Just got a new pair of jeans. I'm curious about the best way to break them in and keep them sharp. I'm seriously considering washing them once and never again. I've heard you can put them in the freezer when they get too grody. I don't expect anyone to care but I am genuinely wondering about:
1) What's your favorite piece of clothing?
2) What's the best way to clean your jeans?
3) Does the freezer thing really work?
This is somewhat of a regrettable confession, but I wore the same pair of jeans to work every day for TWO YEARS without ever washing them. It gradually became a social experiment. No one ever said anything. The jeans never reeked of ass or piss, and indeed I also heard talk of lil's quoted text that claims bacterial saturation occurs within two weeks of continual wear. I don't know about you, but if I washed my jeans every two weeks, the style/wash of them would have been long gone many months ago. I feel pretty unhygienic at times, but I look like I just bought a pair of new jeans. P.S. If you try to sniff my ass at a Hubski meetup, I'll morph into a dog and do the same to you.
I imagine that my girlfriend would have said something. Or my parents. Or coworkers. Maybe everyone secretly whispered behind my back about it, but I don't think so. I'd hope someone would have had the balls to stage an intervention, but no dice. Not even a hint of anyone's discomfort. Welp, now I can't wear jeans to any Hubski events.
1. HOODIES HOODIES HOODIES. I have at least 10, which is more than any amount of clothing I own besides pairs of socks.I don't know why I love hoodies but I do. There's just somethin about them. 2. I wash my jeans...once a week, I guess? I switch them out every three days, as opposed to my two-day max for shorts. 3. No idea, BUT, I know that you can run a razor against jeans and have them stay sharp for a veeeery long time. Don't know shit about fashion, so I just wear them on my hips. And also hope the zipper doesn't catch on my nuts. It's a simple life, this one.
I like how your reply started and slowly unraveled into smartassery. :) You bring up a good point though. Always watch for the nuts.
The president of Levi's never said "don't wash your jeans." What he said was that you don't need to wash your jeans as much as you think you do. It was a talk about saving the environment, not about saving your jeans. here On the other hand: • The Post: How To Clean Your Jeans Without Water (In the Freezer!) • The Reality: According to this recent ABC report, bacteria levels on a pair of jeans that were worn (330 times by college student Josh Le) for 15 months using the freezer method were similar to the levels found on the same jeans when tested again only 13 days after washing. So, in terms of whether it works, as the Magic 8 ball says, signs point to yes! And while its not a terribly conclusive scientific study, I wouldn't have bet on this one as having any kind of backup, so it just goes to show, you never know... I can't answer the first question because I'm not that attached to anything. Maybe when I clean out my vinyl (record albums), I'll empty out my closets too. The Myth: Freeze Your Jeans Instead of Washing Them - the rumor is that you can get your jeans clean by simply putting them in the freezer as opposed to the washing machine. It's a tempting proposition, since it would be nice to maintain that dark wash, but does it actually work?
from here
Pablo's guide to straddling the line between a tool and an asshole edit disclaimer: this guide leans towards asshole
1) Wear a belt that matches your jeans, and wear a belt that matches what you're wearing with your jeans. Don't wear a polished leather belt with a t-shirt, and don't tuck a dress/fancy button-down into your jeans under the age of 30. You may tuck a button-down in if your jeans fit you perfectly and you have a great ass, granted the button-down is appropriate for the belt and you're in a semi-formal situation where you can't not wear a button-down. I love love love love Lucky Brand Jeans and nobody makes better belts to fit than them, at the price range. Note, their prices are high, catch 'em on a clearance. I think their price range is perfect if you can afford it, because anything more is generally a waste of money, anything less may not get you a quality, quality pair. 2) Better have jeans slightly longer than shorter, but the width should be perfect. Don't compromise size, ever, you will always look stupid with or without a belt. You can always do a cool and presently-trendy roll-up of the bottom of your jeans if they're long-- bonus points to show off the selvedge sewing if your jeans are selvedge denim. I roll up all my jeans at the bottom cause they look cooler that way and I can make them fit the length of my leg perfectly, and this show off shoes a little more too, which I arguably value the most in an outfit. 3) Dark wash unless you're hot, trendy, and hipster enough to wear light wash. 4) Absoutely zero rips/tears unless you're on the set of Sons of Anarchy, you've sold your soul to Hollister, or you wear your jeans explicitly to build orphanages in the jungle. 5) OK to buy slightly faded/worn-ish jeans especially if they're dark wash otherwise you'll look like Steve Jobs. Not to be confused with destroyed/torn jeans. Don't be Steve Jobs, but don't be the neighborhood crackhead either. 6) ... Freezer thing? 7) Wash your jeans folded inside-out to avoid unintential fade. But wash your jeans. 8) ...........Freezer thing?
Edit notes: 9) Don't be afraid of button-up flies, they're edit: not sexy, but not weird either. They're only weird if you make them weird. Lucky Brand Jeans has a hilarious habit of sewing the words "Lucky You" vertically down the length of the fly where the buttons are. If a friend decides to go down on you, you take the hilarious risk of getting a great laugh or a slap in the face.
I think with the freezer thing, he's talking about the Raw Denim trend. http://www.rawrdenim.com/2011/09/the-essential-raw-denim-breakdown-our-100th-article/ It's basically when you don't wash your jeans (or about 1-2 times a year) so that they fade progressively and they become "yours". The knees are worn out exactly where your knees are. Not somewhere down the middle of your leg like with pre-faded jeans. Careful to buy Raw denim (not pre-washed) if you plan to do that. Otherwise, you're just wasting your time and waring dirty jeans. About the freezer thing, it's not really necessary in my opinion. Maybe it speeds things up but in my experience, leave then out to breathe outside for a day or two and they should be fresh again. And shower every day you wear the jeans/ wear clean underwear. I guess it goes without saying that if you don't, the jean will start to stink. And it's overall just bad hygiene to wear dirty underwear.
I've done all types of washing for my raw denim. The problem with the freezing of jeans is that it doesn't actually clean off any of the dirt which is still going to break down your jeans. So even if I freeze them to kill bacteria I still had to spot wash them. I've ended up either hand washing my raw denim in the bathtub with a little bit of soap and hang drying or if I'm being lazy I'll put then in the washer by themselves on a delicate cycle and then hang dry. I only do that like once every 6 months. I want the fade to come from me not the wash. I've been doing this for awhile and this article is the best I've seen on it. https://www.washingtonalley.com/blogs/raw-denim/the-10-things-to-know-about-raw-denim-before-purchasing
Ooh interesting. I've usually held on to a pair of jeans for a year or two until I grow out of them, but now that I don't really grow anymore I'll see how long I can make them last. I've noticed with the jeans I've bought that the buttons on the fly eventually create a circular fade around the 'cover' bit over them. It creates a very, very weird situation. Then again I was wearing $35 Hollister jeans, then again they actually felt like really good quality jeans, durable comfortable and warm. I wonder if that happens with all jeans when they're washed and I should start freezing my jeans, or those were just shitty pairs.
I'm pretty sure fashion rules for girls' jeans are totally different. AKA I routinely break your rules #3 and #4. The jeans I'm wearing right now, actually, in fact. I won't wear acid wash/supremely light, but I personally think it's important to have a variety of washes, from ultra-dark to mid-grade. Button-up flies are like intermediate level. I do love the 'Lucky You.' It takes some bravery to wear button up flies. But if you learn to do it right you can pull it apart with a tug at the right angle. It's really just doing them up that's a hassle at that point. I wash my jeans when I look at them and know they need to be washed. IE, if there are visible stains, wash them. If there aren't, don't. (If they are covered with cat hair, it's not a stain but it's annoying, so I will cave sometimes.)
I'm exclusively talking about men's jeans and men's fashion, e.g. 3 and 4 are subjective design/style topics. I also wash my jeabs when theyre actually visibly dirty, normally thatll be like once a week or two if i wear them very frequently.
Lucky You That's perfect. You know your jeans. You got me thinking more about how to wear my jeans. Pre-ripped/torn designer jeans are sad and say little for us as a culture. The guy who came up with that is laughing on a beach somewhere.
I must think about this shit a lot less. I wear jeans maybe three times then wash them. Either I have a sensitive nose or I'm a total sweat hog; after a few days I can smell 'em so I'm just presuming other people can. either way, I don't like wearing clothing that smells. I also put them on, wear them until they rip, then toss them. I've had a hell of a time spending more than $40 on a pair of jeans lately; maybe it's 'cuz I mostly wear Calvins and Eddie Bauer. As far as favorite piece of clothing, I have a 3/4 length Hein Gericke Dakar that was OEM'd for Victory Motorcycles. I bought it on eBay for $70. For a while they were up in the $1000's because nobody was making 3/4 length motorcycle jackets anymore; that appears to have changed. I also have a Schott Perfecto I bought new in 1992 for $150 at a surplus store, then hand-painted with Skinny Puppy and Sepultura logos. It's dope as fuck but I prefer the Dakar for riding. The Schott has been over once, as has the Dakar; they're fuckin' awesome.
Favorite piece of clothing is any of my short sleeve button downs. I go for a 50s boy sort of vibe and they match it well. It's hard to find ones that fit in the sleeve the way I want them too though because baggy sleeves on a short sleeve shirt make you look like a NASA engineer. I don't really wash my jeans. Most of my pairs are destroyed and tattered before I think they'd need a wash. When I do though I use a detergent made for darks, clean them inside out in cold water, and hang them to dry. The freezer thing works sometimes, but if my jeans are that bad I usually just wash them.
Raw denim jeans for sure. I like to hand wash my jeans. Sometimes though I'm too lazy so I'll put them in a delicate cycle with a little bit of soap. I don't think the freezer thing works that well. It might freshen the jeans up some, but obviously don't clean them. I learned a lot of what i know from this article: https://www.washingtonalley.com/blogs/raw-denim/the-10-things-to-know-about-raw-denim-before-purchasing It made me comfortable with raw denim.
I don't think washing them is a problem. Drying is to be avoided. That's where you get the shrinking and damaging. That said, the only reason my jeans get washed regularly is because my fiancee takes them from the laundry pile and sees that they get washed. When I was on my own I didn't give a fuck, and still don't. I think the way to tell whether jeans need to be washed is if you spill on them or tip stain them badly.
Guy or girl, to assert your dominance over the pack it's good to show you've got the best package around. Or am I doing it wrong?
I have no idea Ref. I didn't go to Harvard. :) Secretely exposing yourself while making a proposal is probably CEO 101.
I don't wash my jeans hardly at all- maybe once or twice per year. It's not necessary to wash them more often than that if they aren't getting particularly dirty. Besides, that way they wear beautifully to match your knees, wallet, phone lines, etc. It's a good, worn look. Each time I wash them, I have to get them back into shape because they tighten up. I just put them on, squat a few times, do a couple lunges, and they're back to a comfortable elasticity! They're a little long so I cuff them at the bottom, which looks sharp and is practical. When I buy a new pair (which only happens every year or two), I don't wash them at first. I break them in just by wearing them. I wash them on a regular cycle with cold water, and dry them on low to medium heat, and that seems to work out fine. I wear almost exclusively dark-wash Levi 511's. They are affordable, durable, and they fit perfectly. I find that my proportions- smaller than most men- make it difficult to find jeans that aren't too big or way too tight, but the 511's in a slim fit are perfect. When I buy a new pair (which only happens every year or two), I don't wash them at first. I break them in just by wearing them for at least a month. I wash them on a regular cycle with cold water, and dry them on low to medium heat, and that seems to work out fine. I can't speak to the freezer or boiling methods because I've never tried them! While the 511's are up there as one of my favorite pieces of clothing, I'd say a well-fitting crew neck sweatshirt or a warm flannel are also top contenders.
Don't wash 'em for a while. If they're raw, don't for a long while. Jeans don't really get nasty, in my experience, but the freezer thing has worked for me. If they're selvedge, roll 'em up. If they're not, roll em up anyway. Faves: These guys
My favorite jeans are from naked and famous! I don't know how popular they are in the US but in Montreal, they're everywhere. These are mine: http://nakedandfamousdenim.com/2013/06/19/the-skinny-lightweight-super-stretch/?cat=160 Not sure how the fading will work cause they're girl jeans and have lots of polyester. But i'll try it out.
I alternate between pairs of jeans every 3 or 4 days, washing in between (periods of wear, not days). My favorite piece of clothing is definitely my Memphis Drum Shop hat. Wear it basically every day. Close second: solid dark gray hoodie I picked up about a yr ago. Makes me feel like a badass when I wear both at once with a white tee and jeans :P