Saturday, January 15, 2011; 5:24 PM
WALNUT CREEK, CALIF. – You might want to think twice about washing that new pair of jeans. Or even taking them off. Because a lot of the cool kids don’t – for months at a time.
Some even use them as pajamas. Although it’s probably safe to presume they at least come off for showers.
“I have known people to sleep in them,” says Lorna Burford, who runs DenimBlog.com. “I wouldn’t myself, as they are not the most comfortable jeans in the world. But yes, the myth is very true.”
Detergent companies may not like it, but there’s a serious movement among denim enthusiasts, a.k.a. Denimheads, to buy raw denim and wear their jeans until they’re molded to the wearer’s body – not to mention whatever they keep in their pockets. Or, as Burford says, “the imprints of your lifestyle.”
“You have to make sure you buy raw, dry denim,” she says. “It’s denim that’s untreated and unwashed so it’s straight from the roll. When you wash them, the dye will fade.”
The reason Denimheads don’t wash their raw jeans, she says, is “you will get authentic-looking honeycombs on the back of the knees and lap whiskering,” which, aesthetically speaking, are good things.
“I never waited the full six months with my jeans,” Burford says. “I think I got to 30 to 40 wears before washing them. It’s really hard to wait so long.”
Especially to people who mind food stains and accumulated dirt. But that’s what spot cleaning is for.
A Denimhead is usually a fashion-conscious person in his or her 20s who wants a pair of pants unique to them, says Jay Underwood, the owner of Atlas men’s clothing in Walnut Creek, Calif.
“The raw selvedge [self-finished] denim trend started in Japan in the ’80s and has largely been a cult following in the states,” Underwood says. “It started with the obsession to make the perfect pair of pants and continues to this day. Everyone is somewhat different on their beliefs as to caring for their jeans.”
Underwood says raw denim jeans made with selvedge seams run anywhere from $180 to more than $400, depending on how much detail work is involved and how rare the jean.
“Regular denim premium jeans can run $100 to $300, but most fall in $150 to $250 range these days,” he says. “The Denimhead trend is a very small segment of denim purchases and probably will always remain a cult following, due to its nature.”
Even investing that much, some Denimheads shudder at the thought of ever washing their pants, which must make mothers all over shudder in return. Yet, there’s still the issue of the occasional spot or other typical day-to-day contaminant that someone doesn’t necessarily want hitching a ride on their pants for weeks at a time.
Then there’s that whole smell thing.
“I know it sounds disgusting, but the main problem with raw jeans is the sticking feeling because you’ve sweated in them over time,” says Burford. “That does tend to give off a smell. You can definitely steam clean them, that will kill all of the bacteria and smell. You can also Febreze them and wipe the areas that are dirty with a cloth. Just don’t fully submerge them in soapy water.”
Febreze seems to be popular among Denimheads.
“I know some people put their denim in the freezer – it kills bacteria – then spray them with Febreze,” says Kevin Brennan, an account exec for Diesel USA. “I tend to never wash raw denim, as I find in cold water it often shrinks. Dry cleaning is always an option, but typically frowned upon by the Denimhead community.”
Put aside those visions of roaming gangs of 20-somethings in skintight jeans pointing and laughing at peers they catch exiting a dry cleaners. Underwood says dry cleaning is okay.
Other cleaning options include using white vinegar or washing jeans inside out in cold water, then hanging them out to dry, Underwood says. “That is the most extreme Atlas denim customers go. I don’t think any of our guys are wearing their jeans forever without washing. At least I hope not.”
Of course, no Denimhead can rule out household cleaners, either.
“I recommend gently spot cleaning your jeans, if you need to use a damp sponge and a mild cleaner, such as Windex or 409,” says Carl Chiara, director of brand concepts and special projects for Levi Strauss & Co. “I also hang my jeans on a hook in my bathroom at the end of each day. The steam freshens the jeans up.”
The denim aficionados can talk all day about different “finishes” or “washes” they aim for. But the ultimate goal is something that feels right and is unique to that person.
“Pre-made washes do not fit in the right place for every person because of different [body] shapes and heights,” says Burford, who says some people run and or do exercises like lunges to break in their denim. “When you create your own, these fades fit exactly where they are supposed to because you made them. They’re completely unique to you. Nobody else in the world can have the exact wash you now have.”
- Contra Costa Times
www.nudiejeans.com
www.washingtonpost.com
i think i might want to be considered as a denimhead. by wearing nudie jeans average joe dry dirt organic and denim demon aajja selvage without washing them for quite sometime. guess, i’ll have to wait for several months to see how it goes with my own project wear outs