as an opportunity to bring smiles to people in the lineup, even if the process occasionally drives him to the brink of madness. As he recalls, “When I made my Evel Knievel wet suit, I had to redo the stars 10 times to make them symmetrical.”
In this regard, the comparison between Mr. Jones and Reynolds Woodcock, the dressmaker portrayed in Paul Thomas Anderson’s film “Phantom Thread,” becomes evident. However, there is a crucial distinction between the two perfectionists. In the film, the character meticulously takes 16 measurements before commencing the pattern preparation. In contrast, Mr. Jones meticulously takes 22 measurements, ensuring the perfect fit and craftsmanship of his wet suits.
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