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Any jeans I've had that are actually made the same way they were in the early 20th century last. Levis on the other hand.

by soperj 4y ago

dillutedfixer 4y ago
Look for Levi's with 100% cotton (well really like 60/40 cotton/hemp), or 99% cotton. These last far longer. All this stupid stretchy synthetic fabric wears out differently than natural fibers and then jeans start to fall apart. The all natural ones feel more stiff at first, but they break in and are super comfortable. I just shopped at the Levi's store at the mall in San Jose, and the jeans I mentioned were hidden on bottom shelves under all of the horrible synthetic crap. The good stuff is there, you just have to look for it.
- rekabis 4y ago
  > Look for Levi's with 100% cotton (well really like 60/40 cotton/hemp), or 99% cotton. These last far longer. This. I get only the natural, non-stretch fabrics (Leviticus 19:19, FTW!) and mine typically last up to a decade or more with decent care (turning them inside out before washing, washing only when visibly soiled, etc.). Now granted, this is also a problem now that I’m losing weight, as they’re too loose to use without a strong belt, but too good of a condition to justify replacing.
- munificent 4y ago
  > All this stupid stretchy synthetic fabric wears out differently than natural fibers and then jeans start to fall apart. For what it's worth, I wear mostly pretty cheap American Eagle jeans with stretch and they have lasted years on me. And that's despite basically wearing only four pairs of them in heavy rotation. A big part of it is that I don't wash them every time I wear them. If I don't do anything to get them actively dirty or sweaty, I'll wear them a few times before they go in the wash. My understanding is that washing machines are, by a very large margin, the largest source of wear in clothing.
  - ksherlock 4y ago
    Serious denim folks stick them in a freezer to get rid of odor and if washing is absolutely necessary, hand-wash in the bath tub.
  - dekhn 4y ago
    It me quite some time to recognize just how much wear washing machines were causing to my artisinal collection of nerd shirts. It pokes holes in them!
  - hilbert42 4y ago
    "washing machines are, by a very large margin, the largest source of wear in clothing" ...And the sodium percarbonate used as a stain remover in washing powders rots the fabric and also attacks the metal in zippers.
- kevin_thibedeau 4y ago
  The non-stonewashed fabrics will also last longer.
- soperj 4y ago
  I have got those before, no wash levis 501, they last me about 2 years of (very) regular wear before they get a hole in the crotch area(in addition to other areas I don't care as much about) and are not really usable. I've had a pair of unbranded brand (14.5 oz selvedge) for about 4 years with not nearly the wear.
yamtaddle 4y ago
Looked for but couldn't find prices for, say, 1920s Levis. Wouldn't be surprised if they're not too far off from what you have to pay for actually-good jeans today, adjusted for inflation or as a fraction of median income.
dekhn 4y ago
Huh? I buy 505s every decade or so. I think they are 100% cotton (and it's a robust weave) the only problem I ever see with them is the knees eventually wear out, which iis a simple patch-job.
- soperj 4y ago
  I used to buy 501s every boxing day when they were on sale. They'd last 2 years before they'd start getting holes, which I didn't really care too much about, except when they got them in the crotch, which is when I'd toss them.

Any jeans I've had that are actually made the same way they were in the early 20th century last. Levis on the other hand.

by soperj 4y ago

Any jeans I've had that are actually made the same way they were in the early 20th century last. Levis on the other hand.

dillutedfixer 4y ago

Look for Levi's with 100% cotton (well really like 60/40 cotton/hemp), or 99% cotton. These last far longer. All this stupid stretchy synthetic fabric wears out differently than natural fibers and then jeans start to fall apart. The all natural ones feel more stiff at first, but they break in and are super comfortable. I just shopped at the Levi's store at the mall in San Jose, and the jeans I mentioned were hidden on bottom shelves under all of the horrible synthetic crap. The good stuff is there, you just have to look for it.

rekabis 4y ago
> Look for Levi's with 100% cotton (well really like 60/40 cotton/hemp), or 99% cotton. These last far longer. This. I get only the natural, non-stretch fabrics (Leviticus 19:19, FTW!) and mine typically last up to a decade or more with decent care (turning them inside out before washing, washing only when visibly soiled, etc.). Now granted, this is also a problem now that I’m losing weight, as they’re too loose to use without a strong belt, but too good of a condition to justify replacing.
munificent 4y ago
> All this stupid stretchy synthetic fabric wears out differently than natural fibers and then jeans start to fall apart. For what it's worth, I wear mostly pretty cheap American Eagle jeans with stretch and they have lasted years on me. And that's despite basically wearing only four pairs of them in heavy rotation. A big part of it is that I don't wash them every time I wear them. If I don't do anything to get them actively dirty or sweaty, I'll wear them a few times before they go in the wash. My understanding is that washing machines are, by a very large margin, the largest source of wear in clothing.
- ksherlock 4y ago
  Serious denim folks stick them in a freezer to get rid of odor and if washing is absolutely necessary, hand-wash in the bath tub.
- dekhn 4y ago
  It me quite some time to recognize just how much wear washing machines were causing to my artisinal collection of nerd shirts. It pokes holes in them!
- hilbert42 4y ago
  "washing machines are, by a very large margin, the largest source of wear in clothing" ...And the sodium percarbonate used as a stain remover in washing powders rots the fabric and also attacks the metal in zippers.
kevin_thibedeau 4y ago
The non-stonewashed fabrics will also last longer.
soperj 4y ago
I have got those before, no wash levis 501, they last me about 2 years of (very) regular wear before they get a hole in the crotch area(in addition to other areas I don't care as much about) and are not really usable. I've had a pair of unbranded brand (14.5 oz selvedge) for about 4 years with not nearly the wear.

yamtaddle 4y ago

Looked for but couldn't find prices for, say, 1920s Levis. Wouldn't be surprised if they're not too far off from what you have to pay for actually-good jeans today, adjusted for inflation or as a fraction of median income.

dekhn 4y ago

Huh? I buy 505s every decade or so. I think they are 100% cotton (and it's a robust weave) the only problem I ever see with them is the knees eventually wear out, which iis a simple patch-job.

soperj 4y ago
I used to buy 501s every boxing day when they were on sale. They'd last 2 years before they'd start getting holes, which I didn't really care too much about, except when they got them in the crotch, which is when I'd toss them.