"It’s fair to say that I have an unhealthy relationship with my trousers—but I’m not alone. There’s an online community dedicated to freeing the world from the tyranny of washed denim. It was these people who I turned to last year when I embarked on a hunt for the perfect pair of jeans and subsequently found myself being sucked into the world of raw denim fandom."
"So, what is raw denim and how does it differ from the pair of bootcuts rocked by the average Joe? During their construction, most modern jeans undergo a washing process after they have been dyed. There are multiple reasons for this: It takes off excess dye, it reduces future shrinkage, and it makes the denim softer. In essence, customers buying a pair of washed jeans will know how their jeans will look, feel and fit for the foreseeable future."
"Raw denim is sometimes known as dry denim because the washing process has been skipped, leaving them stiff with starch and dark with dye. That’s why the first wash is so important. With pre-washed denim, the dye comes off uniformly during the first wash because the jeans haven’t been worn. But the longer you wait to wash a pair of raw denim jeans, the longer they can’t absorb the wear and creases of everyday life. When they are finally washed the dye will come off unevenly; more will come off the worn bits of denim, revealing “fades.”
"This process has obvious aesthetic values that are impossible to replicate with pre-washed denim. No matter how hard designer labels try to get sandblasters to replicate the look of a worn pair of jeans, it will never look as natural as the fading causing by by months of hard wear.
The Daily Dot
9 comments:
Like all elite clubs, raw denim wearers are conscious of their superior status in the trouser-wearing world.
So, it's just another exercise in pointless status seeking. Got it!
Wonder how they look with blue legs? And other blue parts... Hey, that dye goes somewhere if you don't wash it out...
My understanding is that back in the old days, tossing your white bucks into a vacuum cleaner bag and shaking them all around was considered cheating.
I recently learned that Lands End sells oxford cloth button-downs that are knockoffs of the old Gant shirts. They're sold already rumpled. The shirts are shorter than usual and you're supposed to leave the shirt tail hanging out.
Intended for men younger than myself, was my surmise at the time.
What does un-dyed denim look like? I've read that the blue dye they use is nasty for the environment.
Why?
Me? Pondering why some people go to so much trouble to remove the blue dye for that "worn" look. perhaps some enterprising fashion designer could start a trend using un-dyed denim.
(?)
I thought pre-torn jeans were still the high status marker?
Funny how just wearing jeans while you actually DO something (instead of sitting around in them) makes jeans have that "well worn" look -- including the fading.
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