Denim!

Denim 101

Jeans are the most commonly worn casual pants in the modern day. It was invented back in 1873 by Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis, originally designed for rugged work but is now a US$15billion business in America.

Dry Denim

Dry denim are also known as, raw, unwashed or untreated denim, which we may take a while to get used to it as they're a little rougth on the skin.

Easily identified by their deep indigo colour with no signs of distress. A pair of dry denim will fade, fit your body contours and distress according to how you move and what you carry in your pockets creating a unique, natural look.

Dry Denim Care

The trick is to wear it for 6 months before washing, unless you really soiled them, to ensure they are properly broken into. After your first wash, the creases will be displayed perfectly, uniquely. With proper care, the jeans should last as long as you do. This may sound awfully disgusting, but airing them in the sun should be good enough to last them till their first wash.

Washing of Dry Denim

Different brands have differnt instructions, some may recommend hot washes to define the creases, where as others recommend cold washes with no detergent. Below are recommended washing techniques by french brand A.P.C.

• Extremist recipe: Let your jeans get dirty for as long as possible. First wash: dry clean. following washes: soak your jeans for about an hour in water with a little WOOLITE BLACK added, rinse, roll in a terrycloth towel and hang up to dry
• Semi-extremist recipe: Soak your jeans for about an hour in water with WOOLITE BLACK added, don't scrub, rinse, wring and hang up to let water drain.
• Machine recipe: Machine wash at 30degrees celcius, delicate cycle, no spin cycle, with WOOLITE BLACK.
• Seawater recipe: Lets your jeans get dirty for as long as possible, go swimming in the ocean wearing your jeans, rub your jeans with dry sand and repeat several times. rinse in fresh water and let them dry in the sun.

Selvage Denim

Selvage denim is a form of denim that forms a clean edge and does not fray at its ends. It is popular among designer and premium brands for its durability.

Our current modern jeans are made via projectile looms, which are faster and requires less fabric per jeans. With seperate threads, rather then a continuous one, projectile weavings leave the edges frayed requiring stitching to be done to its length. The result, a lighter denim that is much less durable.

What makes selvage denim unique and expensive is due to the fact that they are made on traditional shuttle looms. Shuttle looms weave a narrower fabric, increasing the amount of fabric required per pair of jeans. To reduce wastage, jean makers use the fabric all the way to their edge which can be seen when the cuff is turned up. Selvage denim typically weights around 13Oz.

Notes

Dry denim and selvage normally come hand in hand, you want something that can last long enough for you to imprint those beautiful natural creases. Below are some of the premium brands that carry selvage raw denims.

• Evisu
• Neighborhood
• Levis
• Nudie Jeans
• Sugar Cane
• Flat head