It’s Cool to Care, It’s Cool to NOT Care…. Who Cares??? – Raw Denim Care & Maintenance

Often a touchy subject, raw denim maintenance is often debated like the contrasting elements of religion. On one side you will have your purists, on the other you will have your realists, and somewhere in between you will have your kick back Joe’s and Jane’s who really just couldn’t care less. In the end everyone is an individual and should be able to wash their jeans however they want to; whether that’s with salt water, plain water or holy water.

For some people though, guidance is required. So here you are in our That Store Blog thinking about which method to take. You need to first ask yourself….. What do YOU want out of your jeans? Not your mates, not the members, and definitely not your momma.

Here we’ll go through some of the different processes in taking care of your raw denim.

SOAKS:
Soaks are usually used to clean the garment without the amount of indigo loss a machine wash would cause. Depending on the end result you are after in your jeans, detergents must not have bleach, phosphate or enzymes if you wanted more of the “vintage wash” similar to Lennart’s PRPS in the previous post.
Some people add salt to the water. Salt is used to help remove the starch in the fabric and is also believed to help keep some of the indigo on the cotton where not much friction and wear have occurred.

For a soak, lukewarm water with a small amount of MILD detergent (some will even use hand wash soap or no soap at all) will be enough. Use hot tap water if you want some more shrinkage in your garment. Leave for generally 30 mins to 2 hours depending on how dirty the jeans are, drain water, and soak again in plain water to remove excess detergent. If you have certain areas which are quite dirty, give them a bit of a rub with a little hand wash without applying too much pressure. The thighs, hems and seat are usually the dirtiest areas.

WASHES:
Washing comes down to personal preference and lifestyle. For worn-in vintage style jeans, use detergents that don’t have enzymes, bleach, or phosphates. The timing of the wash will make a difference. Washing earlier will produce less contrast through your whiskers, combs, stacks etc. Washing after an extended period will create a high contrast between the original denim colour and your personal wear marks. In regards to fading, something to note other than lifestyle that will be a contributing factor to the timing of your wash is the indigo dye and method used to dye the denim fabric.

When machine washing, take note of the detergent you will use because it will affect the fabric and indigo. Inside-out is preferable as it will prevent unnecessary friction and indigo loss. Many purists will fold the jeans neatly and line them around the sides of the machine. Chuck in the detergent and set to either the handwash setting if you have a modern machine or just a normal setting. Temperature will affect the fade as well as the fit. A Higher temperature around 60 will create more contrast than a 30 or 40 setting, however the garment will shrink more due to the heat. If you were set on having your whisker fades and personal patina, then it is HIGHLY RECCOMMENDED to remove the jeans from the machine before the spin cycle begins, as this will shift the creases.

The sea wash method is a must for many purists. The jeans are usually still worn when entering the water and lightly rubbed where most of the dirt collects. The ability to wear the jeans while they are washed helps retain your whiskers and combs especially as your let them dry on you. After your wash in the world’s biggest sink, have a wash down at the beach shower to remove the sand and salt still on the fabric.

For a hardcore vintage style wash, fill up a large bucket or the laundry sink with lukewarm water. Add your detergent (for a more vintage feel, use a natural detergent or soap flakes to imitate the days before the washing machine) and repeatedly dunk your jeans like a sugar junkie kid with an Oreo biscuit. All the movement and agitation in the water will remove more dirt, more indigo and probably some excess fat you’ve been carrying. After all, this is closer to a true vintage washing method than any machine will do.

DRYING:

We’ll keep this one short.

Tumble Dry – will shrink more, can “boil” indigo. However allows you to control temperature.
Hang dry in shade – preferred method of drying. Hang dry either by waistband/beltloops, or upside down by the hem. Find a place with a cool breeze if possible.
Hang dry in sun - similar to tumble dry without the tumble. No control of temperature.

Note: after hang drying, depending on the fabric, the jeans may feel like cardboard. This usually doesn’t last long and will soften up to normal after a few wears.

Fades, Bleeds, Evolution – the Characteristics of Blue Jeans

Although miners and railroad workers from the early to mid 1900’s wouldn’t have cared about their whiskers, honeycombs or perfect stacks, they still managed to produce beautiful fades on their jeans through continuous hard labour, recognized today as a “vintage wash”. The process from a raw, dry state to that of a personalised worn in look is one of the unique aspects of denim jeans that sets it apart from other garments. This process was made mainstream popular by Nudie Jeans and has an underground following mainly centred around the Japanese and vintage Americana brands and styles. People from around the world ‘experience’ and dedicate their time breaking in numerous jeans over the course of a couple months to a few years from various countries and brands and later documenting about their garments' 'evolution'. Check out www.superfuture.com > supertalk > superdenim to see them all deep in denim discussion.


A Long Term Relationship… From the Hips, Down

Hard on the middle regions of the body at first, raw jeans are like a long term relationship. Give it enough time and it begins to mould around your body and lifestyle. Certain parts may stretch and wrinkle, heck maybe even tear… but that’s all a part of its aesthetic. Due to the nature of indigo dye, denim jeans fade over time as friction and creases form during regular wear and use. Over time and after a couple soaks and washes, contrasts begin to form and become evident.

Enough chat… here’s some photos.

A special thanks to Lennart at The Hidden Rivet for supplying images of his very own worn in PRPS jeans. Check out his blog at - http://the-hidden-rivet.blogspot.com/

PRPS – Tight/Rambler Fit

Front Profile:

Note how some of the whiskers continue around the side and onto the back of the jeans in the next photo. Also the button fly buttons have created imprints on the fly shield.

Back Profile:

PRPS iconic blade edge pocket creates a fade on left pocket. Right pocket has a wallet fade. The crotch is usually the first place to show signs of wear due to the constant friction.

Back of the Knee Profile:

Great honeycombs with excellent contrast. Tighter jeans cause straighter combs and fades, looser jeans create larger and less prominent fades, however the weight of the fabric will also help determine contrast.

Lennart was kind enough to tell us his wash procedure.

@ 5-6 months - lukewarm water soak with a little bit of normal detergent. Hang dry.
@ 8 months - second lukewarm water soak, little bit of detergent. Hang dry.
@ 11 months - washed in the Atlantic Ocean in France.

How they look raw...

Here is a brand new pair of PRPS Rambler Raw from our floor stock.




















If you're still wondering about the 11 month wash in the Atlantic Ocean, be sure to check back; the next topic will be denim maintenance.

DENHAM arrived instores!

Dutch Premium denim label DENHAM, has just arrived instores this week and it looks the goods! A mixture of tailored fits in mens and womens in selvage and non selvage japanese denim. Here is a bit of background information on the label and a few tasty pics of the beautiful store and design lab in Amsterdam, but the best part is, you won't have to travel over there to get a pair for yourself!

Officially known as DENHAM the Jeanmaker, the brand was launched by Jason Denham in Spring 2009. Design progression and obsessive attention to detail make up the brand’s signature.
Initial inspiration comes from the authentic design specimens within the label’s unique DENHAM GARMENT LIBRARY archive. Rooting the design process in genuine research ensures each new design manifests the most potent intrinsic characteristics of jeanscraft and the utility tailoring tradition. The design process itself is motivated by a commitment to rigorously modernizing iconic garment styles as well as a focus on individual details. The aim is to develop relevant contemporary designs with a distinct personality that stand on their own while also representing a modest step forward for jeanscraft and the discipline of utility tailoring itself. http://www.denhamthejeanmaker.com/

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