Jeans – Page 5 – Denim Beer Machines & Coffee

Guide shows how much raw denim jeans stretch and grow. — Raw denim guide answers the question, "How much does raw denim stretch?"

101/Denim

How much does raw denim stretch?

Published on June 5, 2016

We decided to create this quick guide to answer a common question about breaking in raw denim jeans. One of the most common questions for those looking to buy a pair of raw jeans for the first time is “ How much does raw denim stretch?”

We took measurements from a customer’s jeans after he had worn them for about 2 months and then compared them to the original measurements of the jeans. Here is what we found.

A. The waistband grew 1/2″ (total circumference)
B. The hips grew 1 1/4″ (total circumference)
C. The front rise grew 1/4″
D. The thigh grew 1/2″ (total circumference)
E. The knee grew 1/4″ (total circumference)
F. The leg opening grew 1/8″ (total circumference)
G. The inseam grew 1/4″

To answer wash and shrinkage questions, earlier experiments of the raw denim jeans in these styles show the shrink rate at 3.5% in width and 2.5% in length.

Close-up of naturally faded vintage Levi's jeans with whiskers at hips and extending from crotch — A pair of old naturally faded Levi's jeans with whiskers, also known as mustaches or hige.

What is?

What are whiskers on jeans? How are they made naturally and commercially?

Published on March 4, 2016

Denim enthusiasts know the best whiskers are made by starting with a pair of dark raw denim jeans and just wearing the hell out of them. An example can be seen in the image below of a 1-year-old 15-oz pair of Williamsburg jeans. On the other hand, the average consumer may be asking, “what are whiskers on jeans?” Because they only know the jeans they buy in stores come with a worn-in look and can’t tell what looks natural and what looks manufactured.

If you don’t have the patience to break-in a pair of raw jeans or can’t deal with the rules of wearing them – choosing rather buy pre-washed ones. You should at minimum be educated on what looks real or good in terms of washes. This is the first article in a new series where we break down many of the effects seen in naturally aged denim jeans. We will explain how the effects are created to make prefabricated washes look naturally aged.

What are jean whiskers?

Whiskers, also called mustaches, hige, crease lines, etc., can be seen on the jeans below, which formed naturally from the state of raw denim jeans. Lines from repeated stretching and pulling motion develop at the front hip area. Crease lines extend out from the crotch and across the out-seams of the hips. As raw jeans age. Abrasion on the high points of the surface fades and becomes brighter than the surrounding areas as indigo or dye rubs off.

How to put whiskers on jeans

On pre-washed or commercially processed jeans, fabricating whiskers is one of the most copied and difficult effects to achieve. They are artificially created by hand sanding the jeans before they are washed and still in “raw denim” form. On lower-priced jeans, the effect usually looks fake, like drawn white lines. On jeans that garner higher price tags, sometimes known as premium denim, more time and effort is spent to make the whiskers look as real as possible by fading them in and out, mimicking high to low points.

Chart shows how raw denim stretches and shrinks

101/Denim

Raw Denim Growth

Published on July 26, 2015

I recorded the changes in my selvedge Grand Street jeans as they went through the process of wearing and washing. I did this because lots of our customers often ask the same set of questions when it comes to raw denim jeans.

How much do raw denim jeans shrink?
How much do raw denim jeans stretch or grow?
Should I buy a size larger and then soak the jeans?
Do I buy a size down, and then wear them until the jeans stretch & grow?

Above you’ll find on the left an image of a new pair of raw jeans combined with jeans on the right worn 9 months without a wash. The best thing about aging your jeans as opposed to purchasing a jean pre-washed, is you get authentic wear effects unique to your own body and wearing experience.

Combined photos of new raw jeans vs. aged unwashed raw denim jeans on the right side show shrinkage and stretching growth — Unworn new raw jeans vs. 9 months worn unwashed on right side

Below, you will find the whole process detailing how I ended up at the measurements above. Again, the new pair of raw jeans on the left combined with jeans after wearing 9 months without a wash, merged on the right.

The chart explains the measurements in detail of raw jeans before wearing and stretching growth after. It also shows shrinkage due to washing and how much the jeans expand again after being worn.

For a guy like me, with a large seat and athletic legs, the outcome was growth in the highly stressed areas of the seat and waist from bending, even after washing. There is also a lot of friction in the crotch area, which causes fraying at the seams and holes to develop in the denim, which is typical for guys that wear their jeans lower on the hips. Those who wear jeans higher near the waistline may not get as much friction and wear in the crotch area.

On another note, the white in the base color becomes slightly dark from oils absorbed from the skin. After I did the first wash of the jeans, the blue was still pretty dark, but the white yarns were brighter. You can see this in the animated images from my earlier post or in the slide show on Heddles.com.

101/Denim

Fading raw denim jeans time-lapsed

Published on July 15, 2015

Back in the summer of 2015, I wore my new selvedge raw denim Grand Street jeans working inside our warehouse about 4 days per week to beat them up and to create and record these time-lapsed photos to show how raw jeans fade over time. After 9 months of wearing the jeans without washing, I gave them a machine wash to quickly get rid of the loose dye, oils, and dirt. I then wore them another month before giving them another machine wash for more abrasion, speed fading, and to create streaks. At this point, I lost another shade and the jeans were a perfect medium blue with some fraying.